Conditions at Grindavik in January
January: Deep Winter Power
January is the heart of the Icelandic winter surf season. The average swell height is a solid 2.5m (8ft) with an average period of 11.8s, placing most waves in the powerful long-period range. Swell energy is heavily weighted from the optimal S through SW quadrant, with SW at 14.7%, SSW at 11.4% and S at 7.8%, combining for 33.9% of all observations. Much of this arrives in the 1.5-2.5m (5-8ft) range and beyond, so Grindavik's south-facing exposures are often pumping and heavy. The main issue is wind: ideal N/NNE/NW/NNW offshore flow only blows 13% of the time. The wind rose is dominated by NNE/NE winds, while the southern quadrant can add onshore chop. When a departing low pressure system pulls the wind into the north and the sky clears, the combination of long-period SW groundswell and offshore N/NW flow is electric. Air temperatures average 1.2°C, water temps sit at 5.6°C, and with 5.01mm/day of precipitation, expect cold, wet, heavy, serious surf.
Average Spot conditions at Grindavik in January
Swell history for January
Wind history for January
Swell quality
Analyze the groundswell consistency at Grindavik 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 Grindavik for your next trip in January.
Ground swell
Ground swell by size
Wind conditions
Evaluate the wind and swell alignment at Grindavik 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 Grindavik.