Picnic Tables • Statistics for January

January: Midwinter Consistency

January is one of the most dependable months for surf at Picnic Tables. The average swell height runs around 2.5ft (0.8m) with a period of 8.2s, which is punchy and rideable rather than powerful. The swell rose is heavily weighted in the useful east-to-northeast directions: E swell accounts for 22 percent of the total, ENE 16 percent, NE 14 percent and ESE 9 percent, meaning roughly 60 percent of the waves are moving in a direction that works well for this exposed beach.

Wind is the limiting factor. The ideal offshore quadrant from SW to WNW blows only 15 percent of the time, while the onshore NE/ENE/E/ESE directions combine to about 23 percent. NNW/NW winds are also common at 13 and 8 percent respectively, often gusting in the 20-40kph range after frontal passages. When a cold front clears the coast and the wind swings west, the E/NE groundswell gets groomed into clean, hollow-looking walls. Air temperatures average 17.9°C, water is a warm 21.0°C, and precipitation is moderate at 2.34 mm/day.