Southern Tasmania Surf Forecast by Craig Brokensha (issued Wednesday 23rd December)

Best Days: Desperate surfers tomorrow AM and Friday AM, Saturday AM, Sunday for beginners

Features of the Forecast (tl;dr)

• Fun W/SW tending SW swell for the coming days though with dicey winds, cleanest Sat AM
• Tiny W/SW swells next week

Recap

A small, building W/SW swell yesterday with favourable winds for spots that handle the easterly, fading today with early light winds, since freshening from the west.

This week and weekend (Dec 24 - 27)

Into the end of the week/Saturday we've got our better mid-period W/SW tending SW swell due to fill in, but we've also got those pesky onshore winds.

The source of the swell is a weak though broad frontal progression that's currently south-west of us. We've seen a pre-frontal fetch of strong W/NW winds generated in our western swell window, with a broader fetch of strong W/SW winds now being generated in our south-western swell window.

This fetch will weaken further but remain in our swell window today, pushing slowly east tomorrow and fading overnight.

We should see a fun increase in size to 1-2ft tomorrow across Clifton, with Friday seeing more consistent 2ft surf from the SW, easing from 2ft Saturday morning.

Winds tomorrow look average and moderate from the W-W/SW, swinging SW through the day, similar Christmas morning though with afternoon S/SE sea breezes.

Saturday is the pick with a N'ly offshore, stronger E/NE into the afternoon.

Offshore N/NE tending N/NW winds are due Sunday ahead of a late SW change but the swell will be tiny and back to 1ft+ or so.

Into next week some small to tiny W/SW swell energy is due from weak, though persistent polar frontal activity moving in from the west this weekend and early next week. At this stage the size looks limited to 1-1.5ft, best Tuesday afternoon and to 1-2ft though with sea breezes.

More on this Friday, have a Merry and safe Christmas!