Thursday
Weather
It’s been a bit of a monotonous week, Every day, a NE’ly wind adding a chill factor to the already low temperatures (4-6°C) and a steady stream of showers, mostly of rain but every now and then with a wintry mix of hail or sleet. So when is it all going to end? Hopefully the subtle changes are imminent. For Thursday, the breeze will still be NE’ly but it will be so light that, coupled with some lengthy sunny spells, it should actually feel quite pleasant. Once again, the mercury won’t climb any higher than the 6°C mark, but it really will feel so much more comfortable, so you might even be tempted to take your hats and gloves off. As for the showers, there is a slim risk that we will catch the odd one in the morning, but the vast majority of the day should be dry.
Surf and the Water
Some very small but long-period swell, might just mean that we are blessed with some good quality longboard waves. It’s a bit of a close call, as to whether the waves will be about ankle-high or thigh-high, but the chances will be pretty much equal throughout the day, because the tidal movements are going to be quite small… around 3.2m low at 6:20am then roughly 7.7m high at 12:30pm.
Friday
Weather
Small changes again, this time the wind will be light and variable in direction and the temperature will be about the same. As for the showers, I'm afraid the computer models are now forecasting them to be scattered all over our area, rather than out west as they had previously predicted. Furthermore, with such light winds they could end up being rather prolonged and much more likely to turn to sleet.
Surf and the Water
Once again, there’s a slim chance of a few surfable ripples. However, much like the weather, it’s probably best not to set your heart on it. Good conditions all around the island for our cold-water swimmers, thanks to the lack of wind. Low water will be around 3.1m low at 7:40am and high water will be roughly 7.6m at 1:50pm.
The Weekend
Weather
The NE’ly aiflow will continue, but the temperature should climb slightly higher than the previous days (peaking at 7°C) and we should see a continuing trend towards drier weather. Both days will be a mixed bag of cloud and sunshine, but the risk of showers should be completely over by mid-morning Saturday.
Surf and the Water
Flat surf but good swimming conditions along the south and west coasts. Best around the times of high tide, which will be during the afternoons.
Next Week
Weather
All change. No more frigid air from Eastern Europe. Monday and Tuesday will see a strengthening WNW’ly wind, which will gradually lift our temperatures all the way up to 10°C (wow that’s double figures!). Carrying on through the rest of the week, with winds backing to a SW’ly direction, we should go all the way to 12°C, so you might even get to switch your heaters off. However, this will be offset by gloomy skies and perhaps a few spells of rain, drizzle and mist.
Surf and the Water
Choppy sloppy surf, but far from flat… 2-3 feet on Monday and Tuesday, probably picking up to 4 or 5 feet from Wednesday onward. Swimmers will now want to switch to the east coast to find a little shelter and comfort. The tidal range will steadily increase, until we see spring highs of about 9.4m during breakfast time on Thursday and Friday (only causing minor splashes along the west coast road and no trouble at all along the east coast road).
The next forecast update will be on Friday evening.
Previous Weather Fox ForecastsTide Tables
Swim Conditions
Ormering
Lihou Causeway