Bells Beach • Statistics for January

January: Summer Doldrums and Fickle Windows

The summer doldrums have a firm grip on Bells Beach. The average swell height checks in at 1.2m (4ft) with an average period of 11.0 seconds, so there is energy in the water, but much of it lacks the long-period organization needed to make the SE-facing bight fire. The wave rose is dominated by SSW and SW swells, making up 37.3% and 38.6% of the total respectively, with most waves in the 1-1.5m range and a secondary band of 0.5-1m. More direct east-southeast through south swell energy is limited, and the average period is low enough that the prevailing SSW/SW swell often struggles to wrap efficiently into Bells.

The wind story is the bigger problem. Onshore E through S directions dominate, particularly SE at 12.4%, SSE at 15.0% and S at 12.0%, adding up to a sea-breeze-affected surface much of the time. Ideal offshore winds from the N-W-NW quadrant only occur about 24% of the time. With warm summer water at 18.3°C and air temperatures averaging 17.8°C, this is a month for chasing dawn windows or waiting for a rare synoptic setup that brings clean N/NW flow over a 11-second S/SW swell.