Côte Sauvage – La Bouverie / PK20

Les Mathes · Charente-Maritime · France

Today’s forecast: the current surf forecast for Côte Sauvage – La Bouverie / PK20 (wave height, swell, wind, tide and a 0–10 rating for every hour of the next 16 days) are only shown on SurfCams. They change every hour, so this text doesn’t contain them. To check today’s surf, open https://surf-cams.com/spot/cote-sauvage-bouverie.

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The middle of the Côte Sauvage, between Pointe Espagnole and the La Coubre lighthouse, is about ten kilometres of open beach facing due west with nothing to block the Atlantic. Sandbars shift along its length and, when they are set up, the peaks can be hollow and well shaped, much like the Landes further south. La Bouverie, named after the forest house where the access track starts, is the best-known entry point, and other tracks such as the one by the old lighthouse car park reach quieter banks. It suits intermediate surfers on normal days, but in winter it is often a chaotic, unsurfable mess with currents pulling in all directions.

Level
Intermediate
Break
Beach break, sand
Waves
Lefts and rights
Crowd
Some company
Season
spring, summer, autumn
Boards
A shortboard; it is worth driving between accesses to find the best bank.

When it works

✓ A north-west to west swell of one to two metres with an east to north-east wind on the rising tide, ideally with a modest tidal coefficient.

When it doesn't

✕ Big winter swells, onshore westerlies, strong north wind or big spring tides, which make the currents and channels dangerous.

Watch out for

  • rips
  • currents

Best months

April, May, June, September, October, November

Local tips

Check several accesses along the road, since each bank behaves differently and the waves vary a lot from day to day. The push of the tide, roughly two to four hours after low, usually gives the most regular waves; the falling tide and big coefficients strengthen the rips. Go early, before the surf schools arrive, and outside summer remember that no lifeguards are on duty.

Getting there

From La Palmyre or La Tremblade take the D25 Côte Sauvage road; La Bouverie has a free car park (2 m height barrier, no parking midnight to 6 am) and a sloping sand path of about 750 m to the beach, lifeguarded in summer. Another track 2 km north of the lighthouse turn-off leads to the old lighthouse car park.

History

The Bouverie stretch hosted the French surfing championships in 2004.

Travel notes

How often it works
Wannasurf calls it regular. The long open beach catches most west swells, and the sandbanks change a lot from day to day.
Crowd and vibe
Weekdays are often empty and weekends bring a few surfers. Surf schools come in summer, so go early or walk to another bank.
Camping and vans
Several big campsites in Les Mathes, such as Sandaya L'Orée du Bois, Bonne Anse Plage and L'Estanquet, are about 5 km away. Nearest campsite about 5 km away.
Facilities
There is a free car park (2 m height limit, no parking from midnight to 6 am) and a summer lifeguard post. There are no lifeguards outside summer.
Water quality
We found no recent official results for La Bouverie itself. La Coubre beach, about 4 km south, was rated good every season from 2022 to 2025, and five of its six 2026 samples were good.

Ideal conditions

Swell
W–NW best, SW–NNW works
Size
1–2 m offshore swell; starts at 0.6 m, holds to 2.5 m
Period
9 s minimum, best from 12 s
Wind
Offshore NE–SE; handles onshore up to 10 km/h
Tide
mid best
Faces
W (267°)

Live cam

No cam at this spot yet: the forecast and the guide are on the map.

Nearby spots

All spots in Charente-Maritime · All spots

Sources