Sargassum at Plage de la Petite Rivière (La Désirade): today's conditions
Moderate
Visible weed
Plage de la Petite Rivière lies along the southern shore of La Désirade, the long, narrow island set east of Grande-Terre. You reach it by the single road that serves the inhabited coast. This page publishes today's state of sargassum at Plage de la Petite Rivière, a rating from 0 to 5 and a map of the surrounding shore.
The update lands every morning. It is worth reading before you board the boat from Saint-François, since the crossing commits the whole day and conditions can differ from one end of the island to the other.
Plage de la Petite Rivière on the sargassum map
What to know about this beach
La Désirade is the easternmost land in the archipelago, the first to stand in the way of sargassum rafts driven by the trade winds and the north equatorial current. Plage de la Petite Rivière, though, sits on the southern flank, the side where people live, rather than on the cliff-lined northern coast that takes the full swell.
That southern aspect gives it relative shelter, reinforced by the reef running offshore along this side. The shelf breaks the swell and calms the water, but it works both ways: once weed has come in through the passes it can stay caught between reef and shore until a change of wind or current flushes it out. Conditions can therefore swing sharply from one week to the next.
Frequently asked questions
Is Plage de la Petite Rivière exposed to sargassum?
It sits on the Atlantic side of La Désirade, the easternmost island of the archipelago, but faces south behind a reef. It mostly receives what wraps around the island or slips through the passes.
How do I check before taking the boat from Saint-François?
Read this page in the morning. It gives a 0 to 5 rating for Plage de la Petite Rivière and a map of the coast, recalculated each day before the first crossings leave.
Does the reef really protect the beach from weed?
It damps the swell and keeps the water calm, but it can also hold weed that has entered through the passes. The reef helps with swimming comfort, not with any guarantee of clear sand.
Is the northern coast of La Désirade worse affected?
Far more exposed: cliffs and shorelines battered by the Atlantic, with no shelter and no laid-out access. The island's usable beaches all lie on the southern side, from Beauséjour to Petite Rivière.