Winki Pop
Travel article Surfing guide

Official Rating

User Rating

Difficulty 7

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Break frequency 9

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324 days a year

Fast Wave

Wave Direction

Swell Direction

2.5m - 3.0m Swell

Wind Direction

Tide

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spot author

Username: Ben

Date created: 04/01/2008

recommended board

general information

When it comes to prime surfing locations, Winki Pop is the undisputed king of Victoria’s Surf Coast. This right-hand reef break is famous the world over for its perfect, long, and fast walls. Surfable from 2 to 12 foot, Winki Pop is an epic wave and, as good as Bells Beach is, Winki is definitely better.

At Winki Pop you’ll find barrels, speed-runs and, on most days, good surf, as it is an extremely consistent wave. Winki picks up a lot of swell, can be surfed on any tide, and even has reasonably good shape in onshore conditions.

There are three sections to the wave, Uppers, Middles and Lowers. When it’s six foot (double overhead) and bigger, and conditions are ideal, as all three sections link up into one long perfect wave. This is when Winki starts to really barrel and show just how good it is.

Uppers and Middles are the best sections of the waves, and there are defined take-off spots at the start of each section. These are high performance sections - draw a high line, and don’t lose too much speed through your turns. The local guys are exceptionally good at getting around sections - watch them and learn. The standard of surfing is high out here, and the crowds are always thick.

The last section is Lowers, and by the time the waves make it down here they are smaller, and it can be getting very shallow. There’s no distinct take-off point, and the waves often break too quickly. But this does have its benefits, as Lowers is usually uncrowded.
 
The car parks at Winki Pop and Bells Beach are located just off Bones Road. From the Great Ocean Road there are signs to Bells. The car park at Winki Pop is on top of the hill overlooking both waves, and 200 metres further down is the Bells Beach car park.

There are a couple of options for paddling out at Winki Pop. Most people simply head down the steps to the beach at Winki and walk directly out across the reef, paddling through the oncoming waves and into the line-up. The other option is to paddle out from the eastern end of Bells Beach, as there are stairs leading down here also. If the swell is big, the Bells shore break can get heavy, so once you’re through it avoid the temptation of paddling straight across to Winki Pop, or ‘The Button’ (a shallow section of reef) will grab hold of you. When the sets start to come through, give The Button a wide berth.

Undoubtedly one of the best surf locations on the planet, Winki Pop truly is a special wave - quite possibly created especially for the surfers of the world by the big guy upstairs. 

BT

Wave length

100-200m

Share with

21-49

Best months

March - October

Equipment

Short board

Wave type

Fast

Access

Standard Paddle

Hazards

Reef/Rock

5 Day Forecast

5 day forecast not available.

Air - Sea - Swell - Wind

  • 3/2 steamer
  • 4/3 steamer
  • 4/3 steamer
  • 4/3 steamer

SE

SE

1M / F4

SW

W

2M / F6

SW

W

3M / F6

SW

W

1M / F6

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