NNW Fades, WNW Builds Late
Alerts
The Small Craft Advisory has been extended. This alert is expected to expire on Thursday at 6 a.m. for all Big Island waters including the Alenuihaha Channel. Winds of 25 to 30 knots are expected out of the northeast and seas up to 14 feet. Inexperienced mariners should avoid navigating in these conditions.
**Click directly on the images below to make them larger. Charts include: Big Island projected winds, tides, swell direction & period and expected wave heights.**
Big Island Surf Forecast, Wednesday November 19, 2014
Hilo side: Surf is expected in the shoulder high to possibly even overhead at the best breaks especially early in the day.
Kona side: Breaks not exposed to the swells will be flat today. Spots that catch some of the new north-northwest wrap could see a slight bump in wave heights possibly up to waist high.
South: Waves expected waist high at best. Southeast shores open to the trade swell could see waves up to head high or more, though sloppy and choppy conditions are expected.
Our current north-northwest swell (330-350°) is expected to continue to fade today. The best breaks along the Hamakua coast will be biggest early in the day as surf heights will steadily fade through the day. Kona side will be much smaller, but may still catch a small amount of the swell energy as the swell wraps. North Kohala is more likely to catch this wrap than areas farther south.
Another, but slightly smaller west-northwest swell (300-330°) is expected to slowly build late Wednesday and peak through the afternoon on Thursday. Expected wave heights are up to about head high for the Hilo side and waist high for the Kona side.
Our current small bump (220-190°) is expected to be waist high or less at the best breaks Wednesday through Friday. Otherwise, super small trace amounts of swell expected out of the SPAC. There isn’t much on the horizon to get excited about.
Keep in mind, surf heights are measured on the face of the wave from trough to crest. Heights vary from beach to beach, and at the same beach, from break to break.