Surf on New Years Day

Happy New Years Eve! Hope you guys have a good party lined up tonight…anyway on to the surf.

The surf looks only OK on Tuesday…nothing to get super excited about. We will have a mix of NW and SW swells in the water both of which are fading very slowly. Most spots throughout SoCal will be in the knee-waist high+ range while the better NW facing breaks, mostly in Ventura and San Diego, will have some chest-shoulder high sets.

Winds look good through the morning…mostly light to moderate offshore. Winds go slightly ESE-SE by the evening but stay on the light side.

I think you should probably give yourself a slow start on Tuesday…the surf isn’t going to be spectacular, there will be crowds because it is a holiday, and it will be pretty chilly early in the morning. Personally I think the better winter beach breaks, mid-morning, will be the best call…you can find a less crowded sandbar, maybe break out the longboard if the tide is too high.

Later this week looks really stormy…lots of new W-WNW storm swell but a lot of junky S-SW winds and rain as well. I am expecting overhead surf by Friday/Saturday but with poor conditions. There may be a few protected spots but water quality is definitely going to be an issue again. More details on the weekend as we move closer.

Have a great 2008 everyone!

Waves for the weekend – New NW swell on Sunday

Looks like this weekend will be fun…weather will be a bit iffy on Saturday but winds should shift back offshore on Sunday.

Swellwise we will see fading surf on Saturday. Most spots will drop to about knee-waist high. San Diego spots (and maybe some South Bay breaks) will have some chest high+ sets.

Sunday we see new NW swell (290-300+) start moving in. This sort of swell angle is only going to show at some spots…look for the best waves from this swell to show in Southern Ventura, the South Bay, and San Diego (from La Jolla southward). Those expose areas will have surf in the chest-shoulder high range with a few of the best breaks hitting head high on the sets. San Diego may start off a little slow in the morning as well…should be better by the afternoon and into Monday.

Other lesser exposed areas will be closer to knee-waist high off a mix of local windswell and leftover S-SW swell.

To me it looks like Saturday is going to be a longboard day…winds may not even be that good…so it will be a sleep-in, check the cameras, see if I have anything else to do, and then longboard sort of morning.

Sunday is looking better…particularly if you are up in Ventura or the South Bay. San Diego will be bigger as well but the swell will take a while to fill in down there. I am not sure if this swell will really be worth driving that far, but it is a holiday weekend so you might feel like you have the time.

Friday’s Surf – More waves and an online store (just in time for Christmas)

Friday will start off as another surf day.

Our swell mix will be the same as Thursday…with a little less windswell and smaller SSW swell. Most spots will be in the waist high+ range while the standout NW/Combo spots (in SD, parts of OC, Southern Ventura, and the South Bay) see some chest to occasionally shoulder high sets.

Conditions will start off clean with mostly light/variable winds. Expect more onshore W-WSW texture during the afternoon…and watch out for some light showers as we head into Friday evening.

The best surf is going to be at the high-tide spots in San Diego. The other good combo breaks, in the other areas, will be smaller but should still have some rideable sets. Expect northern LA and Santa Barbara to be pretty weak. The high-tide peak will continue to mush out shape through mid-morning…so you might want to get on it pretty early…or cross your fingers and hope winds stay light through the afternoon.

On another note…I built a little online store with CafePress.com. There are some shirts, sweatshirts, coffee mugs, and hats…some stickers too.

Check it out when you get a chance. Here is the link.

http://www.cafepress.com/socalforecast

Thursday’s Surf – Some waves with a side of high-tide

Thursday looks pretty surfable...our NW and SSW swells will continue to send in some waves in the chest-high+ range while standout spots see bigger sets. The Wind, which is expected to blow onshore throughout Wednesday night (adding some windswell to the swell mix), will switch back to the N-NE and will help to clean up conditions.

About the only bummer is the 5’+ high tide that rolls through mid-morning. That high of a tide will bog down a lot of areas and push the surf up close to the beach giving it near shorebreak shape.

Expect the biggest and best surf at breaks in San Diego, The South Bay, and parts of OC that can handle the higher tide (good sandbars, reefs, or points). Other spots will be smaller and less consistent…particularly up towards Santa Barbara.

Surf on Wednesday – Some assembly required?

Ok Wednesday is looking like a surf day but conditions could be a little funky.

There will be plenty of swell on Wednesday…we have both a steep NW swell and some new, very out of season, SSW swell. Most spots will be in the chest-shoulder high+ range while the standouts, particularly San Diego, Ventura and parts of OC, will have some head high+ sets on the better parts of the tide swing.

Unfortunately it looks like the nice offshore conditions that we had on Christmas will break down a touch on Wednesday. Forecasts are calling for building onshore flow as a weak cold front rolls over the area…these winds will be fairly strong by the afternoon.

Ok here is the skinny as I see it…even though we have swell in the water I would probably do a cam check in the morning, (unless you are still on vacation, in which case I say uh…bite me…hahahaha). I would take a look at the camera just because the of the wind forecast…there is a good chance that the day will start off clean, especially if your break is a little protected, but the front could slide in a little early and why waste gas and time if you don’t have to.

On a whole different note…most of you dads will appreciate this. I busted open the box to put this bad-boy together at like 11:30pm last night. I think that the term “some assembly required” on the instructions was written with a certain amount of sarcasm.

Mountain to the Ocean – Snowboarding and Surfing in the same day

Snowboarding and surfing on the same day…as a kid when I was growing up in SoCal it used to be a pretty easy thing to pull off. A lot of the 909 (and 951) hadn’t been built out yet, most of it was either open space, orange groves, or ranches and the 91 freeway hadn’t completely turned into a parking lot. I remember going to the mountains on those good santa ana days and then being able to make it home in the afternoon in time to get a few waves off a building swell in Newport.

So on Friday (Dec 21) the combination of work schedule, recent snowfall, and weather conditions appeared to line up, I called a couple of friends and we decided to give the Snow/Surf thing a shot.

It was a blast to try and we managed to pull it off…snowboarding at Snow Summit and then surfing 52nd street in Newport in the afternoon. The winds didn’t really cooperate as well as I wanted… so the surf was a bit side-shore and chunky when we actually got in the water…but there were a couple of decent sized sets lurking around.

In the process I did learn a couple of things

1. I don’t bounce back from physical punishment as fast as I did when I was 18. (this I actually knew before I went…but for some reason I always managed to lie to myself)

2. Boarding in the local mountains is really hard on your body…unless they just had a ton of snow expect to be hurting at the end of the day. You may even want to invest in a good helmet.

3. When you are really sore getting into a cold, damp wetsuit is just stupid.

Anyway here are a few pictures of the Snow/Ski trip…

Monday’s surf - are you done shopping yet?

Hey gang…sorry I missed the last couple of days. I am still sore from snowboarding on Friday (maybe the feeling in my fingers will come back some day) and also a little laid up by that never ending round of the bird flu that everyone seems to be passing back and forth.

That being said there were a few little waves at the beach today thanks to a mix of fading WNW windswell and some small S swell. It looked fun and the weather couldn’t be beat.

Monday looks very similar so it should be pretty fun, particularly because it is a holiday. In the water there will be a touch more S swell and a little bit more WNW energy. Most breaks will hold around waist high+ while the best combo breaks see some chest-high+ sets. Conditions should be clean again with just some light onshore texture in the afternoon.

I think your best bet for waves will probably be the well exposed combo beach breaks…they won’t be stellar but there should be enough peaks to spread out the crowd and a little more size than you would see at a spot that only picks up one of the swells. I think that San Diego and parts of OC will be the best call…no worth driving very far for but fun if you need some waves.

Friday’s Surf – Looks fun

On Friday our surf starts to look a little more appealing than it has for the last few days. There will be a new WNW wind/ground swell combo, and some small SW swell in the background. Most breaks will hold around waist-chest high while the standouts see some shoulder-head high sets.

Winds are looking better too…it looks like light N winds (even slightly NE) for the morning, particularly through Santa Barbara, Ventura, and LA.

OC and SD will have a little more side-texture to it but I think winds will be on the light side so conditions should be clean enough to surf.

I would look for the best waves at the beach breaks on this swell mix…the points and reefs will be fun too but the more open beach breaks will let you get a few waves to yourself (hopefully).

Personally I am going to shoot for surfing in the afternoon…I am going to make a Snow Summit snowboard run…then if I get back in time, and the winds hold, maybe hit the local beach break. I love SoCal…one of the only places where you can hit the mountains and the surf in the same day.

Thursday’s Surf – Unstable weather and more poo water

I don’t think Thursday is really going to be a surf day…for a couple of reasons.

1. Winds are still pretty suspect. Mostly they should be onshore or light onshore…there will be a few pockets of cleanliness here and there but they will be pretty unstable and probably won’t last that long.

2. Water quality is not going to be good. LA and Ventura got a decent amount of rain…and even OC and SD had a bit as well. These showers are going to continue overnight and all the nasty run-off will still be making its way down to the beach for the next couple of days.

On the positive side there will be some waves…we will have a mix of WNW wind and ground swell in the water and a touch of SW swell blipping in the background. Most breaks will be close to waist-chest high while the standout combo breaks see some shoulder-head high sets. Biggest surf will continue to show in Ventura and San Diego…but a few of the better combo breaks in the other areas should see similar sizes as well.

Personally I am just getting over a nasty case of the bird flu so I am going to avoid the run-off...but if you are jonesing for a surf you might check the cams in the morning.


X-mas swell update:
The swell for next week is still looking pretty good…forecast charts are even showing the potential for more WNW swell after the x-mas swell. (around the 26-27th)

Surf on Wednesday - Looks a little breezy

Our weather is not looking very good on Wednesday. At this point winds are expected to be out of the SW around 10-15 knots through the morning and then strengthen out of the W around 15-20+ knots by the afternoon.

There really aren’t any breaks that are protected from these wind directions so most spots are going to be pretty sloppy. Surf will be around waist-shoulder high (bigger in SD and Ventura) if you absolutely have to paddle out…but don’t expect much in the way of shape.

As usual on days like these I recommend that you check the cameras in the morning…there is always a possibility that a little nugget of cleanliness may sneak through at some of the more protected breaks.

Swell Alert - New WNW swell for the Christmas Holiday

It looks like Mother Nature is going to be giving California surfers a Christmas present this year.

There is some new storm activity brewing up underneath the Aleutians, close to the Gulf of Alaska, that will likely send a good-sized WNW swell (280-300+) to California on December 24-25th.

Northern and Central California (basically any spot north of Point Conception) will see very large surf from this system, with wave heights easily breaking the double- to triple-overhead range at the exposed breaks. Standout deepwater breaks will see even bigger waves. Because this region is a little closer to the storm it will actually start seeing this swell arrive on the 23rd and then peak the 24th and 25th.

Southern California will see a smaller version of this swell. At this point this swell looks good for easy shoulder-head high surf at the NW facing breaks while the standout winter spots have overhead sets. Conditions are looking good too…looks like sunny skies and light to moderate offshore winds as the swell arrives. Look for this swell to build in on the 24th…and then peak in the afternoon into the 25th.

Make sure to check back...I will have more details on this swell, as we move closer to the holiday.

Tuesday’s surf – more waves and more weather

The surf will come up more on Tuesday…but it looks like rain…and maybe some S-SW winds will start to wreck it by the afternoon.

If you were in the water (or checking it) on Monday you probably noticed that a there was a little more WNW swell in the water. A few spots around Ventura and the South Bay looked like they had some decent surf during the dawn patrol.

This new burst of WNW swell will actually peak early Tuesday morning and should hold waves throughout the day. Most spots will be around waist-chest high+ while the standout NW facing breaks in the good winter areas (San Diego, Ventura, South Bay, and North OC) will have some shoulder-head high surf. Best spots may be a little bigger.
Winds are looking light through the morning but we may have a bit of a S-SE texture to it. SW winds in the 10-15 knot range will move through during the afternoon.

Your best bet for waves will be those winter spots that are protected from S-SE winds…the South Bay, parts of Central OC, Parts of Southern Ventura, and the La Jolla area all have breaks that stay clean on the southerly winds. Points and reefs if you can find them will probably have the best shape...beach breaks will be fun but probably not working quite as well.Unless you are on vacation and have all your Christmas shopping done I wouldn’t waste too much time driving anywhere. I think it will be worth checking your local spots but not sitting in traffic for an unreasonable amount of time.

Surf over the weekend

Looks like we will have some small, but playful surf over the weekend.

I actually got out for a surf today and while it wasn’t great there were some playful corners that snuck through every once in a while.

The weekend’s surf will be very similar to Friday. We will have a mix of WNW (285-300) and SW swell (190-210) that will keep wave heights in the knee-waist high+ range at the average exposed breaks while the standouts spots…mostly in San Diego, parts of Southern Ventura, and Southern OC…see some chest-shoulder high sets. There are a couple of little swell pulses that overlap for the next couple of days so wave heights will stay pretty steady...maybe even get a bit more consistent by Sunday.

Tides will still be an issue so expect soft shape at times. Winds on the other hand look light for the next couple of days so you can probably wait for the tide to swing around and still get decent shape.

I think your best bet for surf this weekend will be at the combo beach breaks. Biggest waves will be in San Diego but it won’t be worth driving very far. Again check the cams in the morning…mostly to make sure the tide hasn’t shut it down.

Have a good weekend everybody…my next update will probably be on Sunday night.

Surf for Friday – High Tide Swamptacular!

I checked the surf at lunch here on Thursday…it had picked up from the morning but it was still tide-swamped and inconsistent so I couldn’t bring myself to paddle out.

The good news is that this swell will fill in a little more and get a little more consistent on Friday.

The bad news is that the high tide that peaks mid-morning will continue to keep most of the day soft and slow…unless you don’t mind surfing shorebreak or have a really good sandbar hidden somewhere. After seeing how badly the tide is abusing this swell mix I think I may have overestimated its potential funness.

In the water we will have a mix of WNW and SW energy, which will be good for knee-waist high surf at most breaks…and a few chest high+ sets at the standouts. Not a very impressive swell mix…but better than being totally flat. San Diego will probably be the biggest and most consistent…north county will probably be the most fun. (fun being a relative term)

Check out the CDIP swell model…hmm almost makes me want to take a nap.




Friday I will probably do the cam thing in the morning. If it looks like it isn’t just shorebreak then I may take a drive to check it in person. Unless you are really desperate to surf, or to taste saltwater or something, don’t waste you time driving very far. It may be worth keeping an eye on it for the afternoon...the winds look look light and the tide will be lower so there may be a chance of getting some waves late in the day.

Thursday’s Surf – Finally a few rideable waves

Surf comes up a little on Thursday. We have a mix of new WNW swell and some new SW swell. As I have said in the forecasts before, neither of them are looking particularly strong but the combo of swells, clean conditions, and total lack of surf over the last couple of days could make them seem fun.

Most breaks will see surf in the knee-waist high range. Standout spots will be in the waist-chest high+ range. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few shoulder high sets but I think they are going to be pretty rate.

The tide is going to be an issue…there is a 5’+ high tide that rolls through right in mid-morning (around 10-11am)…so expect shape to be on the slow side. You are going to want to look at breaks that can handle a higher tide. Fortunately winds are going to be light for most of the day, which could give us a chance to get a few waves on the lower tide in the afternoon.

Personally I am going to check the cams in the morning because I am little worried that there won’t be enough swell showing for the dawn patrol to push through the fat high tide. I will probably make sure to look right at sunrise…then head out if I see some waves showing. If for some reason it doesn’t pull together for the dawn patrol I will be checking it again at lunch.

Art Show - JOHN SEVERSON: Days of Surf Glory

Hey gang...since there isn't any surf...and I like to help out my buddies...here is another art show up at the Surf Gallery. As usual Will puts together a good time. Besides who can turn down free wine?

Here are the details.

Adam





JOHN SEVERSON: Days of Surf Glory
An exhibition of paintings, watercolors, drawings, prints and photographs. Several pieces priced under $250 for gifts!


Saturday, December 15, 2007
Stop by for a glass of wine and to check out the latest body of work by John Severson - champion surfer and founder of Surfer Magazine!


@ The Surf Gallery in Laguna Beach
911 S. Coast Hwy. Laguna Beach, CA 92651
info@thesurfgallery.com
949-376-9155

Surf (or lack there of) on Wednesday

Not much is going to change on Wednesday. We will continue to have mostly clean small surf.

There will be a little bit of leftover windswell and some very small background pulses of NW and SW swell…these are so small that I wouldn’t even mention it if we had a real swell in the water.

Wave heights will hold around ankle-knee high…a few of the better beach breaks will have some waist high+ sets. Conditions will be clean but the building tide…and lack of swell…will keep shape soft, slow, and (in my opinion) on the poor side.

Things do pick up a touch on Thursday and Friday. There will be a little increase in both WNW and SW swell…neither look like very significant swells but there should be enough energy for us to get out and surf. I am expecting most spots to build into knee-waist high+ surf while the standouts…mostly in San Diego and OC (maybe a couple of parts of the South Bay and Ventura too) see some waist-chest high+ sets on the lower tides.

Tuesday’s surf – you’ll freeze your nipples off

Well no…it won’t really be that cold. It will be chilly though, thanks to brisk morning air-temps, water temps around 57-59 degrees, and very little surf to get the blood moving.

The surf will be about ankle-waist high off a mix of fading NW windswell and some weak background pulses from both the WNW and SW. The tide fills in fast through the morning…so expect very slow, very soft shape. Winds will be light offshore for most of the morning…and then go light/variable in the afternoon.

Personally I will probably stay in bed…it will be nice and warm there and surfing my pillows will be more fun than dragging my longboard around only to ride knee high shorebreak.

Monday’s Surf – Smaller and Cleaner

Monday will have clean conditions and small playful surf. We will have a mix of rapidly dropping windswell and leftover WNW-NW energy in the water. Most spots will stay around knee-waist high+. The standout winter beach breaks, mostly in SD, will have some bigger chest-high+ sets.

Conditions will be clean…winds will be light to moderate offshore through the morning and will stay on the light side through the day. It will be freaking cold in the morning…so pack your booties and your beanie if you head out for the dawn patrol.

I think it will be fun…probably better for longboarding (or your small wave board)…but personally I am going to wait for the sun to be up for a couple of hours before I seriously consider surfing.

Surfing for the weekend – Some waves on Sunday

Saturday is pretty much a write-off. There will be waves in the form of fading W swell and lots of local windswell. Unfortunately winds will be out of the SW and W around 15-20+ knots…there is no real protection from that wind direction so pretty much every break will be blown out. I would plan on sleeping in, or doing chores, or staring at the wall…because all of it will likely be better than surfing. Water quality will be pretty bad too so just add that to another reason not to surf.

Sunday on the other hand is looking better. Winds are expected to shift around to the N and drop to about 10 knots as the front moves out. Water quality will still be an issue…so keep that in mind.

At this point Sunday’s wave heights will depend a lot on how much windswell is still in the water as the storm moves off. In the morning I expect most breaks to continue to see waist-shoulder high surf through the morning with some bigger sets at the standout W facing breaks (in the usual suspects in Ventura, South Bay, and SD). Expect size and consistency to drop as you head into the afternoon/evening. The surf will continue to drop as we head into Monday too.

I think I will take a look at the surf on Sunday…probably look at the cams first and then if it looks semi-decent actually take a drive down the beach. I wouldn’t drive very far…but if you are stir-crazy and don’t mind a little hepatitis from the water you might be able to pick off a few waves early Sunday.

Have a great weekend!

Friday's Surf - Stormin

Friday is looking like a stay in bed morning…and when the bad weather gets going you will probably want to stay in bed all day.

Surf is looking pretty horrible. A new storm moves over us tonight and is expected to strengthen S-SW winds to about 15-25 knots through the morning and bring in some more rain. Those winds are expected to get worse through the afternoon…and the forecast is actually calling for waterspout warnings in the coastal waters.

About the only chance for surf tomorrow, (and there will be plenty of leftover W swell from early in the week and some new local windswell from this cold front), will be if the front stalls and sets up SE winds for the morning. The chances of this happening are not likely…but you can check this cool tool…it is usually running an hour or so behind real-time. Southern California Wind Analysis



If winds are SE there are a handful of spots in Ventura, the South Bay, Mid-South OC, and the La Jolla area in San Diego that will be clean…and potentially surfable.

More than likely it will just be messy and blown out. Personally I am going to hit the snooze button and then eat some Captain Crunch

Thursday’s Surf – Get some while you can

Overall Thursday is looking much, much smaller than Wednesday. The W-WNW pulse will be dropping quick and will fade to a more playful size by late in the day. Expect overhead waves at most spots through the morning. Santa Barbara and Ventura will start to fade out by mid-morning…so expect the points/reefs to get quite a bit smaller through the afternoon. San Diego will have the most staying power and should see consistently overhead surf through most of the day.

Our weather will likely start to change on Thursday as well. A new cold front is approaching and is expected to bring bad weather to SoCal on Friday and Saturday. Thursday is expected to start off with light S-SE winds around 0-10 knots…then shift more S-SW 10-20 knots by the afternoon/evening. Rain (and waterspouts according to the National Weather Service) are expected on Friday and Saturday.

Surfwise…if you are looking to surf “big” waves on Thursday you will have pretty much missed the boat. There will still be some overhead stuff at the well exposed breaks through the morning but it will drop to more manageable sizes by the afternoon. Personally I would get on it early for the dawn patrol…conditions look like they fall apart by the afternoon/evening and then stay pretty bad through the weekend.

Long-range…forecasts last week were showing another decent sized swell for this upcoming weekend…unfortunately that is no longer the case. It looks like the storm will move over SoCal before generating much surf…so we will get the bad weather without the benefit of the waves beforehand. We can expect some bumpy and blown out storm swell driving up wave heights on Saturday (and then dropping Sunday) but not much of it will be rideable and water quality will be questionable as well.

Wednesday’s Surf – More W swell for everyone.

The W swell will peak on Wednesday. I am sticking to the forecast that I posted earlier, which basically is calling for W-facing breaks to have overhead to well overhead sets. Top breaks will have double-overhead sets…and then standouts in San Diego and Ventura will have some almost triple-overhead waves.

Weather is looking decent again on Wednesday…winds are expected to be light/variable or even a little light SE for some areas. Look for W-NW winds 10-15 knots through the afternoon.

For the best surf…here is a copy paste from an earlier forecast

“If you are not interested in big waves you do have a few options…I would definitely check the S-facing summer spots…sometimes on W swells you will get some of the energy to wrap in a break that wouldn’t normally pick it up. In the process of wrapping in the swell loses a lot of energy and will be much more manageable sizewise when it finally arrives.”

Some Photos from Tuesday 12.04.07

Here are a few photos I took up at Rincon today...the quality isn’t great since I was illegally parked on the freeway and it is a little unnerving to try and take photos while semis are roaring by. So I just snapped off a few

This is in between sets on the draining tide.

THE COUNTDOWN: New Year's Eve @ Orange County Museum of Art!

Hey guys...here is a bit of news not related to the W-swell. But it is still surf related.

Will, down at the Surf Gallery, is putting on a New Years Event, called "The Countdown" at the Orange County Museum of Art.

Here are the details. Check it out if you get a chance.

Adam






THE COUNTDOWN: New Year's Eve @ OCMA!

About: Art/Film/Music festival from the creators of The Happening @ Orange County Museum of Art > Newport Beach, CA

Music: Rocco Deluca & The Burden, The Growlers, PawnShop Kings, DJ Jesse C.

Art by: legendary rock & roll / surf poster artist John Van Hamersveld.

Short films by: the Malloys.

Dates: December 31, 2007

BUY TICKETS: countdownoc.com

Surfing on Tuesday – the big W-WNW’er starts to arrive

Tuesday will be a good surf day…but it may get too big for most people’s comfort level (including mine) by the end of the day.

The first part of the new W-WNW swell begins arriving on Tuesday and will build quickly through the day, eventually peaking overnight into Wednesday. Look for this swell to fill in fast in areas like Santa Barbara and Ventura (which are actually located a little more to the West and so will get the swell earlier). LA County, OC, and San Diego will start off slower but will see a big jump by the afternoon.

Sizewise as this swell really gets going (particularly as it peaks into early Wednesday) we can expect most W-facing spots to see consistently overhead to well overhead surf…standout W-facing breaks will go double-overhead+ and I wouldn’t be surprised to see some nearly triple-overhead sets at breaks that focus these types of swell. Needless to say shape will be pretty raw, stacked up, and we can expect a lot of current to paddle against at the more exposed spots.

If you are not interested in big waves you do have a few options…I would definitely check the S-facing summer spots…sometimes on W swells you will get some of the energy to wrap in a break that wouldn’t normally pick it up. In the process of wrapping in the swell loses a lot of energy and will be much more manageable sizewise when it finally arrives.

Weather is looking decent, particularly for the morning. Winds are expected to be light/variable to light offshore through the morning…then shift a little more onshore out of the NW around 10 knots during the afternoon.

Here is a cool satellite photo of the storm sending in this swell…look how long the fetch is!




Check out the NWS satellite loop to see this bad boy in action.
Link to NWS NPAC Satellite Loop.

Monday’s waves – get warmed up for the W swell

Monday looks fun, not great or big, just sort of playful. Water quality will still be an issue…I think you will want to avoid the rivers and storm-drains if you want to stay healthy but it will be cleaner than the weekend. (You can always check out www.healthebay.org for the water quality report card).

Surfwise we will have a mix of new W-WNW swell moving in…this one is sort of a combo of energy from that swell that hit Hawaii over the weekend and the initial formation of the system that will crank out the bigger W-WNW swell in a couple of days. What does that really mean from a surf standpoint? Well that I am a weather-nerd of the first degree…oh and that we will get a slight increase in wave heights at the winter spots throughout the day.

Waves will start off on the small side…mostly waist-chest high for most areas, with some slightly bigger sets in San Diego and Ventura. By the afternoon average spots will be closer to shoulder high while the standouts in Ventura see some inconsistent head high sets mixing in.

Weather looks ok…winds will be light in the morning but expect increasing NW winds 10-15+ knots by the end of the day.

Big WNW swell update: Things are still looking good for the swell on Tuesday and Wednesday. I think we should get a pretty big jump in swell on Tuesday but the meat of the swell will still really arrive overnight and into Wednesday. That being said…winds are looking decent on Tuesday and with that swell starting to fill in as we move throughout the day…I am seriously considering heading northward and trying to pick off a few waves as it arrives.

Here is a random WAM (Nave WWIII wave heights) picture showing the significant wave heights in the North Pacific.