Melkbosstrand • Statistics for November

November: Summer Setup With a Few Last Winter Swells

November fully embraces summer setup. The average surf height eases to around 8ft (2.4m) and the period slips to 11.3s, so most days are fun to solid rather than heavy and pumping. The directional spread remains SW-dominant at 22.9%, with SSW at 16.2% and WSW at 7.3%, but there is less long-period open-ocean grunt in the water. The peak of the wave-height distribution is firmly in the 5-8ft (1.5-2.5m) range, which suits a standard shortboard fine.

Wind becomes more of a factor. SSE and S are the big players again, at 21.5% and 23.4%, with SE adding 9.7%. However, only 27% of the time does the wind land in the ideal offshore/cross-offshore sweet spot; the south-easterly is often too fresh, and there are still frontal remnants swinging NW-NNW through. Rain is low at 1.29mm/day, air temps rise to 18.9°C, and the water warms slightly to 14.8°C. November rewards surfers who pick off the dips in the wind and the last cold-front swells.