Southeast Queensland and Northern New South Wales Surf Forecast by Ben Matson (issued Friday 9th May)
Best Days: Sat: decent S/SE swell in Northern NSW with good winds across the Mid North Coast (probably OK early morning in the Far North, and also in SE Qld - but it'll be much smaller north of the border). Sun: steadily easing swell with good winds in most regions.
Right now we’re seeing an increase in mainly short range S’ly swell, but some mid-range energy has already reached the Mid North Coast and will fill in across remaining regions overnight, generated by a strong fetch that entered the southern Tasman Sea yesterday.
Wednesday’s building swell will be generated by a strong front presently crossing the Tasmanian coast. It’s a strong, dynamic system but is poorly aligned for the Australian East Coast (quite SW-NE in orientation through the lower Tasman Sea) so swell prospects will be down a bit compared to a more meridionally aligned fetch.
Now, model derived forecasts are an inexact science at the best of times. So if I were positioned somewhere between Port Mac and say, Yamba, about mid-afternoon on Sunday, I don’t think it’d be unreasonable to glance an expectant eye across the coast in hope of some early forerunners.
This change will whip up a small south swell for exposed south facing beaches on Thursday, but it looks like the biggest beneficiary will be the Lower Mid North Coast, which should see an earlier influence from a building ridge of high pressure - fresh southerly winds at dawn winds are expected to go variable by lunchtime ahead of a late afternoon nor’easter.
Steadily easing swells and freshening NW tending W’ly winds are expected on Wednesday, which should be primo for most of the open beaches in Northern NSW
