Makaha • Statistics for January

January: A Rare January Window

January at Makaha is an ocean caught between seasons. The South Pacific High still pumps a semi-permanent southerly flow onto the Peruvian coast, and 60.5 percent of the wind comes from due S, with another 18.8 percent from the SSW. That is a direct onshore wind for this southwest-facing beach, and it is the main reason the wave quality suffers even though the swell is plentiful. The average swell height is a solid 4ft (1.2m) and the period hangs around 12.9s, so there is plenty of energy in the water. Swell direction is almost exclusively SSW (67.5 percent) and SW (32 percent), which is exactly the right window to wrap into Makaha. The moderate 3-5ft (1-1.5m) range accounts for more than three-quarters of the swell, with a smaller 5-6ft (1.5-2m) component mixed in. Water temperature is already warm at 20.2°C, and air temperatures average 19.3°C with only 0.10mm per day of rain. The standout feature is the wind: this is one of only two months with even a 1 percent chance of offshore flow, so dawn patrols on a rare northerly or northeasterly window can deliver surprisingly clean, lined-up waves.