West Australian Surf Forecast by Guy Dixon (issued Wednesday 23rd September)

Best Days: Saturday and Sunday

Recap: 

Tuesday offered gusty, but clean conditions in the 4-6ft range across the South West in the morning. The fresh offshore breezes blew the top off the lip at time, with a small amount of chatter on the face, however as the afternoon progressed, winds eased and conditions improved. Perth and Mandurah remained clean under light easterly breezes, but were fairly small and weak fading from 1-2ft throughout the day.

Today, conditions remain clean and inviting but lacked one ingredient - swell. The Metro coasts faded back to 1ft, while the South West was offering small and inconsistent 2-3ft surf. The only saving grace was light winds persisting throughout the afternoon and keeping conditions groomed. Great afternoon for a swim though, Perth warmed to a maximum of 30 degrees.

This week (Thursday 24th - Friday 25th):

The outlook hasn’t changed all that much since the previous forecast, however I’m more inclined to dial everything down a little bit after today’s swell fell to an inconsistent 2-3ft across the South West.

We are still in for a fairly dormant week with only small and insignificant swell pulses. 

Thursday will hold in the inconsistent 2-3ft range across the South West as faint background energy impacts the coast. Perth and Mandurah will struggle to exceed 1ft with little to no fresh swell energy. Unfortunately even the winds look to be uninspiring. A moderate northeasterly flow will dominate over the Metro coasts early (possibly east/northeasterly very early, but it's neither here nor there due to a lack of swell). As the morning progresses, winds will gradually swing round to the west and eventually southwest by dark. The South West will be under a northerly breeze first thing preceding the southwesterly change in the afternoon. If we try and look for some positives in the situation, it's fortunate that this doesn’t look to be overly gusty. 

Friday will a small amount of fresh energy in the morning following a weak swell front which will have filled in across the South West overnight. The surf should bump up marginally to the 3-4ft range, preceding a second stronger period pulse late in the day.

A light southwesterly flow will dominate over the South West coast throughout the day, while Perth and Mandurah will start off under light south/southeasterlies, tending south/southwesterly and increasing in the late afternoon.

This weekend (Saturday 26th - Sunday 27th):

The stronger pulse will be generated by a modest southwesterly trailing fetch moving east of Heard Island today. Yes, it’s a pretty humble little system in the big scheme of things, but it's small area of 45-50kt core winds will provide the largest surf for the week.

Friday may see a few bigger sets on dark, but most of the size will fill in across the South West on Saturday, building to an inconsistent 4-5ft, while Perth and Mandurah will be lucky to see 1-2ft surf.

Finally, winds will begin to cooperate, prevailing from the south/southwest throughout Saturday across the South West. They will be a touch on the gusty side, but workable at the protected locations. Locals of Perth and Mandurah should take advantage of the early session when winds are light east/southeasterly. As the day progresses, breezes will increase and swing through to the southwest. 

Unfortunately, the swell won’t stick around too long, with all coasts fading throughout Sunday. However, winds will be moderate offshore along all coasts in the morning (persisting across the South West till dark) before dropping and tending southerly along the Metro stretch.

Next week (Monday 28th onward):

Any signs of fresh energy look to be negligible in the following week. The next best sign of any noteworthy size will be on Thursday where the swell may rise to around 4-6ft off a frontal progression moving over the Heard Island this weekend.

Following that, there are more promising, but tentative prospects of a larger swell as the long wave trough extends an active node over the Indian Ocean. Until then, hold tight and get some jobs done around the house.