South Australian Forecast by Craig Brokensha (issued Wednesday 24th April)

Best Days: South Coast tomorrow, Mid Coast Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, South Coast Sunday and Monday mornings, Mid Coast later next week

Recap

Small clean waves on offer down South both yesterday and this morning, with today being the straightest, best at swell magnets.

The Mid Coast was around 1ft+ yesterday, while today a mix of new W/SW swells are filling in with clean 1-1.5ft sets. Middleton should reach 2ft later today but conditions will be bumpy with an onshore breeze.

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This week and weekend (Apr 25 - 28)

This afternoon's mix of long-range W/SW groundswell and closer-range swell should ease temporarily into tomorrow morning ahead of a better increase in SW groundswell through the afternoon.

This SW groundswell is being generated by a good mid-latitude front passing under the country, producing a fetch of W/SW gales. Size wise tomorrow morning looks be on the slow side down South and around 2ft to possibly 3ft off Middleton but building to 3ft+ into the afternoon while the Mid Coast should persist around 1-1.5ft.

Winds look favourable for both coasts tomorrow with a variable NE breeze on the Mid and NW offshore down South, with the afternoon bumpy and best in protected spots with W/NW-W/SW winds.

Of greater importance is the deepening and strengthening low forming on the back of the mid-latitude front, with it broadening while projecting an excellent fetch of severe-gale to storm-force W/SW tending SW winds under the country and up through our south-western swell window, pushing across Tasmania on Friday.

The storm-force winds acting on top an active sea state will result in a very large and powerful long-period S/SW groundswell event, building Friday afternoon and easing Saturday from a still large and powerful size.

Friday morning looks to start from 3-4ft or so, but we'll see the swell double in size into the afternoon, reaching a strong 8ft later in the day, bigger at Waits and Parsons. The direction won't be great for the Mid but we should still see sets building to 2-3ft later in the day and winds look to still be onshore for the South Coast and improving for the Mid Coast late with a fresh W/SW tending S/SW breeze, S/SE late in the day.

Saturday will unfortunately remain onshore on the South Coast with a S/SW breeze, S/SE early on the Mid as the swell eases from 6-8ft and 2ft respectively. There's an outside chance for a dawn W'ly around Victor but we'll review this one last time Friday.

Sunday looks better down South as winds tend W/NW along with a reinforcing SW swell, generated by a broad though relatively weak moving in under the country Friday and Saturday.

This should keep Middleton around 3-4ft with tiny 1ft+ waves on the Mid Coast.

Monday will clean right up with a light offshore N'ly wind but the swell will be on the ease from 3ft+ or so off Middleton.

Longer term we'll see a temporary low point in swell Tuesday afternoon ahead of some fun new W/SW swell Wednesday afternoon and more so late week. The Mid should see a bit of size as winds swing to the S'th, but we'll confirm this Friday.