Well, it has been another week of varied weather conditions, but it has been quite good weather for the most part as sunny skies were the norm, but we certainly did feel the brunt of another cold snap from Wednesday.
Could this be the last one for Winter? Let’s hope so!
This morning will once again bring another cold start to the day before the temperatures become milder across the weekend and we return to double figure minimum temperatures on both Saturday and Sunday.
However, the winds will also turn more onshore over the coming days and creep up to become more moderate in strength.
The winds this morning will be light (around 5 to 10 knots) and from the S/SW to S/SE before they swing more from the E/SE by this afternoon, and creep up to 10 to 15 knots in strength.
Tomorrow will then bring S/SE winds in the morning at around 10 knots before they increase to around 15 knots from the E/SE by the afternoon.
Sunday will then bring E/SE winds at around 10 knots early before they increase to 15+ knots through the afternoon.
Swimming
For the most part, the swimming conditions have been quite good during this past week – well apart from those choppy northerly conditions on Tuesday afternoon anyway!
As we look ahead to the coming days, the general pattern will be the same each day – mostly calm and gentle swimming conditions through the mornings, that will then be replaced by choppy and slightly messy ocean conditions through the afternoons.
Therefore, the best time for swimmers will be during the mornings – pretty much up until mid to late morning – as this will be when the tide is higher and the winds lighter.
All beaches will provide good swimming conditions through the mornings, but from about midday onwards, beaches that provide some protection from the prevailing winds will be slightly better – Hervey Bay, Agnes Water, Moore Park Beach and Nielson Park Beach look to the better options in the afternoons.
Please check with the Lifeguard on duty, read any safety signage or messages, AND most importantly please swim only at patrolled beaches, only between the red and yellow flags, and only during patrol times – remember, if we can’t see you, we can’t save you!
BEACH PATROLS: Today and weekdays – NIL
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY – 9 am to 5 pm at Kelly’s Beach and Agnes Water ONLY
Surfing
Local surfers were able to find some clean, fun waves about our local beaches during this past week, with Tuesday probably being the pick of the days when the waves were at the largest of the week.
Looking ahead to today and into the weekend, we can expect the waves to remain quite small, but clean again today, but as we get into the weekend, we should see another slight increase in wave heights.
Again, the size will be nothing special, but both tomorrow morning and again Sunday morning, could be worth an early look.
The best beaches are likely to be Agnes Water, Nielson Park Beach and Mon Repos, but Moore Park Beach and Kelly’s Beach could also be worth a sneaky look too. Good Luck!
For the SUP and Ocean Ski Paddlers, each afternoon from today to Sunday, should provide enough winds for a south to north downwind paddle, but for those looking for a more relaxed and gentler ocean paddle, you will need to hit the beaches through the early mornings while to winds are light and the ocean slightly calmer.
EVENTS: Nil.