Guernsey Weather Fox

Wednesday

Weather

The scattering of showers that lay over the Channel all night, will not really thin out and die away until the late morning or lunchtime, so there is a significant chance of catching one or two very brief downpours in that time. That said, there is just as high a chance that Guernsey will dodge the bullets and remain dry. So its all a bit 50/50, but there will also be a fresh WNW’ly wind and plenty of sunshine, so it should still be a great day to hang the laundry on the line. This wind will be bringing chilly air to the islands though, so the max temp for the day will only be 15-16°C and then the overnight minimum will be just 10-11°C.

Surf and the Water

It could be a good day for some novelty south-coast waves (only 1-2 feet though). That’s also going to be the best place to go for a swim, whilst the north and west coasts will continue to be great for windsurfing. The tide, with a high of about 6.5m at 2:10pm.

Thursday

Weather

The wind will back to a SSW’ly direction but maintain the same strength as on Wednesday (force 4-5). This will bring slightly milder air to the island as a whole, but the difference will be most felt along parts of the west coast which will now be sheltered rather than exposed (max 17-18°C). As for the weather, there will be a slim chance of showers shortly before dawn and then a greater chance just after dusk, but we should stay dry through daylight hours, with generally cloudy skies and just a little brightness at times. Overnight, the cloud will thicken, the showers will become more frequent and the wind will strengthen to force 6, all leading to a much milder night with a min temp of around 15°C.

Surf and the Water

Another great windsurfing day (the theme of the week) and the west-coast surf will also be much cleaner. However, the waves will be on the small side, only 1-3 feet, so a big heavy longboard will really be the vehicle of choice. The tides will be absolutely tiny, with only 2m difference between high water and low water, the high being just 6.4m at 1:50pm.

Friday

Weather

Starting off with the same heavy showers and strong SW’ly wind as on Thursday night, but this will all change to a drier sunnier W’ly flow in the afternoon. Once again, like on Wednesday, that air will be inherently cool, so we might actually see the temperature go down, despite the increase in sunshine. Max temp just 16-17°C.

Surf and the Water

If you’re surfing then it’s definitely best to head out as early as possible (4-5 feet and fairly clean). If you’re swimming then it’s simply best to head to a sheltered eastern spot like Fermain at whatever time best suits you. Low water will be about 4.5m at 8:50am. High water will be about 6.6m at 3:10pm.

The Weekend

Weather

Oh dear oh dear, to think that last Saturday it was warm and sunny enough to be on the beach and in the sea, for a prolonged time in swimwear! How much it has changed in a week. Indeed, we are in for a very wet and very windy weekend, with two vigorous low-pressure systems (one on Saturday and one on Sunday), sweeping across Southwest England. Saturday looks particularly horrendous, with strong force 7 SSW’ly winds and 15-20mm of rainfall. Then on Sunday, it will possibly be just as bad again, but this time there is a little more uncertainty in the intensity and the position of the storm, so there is also a chance that we will do slightly better. I wouldn’t bank on it though. At the moment, I’m expecting it to be just as windy as on Saturday, but with a directional change to a WSW’ly and with the prolonged rain being replaced by shorter, sharper showers.

Surf and the Water

Maybe great for the most hardcore windsurfers, and also for particularly experienced, although I don’t think that I would recommend it. If you want to swim, then the only place I can think of with sufficient shelter is Fermain around the high tide (4:30pm Saturday and 5:20pm Sunday).