South Australian Forecast by Craig Brokensha (issued Wednesday 3rd August)

Best Days: South Coast every day from tomorrow, Mid Coast tomorrow and keen surfers Saturday

Recap

Really fun waves across the Mid Coast yesterday morning and later in the day with 2-3ft surf along with favourable winds. Today the swell was down to 2ft and conditions good again through the morning with a S/SE breeze.

The South Coast was a total mess and poor yesterday, with the trend continuing this morning, although lighter winds have now developed and conditions are much better.

This week and weekend (Aug 4 - 7)

We've got a great run of waves for the South Coast over the coming period with persistent offshore winds and smaller swells best suited to magnets like Waits and Parsons.

Firstly tomorrow a new W/SW groundswell is due into the morning from a pre-frontal fetch of W/NW gales moving through our western swell window the last few days.

This should keep 1-2ft sets hitting the Mid Coast, fading from 1ft+ Friday.

The South Coast should see 3ft waves off Middleton and 4-5ft sets at Waits and Parsons, easing from 2-3ft Friday.

Conditions will improve down South tomorrow with a light NE offshore, but still peaky and not totally lined up. Friday is the pick still with N/NE tending variable winds.

Come Saturday there isn't expected to be much left in the tank with fading 1-2ft sets off Middleton under N/NE tending variable winds again. Waits should still have 3ft sets early, but fading.

A fun but inconsistent new W/SW groundswell is due Sunday as offshore N/NE winds continue.

This is being generated by a strong but short-lived mid-latitude front firing up towards WA, generating a fetch of W/SW gales through our western swell window.

The Mid Coast probably won't see too much size off this swell, with 1-1.5ft sets Sunday, while Middleton will hopefully see 2ft sets, larger to 3-4ft at Waits and Parsons.

Next week onwards (Aug 8 onwards)

Sunday's swell will fade back into Monday as offshore N'ly winds continue. Another inconsistent WSW groundswell is due Tuesday coming in around the same size as Sunday's and winds will start to strengthen from the N/NW.

Of greater importance is a moderate to large W/SW groundswell due mid-week from a slow moving and intense mid-latitude low firing up south-west of Tassie over the weekend, pushing towards and then through the Bight.

The slow moving nature of the low should produce good amounts of W/SW groundswell for Wednesday, through the end of the week which will favour the Mid over the South Coast. Winds from the north-western quadrant will create poor conditions though for the Mid, cleaner in protected spots down South, which won't be ideal. More on this Friday.