South & North Energy Lingers, New Swell Expected

Alerts

A Small Craft Advisory is posted through 6 a.m. Wednesday for the Alenuihaha channel and Big Island southeast and leeward waters. Rough seas up to 11 feet and winds of 20 to 25 knots. 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, December 17

Hilo side: Mix of trade wind swell still holding on and fading north-northwest. Waist to head high surf expected for the best breaks.

Kona side: Surf is expected ankle to knee high. The best breaks may see chest high waves on the sets.

South: Mix of trade swell and fading south-southwest will bring wave heights up to chest high, maybe bigger at the best exposed shores and breaks.

Wave heights are on a downward trend for all shores. Trade swell will be in the mix for the Hamakua, Puna and Ka’u coastlines and to a larger extent starting Thursday as winds pick up.

A small northwest swell is expected to peak late Wednesday and linger through Thursday. This swell is heavily shadowed. A new west-northwest is expected to fill in Thursday evening and peak on Friday morning head high to overhead on the sets at the best breaks.

Another west-northwest swell is expected late Sunday depending on how the storm develops.

An out of season south swell that brought a fun little boost the last couple of days will linger but slowly fade through the week. Nothing significant is expected out of the SPAC.

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.  

**Click here for your detailed Big Island weather report.**

Image: NOAA / NWS

Image: NOAA / NWS

Image: NOAA / NWS

Image: NOAA / NWS

Image: NOAA / NWS

Image: NOAA / NWS

Image: NOAA / NWS