South Australian Forecast by Craig Brokensha (issued Monday 26th March)

Best Days: South Coast Tuesday, South Coast early Friday protected spots, both coasts Saturday, South Coast Sunday morning

Recap

A funky morning of waves Saturday with dawn onshore winds, easing then tending offshore through the morning creating good fun surf late morning before a stronger W/NW'ly kicked in.

The Mid Coast was clean and flat, but into Sunday a strong mid-latitude low moving in from the west kicked up a stormy increase in windswell, reaching 3-4ft through the afternoon. The South Coast was small and choppy, building later in the day.

Today the Mid Coast was back to 2-3ft and cleaner but still choppy with a S'ly wind, while the South Coast was a large mess.

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This week and weekend (Mar 27 – Apr 1)

The strong mid-latitude low responsible for yesterday's and today's swells is moving off quickly to the east and with this winds are moderating across the coast and we'll see the surf start to ease.

With the Mid Coast already easing, come tomorrow not much size will be left at all as the swell swings more south. Fading 1ft sets is all we can expect, but the South Coast should offer good sized easing surf from 3ft to occasionally 4ft off Middleton, much smaller and fading from 2ft max Wednesday morning.

Conditions are still looking great tomorrow as a high moves in quickly from the west, bringing N/NE tending N/NW winds.

Wednesday isn't that flash with a dawn NW'ly tending W'ly and then W/SW late morning.

This W'ly change will be linked to a weak front pushing in from the west, with a tiny increase in W/SW windswell to 1ft in the morning, 1-1.5ft later in the day on the Mid Coast.

Of greater importance is stronger follow up frontal activity tomorrow and through the end of the week.

We'll see back to back mid-latitude and polar frontal activity through this week and weekend owing to a strong node of the Long Wave Trough pushing in across the Bight and then over to us as the end of the week.

Currently the first polar frontal system is east of Heard Island, generating a good fetch of W/SW gales.

We'll see this system broaden while pushing up closer to the country into this evening, followed by a secondary mid-latitude front 'piggy backing' on top of this front under WA. An additional fetch of broad W/SW gales will be projected through our western swell window, south of the Bight, slowly weakening as the front stalls slightly west of us Wednesday and Thursday.

We should see moderate to large sized W/SW groundswell building later Thursday to 1-2ft on the Mid Coast, with tiny surf down South, building later to 2-3ft.

Come Friday a peak to 2ft to occasionally 3ft on the favourable parts of the tide is expected on the Mid Coast, with 3-5ft sets off Middleton.

Winds look onshore as the swell kicks later in the day Thursday and from the SW, but come Friday an early W/NW wind should favour the Victor region but creating bumpy conditions on the Mid. A SW change will also move in mid-morning.

The swell is due to ease slowly into the weekend, slowed by a secondary pulse of SW and then S/SW swell from the frontal progression stalling south-southwest of us.

Middleton should still provide sets to 4ft Saturday morning, with easing 2ft sets on the Mid with variable tending light offshore winds across both coasts.

Similar variable winds are due Sunday and with fun amounts of swell.

Into early next week we're due to see some new S/SW swell from a couple of fronts pushing through our southern swell window over the weekend, but winds look onshore for the South Coast. More on this Wednesday.