Conditions at St. Peter-Ording in December
December: The Winter Peak Arrives
December is the peak of the St. Peter-Ording surf calendar, at least in terms of raw wave energy. The average swell height reaches 1.2m (4ft) and the average period is 5.9s, nearly matching January for the biggest and most consistent swell of the year. The swell direction table shows WSW at 15.7%, W at 14.0%, WNW at 12.9% and NW at 10.4%, with SW adding another 10.7%-a textbook winter mix for this west-facing beach. More than 22% of all waves are 1.5m (5ft) or larger, and the biggest swells are usually tied to deep lows stalling between Scotland and Norway.
Predictably, the wind is mostly onshore. SW blows 11.9% of the time, WSW 10.5%, SSW 10.2% and W 7.2%, creating long stretches of stormy, lumpy surf. But the winter pattern also includes high-pressure ridging from the east, with the ENE-SE offshore quadrant at around 19% and ideal wind at 4%. These are the windows to watch: longer-period W/NW swells, an offshore east to east-southeast breeze, and cold, glassy morning air over the sandbars.
The weather is brutal but part of the deal. Air temperatures average 3.6°C, water temperatures hover near 5.7°C, and precipitation comes in at 3.03mm/day. Christmas week can be flat and frozen under a Scandinavian high, or it can serve up some of the heaviest, most powerful North Sea surf of the year. Bundle up, charge hard, and respect the currents.
Average Spot conditions at St. Peter-Ording in December
Swell history for December
Wind history for December
Swell quality
Analyze the groundswell consistency at St. Peter-Ording during December. Based on historical data, there is a % probability of groundswell occurring this month. The chart below provides a detailed breakdown of the average wave height distribution, offering deep insights into the swell quality and surf potential you can expect at St. Peter-Ording for your next trip in December.
Ground swell
Ground swell by size
Wind conditions
Evaluate the wind and swell alignment at St. Peter-Ording for December. Our analysis shows that favorable offshore or side-shore winds coincide with surfable swell approximately % of the time. The accompanying graph illustrates the average size distribution of waves during these optimal wind windows at St. Peter-Ording.