The summer south-easterly wind affectionately (though not always) known as the ‘Cape Doctor’ has done it again.
Just weeks after a fierce south-easter forced the complete cancellation of the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon, gusting winds have shut down the Race Village (but thankfully not the actual race) of Ultra-Trail Cape Town (UTCT), being run across Table Mountain National Park this weekend.
And while runners will miss out on the gees of the Race Village after running for up to 48 hours, the rest of us are just being driven quietly insane by slamming doors, washing blown across the garden and trampolines being whisked away like a scene out of Mary Poppins.
Although summer is barely here, the seasonal Cape Doctor is definitely in the house. Gusts topping 90km/h hit the UTCT Race Village on Thursday night, and a quick look at Windfinder shows forecasts of up to 75km/h across parts of the Peninsula this weekend.
So why is it so darn windy in Cape Town right now? And is the Mother City actually getting worse? Or are we all just moaning more on our WhatsApp groups?
First up, let’s understand where that wind comes from in the first place.
“All wind is caused by pressure imbalances and, generally speaking, wind moves from an area of high pressure, where air is descending onto the surface, to an area where air is rising and causes an area of low pressure,” explains Dr. Peter Johnston, an applied climatologist famous for his ‘Weatherman Pete’ weekly mailer.
In summer, he explains, the Western Cape sits on the eastern flank of the South Atlantic high-pressure system, around which air rotates anticlockwise. The closer the isobars – the lines indicating air pressure on synoptic weather charts – the steeper the gradient, and the stronger the wind. Right now, those lines are tighter than we asked for.
But here’s the thing: Cape Town has always been a windy city, and late spring into early summer is prime south-easter season. Climatology data from multiple sources show that Cape Town’s windiest months are November through February, with January usually the windiest of all. May to June are the calmest months. November? Bad, but not the worst.
So is this November actually worse than before, or are we just becoming more moany?
Take a seat, I have some bad news for you.
“I can tell from my weather recordings that this month is pretty much the same as November 2024,” says Johnston. “And in fact, in November 2024, we measured slightly higher maximum wind speeds last year than we have experienced right now. It’s not unusual that we have a sequence of seven, 14 or maybe even more days of strong wind. It’s not unusual, but it’s extremely unpleasant. And if the wind blows over the weekends, people tend to remember it.”
So, while you curse the incessant wind this weekend, it’s worth remembering that summer in Cape Town has always been windy. Perhaps it’s just the price we pay for living in this glorious coastal city.
On a good day, it cleans the city air and adds a charming tablecloth to the mountain. On a bad day, it’ll sandblast your calves on the beach and make you dream of moving to Joburg.
Just kidding, we’d never think that here on Time Out Cape Town.
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