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Le Goulet

Occitania · Aude · Leucate Village

also known as Leucate - Le Goulet, Le Goulet / Etang de Leucate, Spot du Goulet

Part of Leucate →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

not for beginnershigh crowds

On this page

The spot
Wind
Forecast
Month by month
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
Schools
Tips
Getting there
FAQ

Riding essentials

Season

Mar, Apr, May, Sep, Oct, Nov

Months riders and schools name

How windy

30 kt

Character: synoptic · cross-shore

Room to launch

tight

access rules on record, below

Water

mixed

24 °C in summer

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Intermediate to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

high crowds · busy Jun Jul Aug

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

Perpignan-Rivesaltes (PGF)

Transfer times under Getting there

When it fills in

The Tramontane is synoptic, not thermal: it can be up at dawn and hold through the night. Gusts still follow a daily rhythm, building through the day to a maximum in the afternoon and dropping to a minimum in the late night hours. An episode often runs several consecutive days, so the choice is usually which day to ride rather than which hour.

Nearbystraight-line distance

Backup spotsWhere riders go when the wind doesn't work here.

La Franqui / Les Coussoules
La Mineno page yet
Les Pilotisno page yet
Aqualand / Port Leucateno page yet
Eole / Le Barcaresno page yet
Les Dossesno page yet

The spot

Le Goulet sits on the north shore of the Etang de Salses-Leucate, under Leucate Village, and the Tramontane reaches this corner first. The gap between the hills squeezes it, so the wind runs stronger and rougher here than at the open Leucate spots, and rigging a size down from the forecast is normal.

Water and bottom

The water is lagoon-flat until it blows properly, then it kicks into short chop; you can stand for the first 150-300 m and there are stones on the bottom, some of them breaking the surface.

Rigging and regulations

The problem is the land, not the water. The rigging strip on the left of the beach is narrow and backed by thickets, and on a big day the lagoon carries roughly 50 windsurfers and 15 kiters, so kites go downwind of the windsurf entry and launching from the water buys you room. Officially Le Goulet is a windsurf, windfoil/wingfoil and SUP spot and kitesurf is not among the named practices, while Wesh Center Crew, the school on the beach, teaches windsurf and SUP, so read the panel before you rig.

Best times

Come in March, April, October or November for the wind; if you want a first kite lesson, go to La Palme, Barcares/Eole or the organised La Franqui/Coussoules zone instead.

The wind

locals call it Tramontane; Marin/South wind also works but is secondary

Direction

cross-shoreN to NW Tramontane

Dominant direction

N to NW Tramontane; occasional S to SE Marin/South wind

Kite sizes

4567891011121314

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

In a classic 25-35 kt Tramontane a 75-85 kg rider is on 7 m, and 5-6 m once it runs above 35 kt.Around 20-25 kt the same rider takes 9 m.Anything from 10 to 12 m only makes sense on a light Marin afternoon, and going a size smaller than the forecast suggests is normal here because the gap accelerates the wind.

Character

synoptic

When it fills in: see above ↑

Average strength

18-30+

Typical strength

15-35. In a northwesterly blow 25-35 is the common band and days over 30 kt are frequent; a full Tramontane episode gusts well beyond that.

Strong, and accelerated by the local relief. Gusty and turbulent with it: the official line is that the spot is well exposed and rides safely, but in a full Tramontane it is neither smooth nor forgiving.

Monthly probability of wind at or above 4 Beaufort (Leucate, 2023-24): Jan 43%, Feb 47%, Mar 62%, Apr 55%, May 44%, Jun 45%, Jul 47%, Aug 40%, Sep 42%, Oct 48%, Nov 58%, Dec 50%.

Best months for Le Goulet are March, April and July-October; September-May is generally less crowded and more consistent (2026), with March-April and October-November the highlights. Tramontane episodes can be very strong, and the wider Leucate coast is promoted locally for wind above 100 km/h between Port Leucate and La Franqui.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

riding season from the spot record · the wind series here holds no strength figure

No month-by-month share of windy days is held for this spot. The months riders and schools name are Mar, Apr, May, Sep, Oct, Nov.

Measured at Leucate-Plage (nearest windfinder candidate with data; Le Goulet page itself has none), ~4 km from the spot.

How this was measuredmeasured

The source named below holds no month-by-month figure for this place, so no season is drawn from it. The season is the one the spot record names.

Highlighted months are the riding season from the spot record.

Leucate-Plage (nearest windfinder candidate with data; Le Goulet page itself has none) · Windfinder

The water

Type

mixed

Standing depth

Shallow along the shore: you can stand for roughly the first 150-300 m before it deepens, and the lagoon reaches only about 3.5 m at its deepest. Stones sit on the bottom in the shallow section and some break the surface.

Tides

Negligible. Lagoon levels shift by roughly 0.2-0.5 m and riding here is effectively tide-independent.

Temperature

Summer (°C) 24 in July-August (2023-24), with August averages on the adjacent open coast nearer 22-23 and peaks into the mid-20s in the shallow lagoon.

Winter (°C) 10-11 in January-February (2023-24); the coldest readings measured nearby sit around 11.7-13.

Wetsuit

Shorty or thin top in peak summer when windy; 3/2 mm in spring/autumn; 4/3 mm or warmer in winter Tramontane.

Currents

No meaningful tidal current is on record for the riding area; wind drift is the main water-safety issue.

Conditions

Le Goulet is on the brackish Salses-Leucate lagoon, shallow, temperature- and salinity-variable, and up to 3.5 m deep overall.

The water is very flat to lightly choppy, with chop and kickers building in stronger Tramontane.

Stones can be exposed in the shallow water.

Seaweed is less present here than farther south, but still relevant enough for windsurfers to consider weed fins.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

not for beginners here

Not an unsupervised beginner spot. The launch is small, the Tramontane accelerates violently, windsurfers are everywhere and the kite level here is confirmed and up.

Wesh Center Crew, the school based on Le Goulet, teaches windsurf and SUP and does not run kite lessons, so its beginner courses are no use to a kiter: for a first lesson, take a dedicated kite school elsewhere on the Leucate coast.

The scene

What riders come here for

freestylebig airadvancedfreerideslalomspeedstrong-wind training

Established windsurf base with Wesh Center Crew, campervan parking and a mixed international riding crowd; kite use is more informal and should give space to windsurfers. Summer/high season can fill the large parking area quickly.

Launch and rules

three ways on to the water, and what each one asks of you

With a school or a boat

8 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: tight

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

7 spots nearby

All 7 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

VHF channel 16

Rescue — full text1 min read

No dedicated rescue cover at Le Goulet: no lifeguard post, no club safety boat on this part of the lagoon. The paid supervised navigation and rescue sold on the Leucate coast covers the La Franqui Village to Le Rouet beach sector, not the lagoon. Plan on self-rescue and on riding with someone.

For an emergency, 112 by phone, 196 for sea and lagoon rescue, or VHF channel 16 to reach CROSS MED, which is the coordinating authority named on the lagoon's navigation order.

Launch

Small natural lagoon-edge beach below Leucate Village, with the technical rigging and launch area on the left as you arrive. It is a long but narrow sandy strip, backed by thickets, and big enough to rig and launch only if it is kept clear.Kites generally use a strip downwind of the main windsurf entry, because there is no marked windsurf/kite separation. Where the water allows it, launching from the water rather than the bank buys extra distance from the bushes and from other users.

Hazards riders report 19 reported

Wind

Strong, gusty Tramontane acceleration zone
Powerful wind can be overpowering even for experienced riders on big blow days
Violent, gusty Tramontane accelerated by the goulet/topography; often 30 kt plus on strong days.
Very small launch/rigging area with possible turbulence from surrounding relief.
Violent, gusty Tramontane accelerated by the goulet between the two hills; often above 30 kt and turbulent.
Very small rigging and launch area on the left of the beach, with turbulence off the surrounding relief.

Crowds and zones

Heavy windsurf traffic; Le Goulet is historically and officially a windsurf-focused spot.
Heavy windsurf traffic; Le Goulet is historically and officially a windsurf spot and kites are the minority.

Bottom

Shallow water with stones that can break the surface; wear a helmet.
Shallow water with stones that can break the surface; a helmet is the local recommendation.

Waves and currents

No kite-specific zoning is published for the launch; check current signs before rigging.

Protected areas and rules

Bushy/inhospitable lagoon edges downwind.
Possible seaweed in the northern lagoon, although less than farther south.
Thickets and bushy, inhospitable lagoon edges downwind of the launch.
No marked kite-specific corridor at the launch; check current signage before rigging.
Seaweed in the northern lagoon, though less than farther south.
No rescue boat and no lifeguard on this part of the lagoon.
Night riding is banned from 15 October to 31 December, from one hour after sunset until 05:00.

Other

Powerful enough to overpower experienced riders on a big blow day.

Rules & access

1 min read

2025: prefectural order 133/2025 of 22 May 2025 governs navigation, mooring, swimming and diving on the whole Salses-Leucate lagoon. Kiteboards are exempt from the 12-knot speed limit that applies beyond the 300 m shore band. One year-round zone closed to kitesurfing exists, off the Correge/oyster-park sector in the south of Leucate commune, not at Le Goulet. From 15 October to 31 December no craft of any kind may be on the water between one hour after sunset and 05:00. Protection zones apply around Ile de l'Hortel and Ile des Sidrieres from 1 March to 31 August, and a Leucate municipal order of 15 September 2017 separately bans landing on Ile des Sidrieres and any beach-craft or unregistered-craft activity around it. 2023-24: parking and circulation at the spot are regulated to preserve the site, riders must respect posted signs and dedicated zones, and the parking has a 2.10 m height limit. Le Goulet is officially presented as a windsurf, windfoil/wingfoil and SUP spot, with kitesurf not among the named practices, while on a big day it carries roughly 50 windsurfers and 15 kiters. Municipal buoyage in the bathing season is redrawn from one year to the next, so read the panel on site before rigging.

Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.

Schools that ride here

Rider tips

Look at a Le Goulet forecast rather than a generic Leucate one, and rig a size smaller than it suggests: the gap accelerates the wind.
Rig on the left of the beach, keep the strip clear, and launch from the water where the depth allows so the lines stay off the thickets.
Give the windsurfers priority and ride downwind of their entry; on a big day it is roughly 50 of them to 15 kites.
Walk the shallows before you commit to freestyle; stones break the surface in the first 150-300 m.
Bring the strong-wind quiver rather than a summer one. The wider area sees anything from the teens to 40+ kt.
Read the panel before rigging: kitesurf is not among the listed practices here, the bathing buoyage is redrawn every year, and vehicles over 2.10 m will not get into the parking.

Getting there

Airport

Perpignan-Rivesaltes (PGF), listed by Leucate Tourist Office as 25 km / 20 minutes from Leucate; Carcassonne, Montpellier, Girona and Barcelona are farther alternatives.

Route

Come by car.The Leucate-area spots work in different wind strengths and directions and you will want to move between them during a trip.Leucate-La Franqui railway station and the regional buses exist, but hauling kite gear to Le Goulet that way is awkward.The spot is reached from the D327 at Leucate Village, with parking by the lagoon next to the campervan aire.

Transfer

About 20-30 minutes by car from Perpignan-Rivesaltes Airport to Leucate/Le Goulet, depending on exact route and traffic.

Cost level

medium

Staying

Leucate Village is closest for walking or short drives; Port Leucate and La Franqui have broader holiday rentals/campsites; Le Barcares is a common lagoon base about 12 minutes from Leucate marina (2026). The Aire de Camping-Car du Goulet is directly on the windsurf spot, with 120 places, open all year with services.

No-wind days

Leucate cliff walks including the Sentier du Guetteur, oyster tasting at the Leucate oyster-farm huts, Leucate/La Franqui beaches, Port Leucate marina, local markets, vineyards and day trips toward Narbonne/Perpignan.

FAQ

When is the best time?

March, April and September to November are cited as the strongest months, with Tramontane probability peaking around March and November.

Is it suitable for beginners?

No, the launch is small and wind can accelerate violently, rated confirmed to advanced, though nearby windsurf schools do teach beginners.

What is the wind like?

The Tramontane funnels through this corner of the lagoon at roughly 15-35 knots and is often gustier than at more open Leucate spots.

What are the main hazards?

A very small, technical launch area, heavy windsurf traffic, and shallow water where stones can be exposed.

The bigger pictureEverything about Leucate

Last updated: August 2026