Saint Annes Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Well, folks, let's be straight with you. The next couple of weeks at Saint Annes are looking pretty grim. We’ve got a window here that’s mostly full of onshore junk and weak, messy swell. It’s one of those stretches where you’re better off tuning up your gear or finding a book to read, because there’s no real green light for a proper paddle-out. The whole period is dominated by small, short-period waves and cross-shore winds that will leave the surface chopped up. Honestly, the most exciting thing in the forecast is the water temp, which is running about two and a half degrees Fahrenheit colder than usual for this time of year, so you’ll want the thicker suit regardless.

The one break we’re looking at is Saint Annes, a sheltered reef that needs a good WNW groundswell to get going. It’s fairly consistent, but it’s an advanced wave and it often gets crowded, so when it does break, you’ll have company. But we don’t even get that luxury this time. For the next few days, from the 26th through the 29th, we’ve got wind out of the northwest at 15 to 25 mph, blowing right across the face, and swell is small—around 3 to 4 ft—with weak energy readings in the 400 to 1100 range. There’s a hint of longer-period SSW swell on the 28th and 29th, but it’s not enough to make the reef light up, and the surface is going to be bumpy.

Thursday the 27th morning has a slight cross-on breeze at just 3 mph, but the swell is only 6 ft and from the WNW, which is the right direction for the break, but the period is a short 8 seconds. That’s not going to put any push into the line-up, and the energy is only around 700, which is moderate at best. Friday the 28th swings back to a bigger 19-second period SSW groundswell, but it’s small—3 ft—and the wind is cross-shore, so you’re getting long-period groundswell that’s just not wrapping in with any size. It’s frustrating because that long-period energy is the kind that works on a reef, but there’s just no height to it.

The weekend isn’t any kinder. Saturday the 29th has a bit more energy—readings up to 1143—but the swell is still only 4 ft and the period has dropped back to 16 seconds. The wind is cross-shore at 12 to 15 mph, so it’s going to be a lumpy, bumpy mess. By Sunday the 30th, there’s a brief bump in swell height to 7 ft on the afternoon, but it’s a short 7-second period and the wind is blowing 12 mph cross-shore. That’s not surf; that’s just a washing machine with a poor surface. At that size and with that wind, you’d be better off looking at a kite setup than trying to paddle out—that looks more like a kite-surfing afternoon than a surf session.

From Monday the 31st through the 10th of September, the story is the same: small, weak SSW swell between 1 and 4 ft, with periods ranging from 13 to 20 seconds, but no real push. Winds stay light to moderate, mostly cross or cross-on from the west and northwest. There’s a brief glassy moment on Thursday the 3rd of September—the wind drops to 3 mph out of the NNW and the surface goes clean—but the swell is a puny 2 ft with a long 18-second period. It’s surfable, but you’d be counting waves on one hand. The energy is only 275, which is weak, and the long period will make it break a bit too straight at the reef unless the tide lines up perfectly.

So here’s the bottom line: there are no real standout days in this 16-day window. The best you can hope for is a grovel session on the 3rd of September when it’s glassy, but even then you’re fighting for scraps. Everything else is either too small, too windy, or too short-period to make Saint Annes work. This reef is fickle, and this stretch is a classic case of “if it’s not breaking, it’s not breaking.” But don’t lose hope—the fact that it’s fairly consistent here means this kind of dry spell usually doesn’t last forever. Forecasts can change, so keep an eye on the charts, but for now, I’d say give the board a wax and wait for better days.

Stay salty,
Rusty

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