Southern Tasmania Surf Forecast by Craig Brokensha (issued Friday 16th December)

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Best Days: Sunday protected spots, Monday beginners, Friday beginners

Recap

A solid W/SW swell yesterday to an easy 3ft across Clifton and winds were decent through the morning which was a little unexpected.

This morning the swell has eased back to 2ft with the odd bigger one and conditions were a touch lumpy with a variable breeze. A S/SE'ly has since kicked in creating average conditions.

This weekend (Dec 17 - 18)

Tomorrow is expected to be tiny most of the day, but a change moving through later in the day has been upgraded a little since Wednesday.

We're now expected to see a fetch of strong to gale-force W/SW winds generated right under us moving off Sunday.

This will produce a small W/SW swell, mixed in with an inconsistent longer-range SW groundswell with 2ft waves due across Clifton on dark tomorrow and Sunday morning, smaller into the afternoon.

An offshore wind is due tomorrow morning ahead of the swell with strong W/SW winds into the afternoon.

Sunday is likely to see some form of early W'ly or even W/NW before tending W/SW through the morning, but then back to the W/NW again through the afternoon as another front approaches from the west

Therefore protected spots should be OK all day.

Next week onwards (Dec 19 onwards)

Monday is looking really clean but there'll be no decent swell left with tiny waves for beginners.

Our new W/SW swell due mid-next week is still on track, with a mid-latitude front moving in early next week expected to be just within our western swell window as it approaches, before generating a fetch of strong W/SW winds under us Wednesday, weakening Thursday.

A small and acute W'ly swell is due, building Wednesday to 2ft by late but with W/SW winds, holding Thursday morning although winds look to remain onshore from the SW.

Friday will become clean again but tiny, as per Monday. We'll have another look at this Monday. Have a great weekend!