Fremantle Doctor

Exploring Perth?

Heat so oppressive you feel as if you might just melt? Call the Doctor…

The Fremantle Doctor is the local name given to the breeze that blows into

Perth and the south-west coast of Western Australia from the Indian Ocean.

It’s a result of the difference in temperature between the sea and land. The higher the inland temperature, the stronger the breeze.

It’s most common during summer months and strongest of all during December and January. During winter you’d barely notice it. It usually starts between noon and 3.00pm, and can blow inland as far as York (some 100 km away) by the early evening.

The Doctor cools Perth by several degrees. Since the temperatures can soar to above 40°C on the days it decides not to blow, the Freo can be the difference between exploring Perth in unbearable heat and feeling reasonably comfortable.

On the coast things can be cooler still, with stiff breezes that can come as something of a surprise when you were expecting sweltering conditions.

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Blame It On Freo

The Fremantle Doctor goes by many names.

There’s the ‘Fremantle Docker’ (allegedly from the days when sail ships would wait for the wind to blow them into port), ‘The Doctor’ or the short as possible ‘Freo’.