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Kimmeridge (The Ledges) 42.0

#4617 of 5756 surf spots in the world · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Dorset · near Bournemouth

Very consistent, wind is the enemy here, no off season.

Works all yearBeginner friendlyBeginner
Surf score42.0 /100
Surfable days72% of the year
Clean days2% groundswell + friendly wind
Groundswell4% period 11 s+
Typical size0.9 m 3.0 ft median
Water14°C a 4/3 with boots

Best time to surf Kimmeridge (The Ledges)

The best time to surf Kimmeridge (The Ledges) is January, February, April. It rarely works. In February the water sits around 10°C, so pack a 6/5 with boots, gloves and hood, and the typical wave is 1.6 m. The nearest airport is BRS (96 km) and the nearest town is Bournemouth (21 km).

MonthSurfableCleanSizeWaterSuit
Jan83%3%1.3 m10°C6/5
Feb96%4%1.6 m10°C6/5
Mar78%2%1.1 m10°C6/5
Apr65%3%0.8 m11°C5/4
May61%0%0.7 m12°C5/4
Jun52%1%0.6 m15°C4/3
Jul44%0%0.5 m18°C3/2
Aug55%0%0.7 m19°C2mm
Sep68%0%0.8 m18°C3/2
Oct81%1%1.3 m16°C4/3
Nov90%3%1.4 m14°C4/3
Dec88%1%1.6 m12°C5/4

What is under Kimmeridge (The Ledges)

Eight kilometres out along its swell window the sea floor sits over 45 m. Alongside the bank the survey finds a channel, 72 m against 45 m, deep enough to bend swell onto one peak instead of spreading it along the beach.

Depth 8 km out45 m
Depth 4 km out23 m
Channel beside it72 m

Measured, not estimated: NOAA ETOPO 2022 global relief at 15 arc-seconds, about 460 m per cell, sampled along this spot’s own swell window. At that scale the survey sees passes and channels; it cannot see a reef ledge, so nothing here is said about how the wave breaks.

Why 42.0

Seven parts, each normalised 0 to 1 and multiplied by its weight; the sum is scaled so the best spot in the world scores 100. Wave quality and what the spot does on its best days carry more than half of it, which is what separates this from a ranking of where the water is warm.

Wave quality 34.7%
9.0
Best days 22.4%
11.2
Clean days 18.4%
0.4
Consistency 10.2%
8.4
Season spread 4.1%
3.7
Water comfort 6.1%
0.3
Access 4.1%
3.4

The detail

Faces 200° with 42% open water around it. Friendly morning wind 51% of days. Mean peak period 6.9 s. Days over 3 m: 2%. On its best tenth of days it reaches 2.2 m, with a peak period of 10 s. Mellow days (0.4 to 1.2 m): 50%. Months that work: 11 of 12. Coordinates 50.606, -2.131 (OpenStreetMap).

What it costs to be here

Living here
€1,980/ month
typically €1,740 – €2,210
Rent, one bedroom€1,040
Groceries€416
Eating out€238
Getting around€140
Phone + internet€146
Renting by the month, cooking most days, local transport.
One month here
€3,860/ month
typically €3,390 – €4,320
Somewhere to stay€2,270
Eating out€810
Car, transfers, fuel€524
Data + extras€248
Short stays, eating out, a car or transfers.
49% cheaper if you live here instead of visiting

Airport and town on the doorstep, so the local estimate is 8% above the country average. Estimate: World Bank PPP price level for United Kingdom (2025, United States = 1.00) applied to a fixed surfer basket, then adjusted for how remote the spot is. Your own number moves with the season and how you live.

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Spots nearby

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