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Conditions at Playa Blanca in January
January: Long-Period Summer Swell, Locked Out by Onshore Flow
January delivers a powerful, long-period groundswell regime at Playa Blanca, with average wave heights around 5ft (1.6m) and an average period of 13.4s. Swell from the SW accounts for 49% of all wave energy, while WSW adds another 45%, and the most common size band is 5-6.5ft (1.5-2m), with a healthy share of 6.5-8ft (2-2.5m) sets. For a west-southwest-facing beach, this is exactly the swell window that should produce excellent surf.
The problem is January wind. A persistent SSW/SW/W flow controls the coast, with SSW at 23%, SW at 29%, WSW at 20% and W at 15%, putting Playa Blanca in onshore or heavily sideshore wind nearly 95% of the time. Ideal wind conditions are just 1%, so most of this quality swell arrives with blown-out, bumpy surface conditions. Air temps average 19.8°C, water temp is 14.9°C, and rainfall is negligible at 0.02mm/day, but the summer atmosphere cannot overcome the wind problem.
Average Spot conditions at Playa Blanca in January
Swell history for January
Wind history for January
Swell quality
Analyze the groundswell consistency at Playa Blanca during January. Based on historical data, there is a % probability of groundswell occurring this month. The chart below provides a detailed breakdown of the average wave height distribution, offering deep insights into the swell quality and surf potential you can expect at Playa Blanca for your next trip in January.
Ground swell
Ground swell by size
Wind conditions
Evaluate the wind and swell alignment at Playa Blanca for January. Our analysis shows that favorable offshore or side-shore winds coincide with surfable swell approximately % of the time. The accompanying graph illustrates the average size distribution of waves during these optimal wind windows at Playa Blanca.