January sits in the middle of Senegal's winter, which is when the North Atlantic sends its swell south and the north-facing side of the Dakar peninsula turns on. Ngor Rights and Ngor Lefts are the reason to be here, and Yoff Beach a few minutes east takes the same swell on sand.
The wind is what decides the day rather than the swell. The dry-season north-easterly comes off the land, which helps the north shore more mornings than it hurts it, and the afternoons are usually gone.
The water is falling towards its March low and sits well under what fourteen degrees north suggests. A 3/2 is the sensible thing to pack, and most visitors are surprised to need it.
