100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

Aaron Purchase: good times roll for weekend as winds ease, waves beckon and sun shines

Do you have a news tip? Click here to send to our news team.

Much-loved royalist and community stalwart farewelled

One of the Sunshine Coast’s most recognised royal-watchers and dedicated community volunteers has passed away at the age of 84. June Upton is being remembered More

Athletes from across globe to tackle endurance event

Almost 2000 competitors are set to take on a testing Sunshine Coast event that is expected to boost the local economy by millions of More

Photo of the day: poking through

"My favourite kind of drama," writes Katzinka Tschierschky of this photo taken at Peregian Beach. If you have a photo of the day offering, email More

$9m penthouse sale sets record in coveted area

A $9 million deal for a penthouse has set a record for apartments in a prized area of the Sunshine Coast. The Lorient Penthouse at More

Police operation targets anti-social behaviour by youths

Police have launched an operation to prevent and disrupt disorderly behaviour by young people on the Sunshine Coast. Officers from the Tactical Crime Squad, Child More

Cruising in style: two-storey floating venue opens

A new floating venue offering a ‘nautical chic’ experience has begun cruising a popular waterway. The Boat Mooloolaba operates along the Mooloolah River, offering sunset More

We are in for some classic autumn conditions this weekend with the promise of quality waves arriving just in time for the start of the school holiday break.

Strong south-easterly winds Friday will fall away into Saturday and Sunday, which will be mainly sunny with minimum temperatures around 18C and maximums 27C-28C.

An interesting feature, if predictions hold true, will be a 12-to-13 second-period SSE swell, which will reach 2-3m offshore.

Our swell is usually in the 7-10-second range and the longer distance between swells usually means it has travelled farther to get here and will be cleaner – and give surfers fewer waves to duck-dive on their paddle out.

Due to the southerly angle, we are likely to only see waves of 1m inshore and the best time to surf will be early when the winds are more south-westerly.

Most beaches will be in play and the points at Moffat and Alexandra Headland should offer some excitement, with Sunday morning most likely providing the best conditions.

As a light north-easterly is predicted through Sunday, Kings Beach and Happy Valley will be worth a look.

The best time for a swim will be in the morning with high tides at 8:30am and 9am respectively. Low tides will be 2:45pm and 3:15pm so if you plan to head down to the beach after lunch be mindful that the rips will be working hard as the tide drops.

We’ve seen some really calm flat surf conditions over the past few days for the first time in quite a while.

It’s been a good chance for our beaches to stabilise and recover somewhat after a fair old battering over the past couple of months.

The sand banks will have had an opportunity to settle and reform and the water clarity continues to improve.

The BOM is suggesting there’s a chance of a shower but only very small amounts of rain if that does eventuate, so it shouldn’t dampen the spirits too much.

Enjoy your weekend and if you’re heading to the beach make sure you, of course, only swim between the red and yellow flags!

Aaron Purchase is Surf Life Saving Queensland’s regional manager for the Sunshine Coast. His column in sunshinecoastnews.com.au keeps the community informed of what’s happening on the beach and offers tips on how to stay safe.

Subscribe to SCN’s free daily news email

This field is hidden when viewing the form
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
[scn_go_back_button] Return Home
Share