South Point • Statistics for September

September: The Long Goodbye of the Winter Swell

September continues to deliver serious Southern Ocean energy, with an average swell height of 2.6m (8.5ft) and an average period of 13.2s. SW is the primary direction at 28.4%, WSW comes in at 15.9%, and W adds 3.5% - keeping the ideal westerly window around 20.5%. The distribution is still very much winter-like, with plenty of swell in the 1.5-2.5m range and a meaningful over-2.5m contingent in the WSW bin. South Point has no trouble holding size in September; if anything, the challenge is finding a clean day.

The bad onshore wind sector remains large at 38.9%, with WSW 11.8%, W 10.7% and WNW 9.9%. Ideal surfing conditions are 18%, while the offshore ENE-E-ESE-SE quadrant provides 17.2% of the wind distribution. As spring progresses, the highs and lows become more mobile, and the timing of wind shifts becomes increasingly important. Air temperature is still cool at 14.4°C, water temperature is a cold 17.3°C, and rainfall eases to 2.52 mm/day compared to winter peaks. September is a transition month where the size is still there but the windows become more intermittent. Watch for a high pressure cell moving in behind a front - those days deliver big, clean, powerful surf with fewer crowds than the peak winter months.