Cape Schanck Surf Guide

Cape Schanck in Mornington Peninsula is a fairly exposed reef break that has reliable surf, although summer tends to be mostly flat. Offshore winds are from the northeast. Waves just as likely from local windswells as from distant groundswells and the optimum swell angle is from the southeast. A reef breaks left. Best around low tide. It's often crowded here. Watch out for dangerous rips.

Cape Schanck Spot Info

Type:Rating:Reliability:Todays Sea Temp*:
Reef3consistent
17.0°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Cape Schanck:

The best conditions reported for surf at Cape Schanck occur when a Southeast swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Northeast.

What's the best time of year to surf Cape Schanck (for consistent clean waves)?

februaryBest Season: summer
The best time of year for surfing Cape Schanck with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Summer  and most often the month of February. Clean surfable waves are typically found 6% of the time in February while 6% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 88% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.
clean
6%
Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.
blown out
6%
Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).
too small
88%
Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Cape Schanck Location Map

Interactive Cape Schanck surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The closest passenger airport to Cape Schanck is Melbourne Moorabbin Airport (MBW) in Australia, 61 km (38 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Cape Schanck is Avalon Airport (AVV), also in Australia, 63 km (39 miles) away.

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  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
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  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
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Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.
Cape Schanck Surf Forecasts:
Todays Surf Summary
Wednesday, 6 May 2026, 15:15 Local Time
Wednesday 06
1PM4PM7PM10PM
Wave (m)
1.5
SW
1.1
SW
2.5
SW
3.5
SW
Period (s) 14 14 13 9
Wind (km/h)
30
35
55
55
Wind State cross cross on cross-
on

Swell History at Cape Schanck

Surf stats for Cape Schanck, see the swell variation by month or season on the history page here.

Wind History at Cape Schanck

Wind stats for Cape Schanck, see the variation in direction and stength by month or season on the history page here.

Cape Schanck Reviews:

Interactive Porthcawl Point location map. View nearby buoy information, live wind conditions and surrounding roads, paths and locations to help find new breaks. Click the buoys or wind icon to view more information.

Ratings
Based on 4 votes.
  • Overall:3.0
  • Quality on a good day:4.2
  • Consistency of Surf:4.0
  • Difficulty Level:3.8
  • Wind and Kite Surfing:3.7
  • Crowds:4.2
  • ...

See all 18 ratings


Review
Impartial reviews submitted by Surf-Forecast users.
Paul French from Australia
“Just been online and reading the bullshit about surfing the schank. It only works > 10'. Tide - mid coming in to mid going out is best. At that size at a lower tide you are caught by the heavy kelp grabbing your fins trying a bottom turn and if you fall off can be fun waiting for the next wave to release you. Great wave for experienced surfers.
Best I've seen surf there when > 10' - Dave French, Greg McConville , Wally Tibbles and Tony Fowler.

Do not get hurt here as the cliff climb is seriously hard fit.
On take-off a friend had a fin go through his thigh and by the time we got him out he nearly died through blood loss.

Yes there are sharks - but they are everywhere.

Cheers Frenchie !!!”

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