Whale Beach • Statistics for October

October: The Sea Breeze Returns and Quality Becomes Fleeting

October is the classic spring transition where the clean-surf window starts to shrink. Ideal wind falls to 34%, and the NE/ENE trade wind grows stronger, with NE 8.5%, ENE 8.7%, E 5.2% and ESE 5.0%. Cross-shore S/SSE winds are also common, with SSE 8.0%, SE 6.0% and S 8.2%, leaving less time for genuine offshore conditions. Swell remains decent: SSE 23.6%, SE 16.0%, E 13.0%, ENE 14.6%, ESE 12.2% and S 8.5%. Average height is 1.3m (4.3ft) and average period is 8.5s. The mix of old winter groundswell and new spring trade swell keeps waves in the 3-5ft range, but the shorter period and increased wind make it harder to find clean, lined-up sets. Water temp warms to 18.9°C, air temp averages 18.0°C and precipitation is 2.1mm/day. Your best bet is to track the pressure gradients and hit the morning offshore windows before the seabreeze takes over.