...and then Spring descended on the north/central coast

8.8 at 8 seconds from 320 and 1.1 at 14 from 195 - that about says all you need to know - well that and water temp hovering around 49-50deg. It's Spring my surfing friends. NW gale force winds continue over the outer waters giving us no relief. Our only hope might be enough of a turn in the winds to side/offshore for Sunday morning - as high pressure builds in to our north and east. Otherwise, it would appear El Nino's influence on the north pacific storm track is fading as the normal high pressure ridge begins to build to our north/west - sending the jetstream into hibernation for the summer. Reflect fondly on those waves you got all winter - it will be a long while before you see that again....ha. Time to think of cold beers, chips and salsa, 80 plus degree water and trunks and a tan....cya in the water.

Forecast and paddle out for Dirk Denny

There will be a memorial paddle out for surfer Dirk Denny at Drakes Beach this coming Sunday at 8am. Dirk tragically passed away while surfing Drakes this month. Come out and support.

As for our surf - yet another strong late season storm is making a mess of things at the moment with wind, rain and sloppy conditions. We have WNW swell in the water with size increasing today for Thursday. Swell periods are generally in the 11-13 sec band - look for size to increase into the double overhead range at nw facing breaks on Thursday. Swell will fade on Friday. We have a mix of SW groundswells moving in - from 200-220 - today and a stronger pulse to come in for Friday. Look for the biggest surf from this event on Friday - easing thru weekend. This swell will probably be in the waist to chest high range - with perhaps head high sets. Winds don't look great for the next five days with a blow from the nw almost each day. Perhaps a bit lighter towards the weekend. South facing breaks will be best for that wind direction. Might see light and variable winds for Sunday morning as out weather looks to improve (and warm up) through the weekend. Models are hinting at yet more rain - early next week. We'll see if that develops. cya in the water.

Weekend Forecast

New long period NW swell showing tonight - 7-10 ft 17 sec from 300. This one came from a pretty good distance, so look for some lulls between sets. Winds have been blowing pretty strong from the west-northwest all day - with some fog along the coast making it's way inland tonight. High pressure is forecast to continue to build, slowly moving more to our northeast by Sunday hopefully giving us a bit of an offshore flow Sunday morning. Could see calm to variable winds early Saturday - and we have big high tides in the mornings too. Look for a bigger shot of nw swell to move in on Sunday - with sets to double overhead at the nw facing breaks. Sunday looks to be our last nice day for a while again - as our weather turns back to winter starting Monday night with rain, wind in the forecast through Tuesday. In fact if models hold up - we could see rain on and off most of next week - and it's the end of April. All thanks to El Nino. Tracking some decent south swell action for mid to late next week as well. More on that Monday. cya in the water.

Water Temp 50 and falling.....

Even the seabirds are cold......NW winds howling over outer waters, water temps a' tumblin down down. Probably upper 40s by tomorrow. Just when i got out of my hood and boots too. Shit! cya in the water.

Gale tonight, lighter winds expected

Gale force blow tonight offshore - nw winds in the 25 to 40kt range - probably higher gusts as the low pressure system tracks to our SE. Buoys to our north are showing a new pulse of NW swell - 14 ft at 15 sec - look for large surf and blown out conditions on Wednesday and probably Thursday - we might see some lighter morning winds Friday/Saturday - with a mix of NW and SW swells continuing thru the week. South facing protected spots are probably your best bet if you want to surf over the next couple days. Next chance of rain may hit next Mon/Tues. Small chance right now. More for the weekend forecast on Friday. cya in the water.

South swell nuggers!

Surfed a super super ultra secret Marin south swell spot today....ha.... on these trusty tools - l to r - 5.6 Mabile Keel, 6.1 CI Keel, 6.4 Hess Pacheco. Get some south swell goodness - nice pulse in the water.

Good Night Orion

You've probably guessed by now if you have been reading this blog long enough - I like the weather. I sort of kook out about it, but it's relaxing. Anyway - for us surfers at this latitude - the winter constellation Orion is cool. I love to watch it move across the winter sky from late fall into spring. For me - seeing it come up in the eastern sky every fall is always a sign waves won't be far behind. And i get sad each spring to watch it move lower and lower in the western sky, eventually disappearing until the following fall. There is something really cool about Orion - so keep your eye on it each season and the next night you're outside - look up and towards the western sky - you'll see it. Now, for the surf report - small WNW filling in tonight - deepwater swell at 4-5 ft at 14-15 seconds from 300 - and a nice south, 2.9 ft at 17 from 175. Winds have been light onshore most of the day - as we're stuck under a cyclonic flow in the eastern pacific. Look for light winds Thurs and probably light south winds on Friday with light morning winds looking possible for the weekend. Fun size WNW/NW swells along with different S/SW swells look to continue through Sunday. Nothing huge - just some fun size surf. Next rain chances (yep, more rain) comes in next week - models are still up in the air about how much rain we can expect - but looks like we'll get something Monday through next Wednesday. Added pic of one more essential board for spring - the Simmons inspired Jeff McCallum Keel fin. cya in the water

Week Ahead - Forecast

Large, crazy spring storm exiting our region - should be a distant memory by late tonight. Winds have yet to come around - but overnight they will shift to the wnw - and then become light and variable for Tuesday morning. Two swells in the water right now - 8ft at 11 sec from 280 and 5.4 at 10 from 220 - both swells a product of our recent storm. Look for both swells to wind down late tomorrow afternoon. Next NW swell comes along on Wednesday into Thursday - look for the biggest waves during this swell to go several feet overhead. Look for south to southwest background swells to continue all week - nothing huge, just fun size stuff for the breaks that pick up southern energy the best. Look for winds to stay light to variable for the next few mornings - then we could see a shift back to stronger south winds late this week as another storm system is possible starting Friday. Models continue to hint at another storm on Sunday - but it's still a ways out. cya in the water.

Spring Quiver!

L to R - 6.6 FCD KMRP Model, Round pin. 6.4 Rusty Hustler. 6.1 Channel Island Even Keel. Let the good times roll.

Weekend Forecast

ah, looks like Spring today - winds are howling out of the NW - 25kts gusting past 35kts. Ouch! That should tumble water temps by Saturday for sure. So things are blown out to say the least, cept for south facing breaks. Short period, large windswell on order and that won't wrap in very well to protected breaks. The bummer with these winds is they will knock the piss out of the south swell coming up for the weekend as it rounds Point Conception - the typical result around these parts for Spring/Summer. We have Gale warnings up along the north coast for the outer waters. Now winds are suppose to back way off near shore on Friday morning - so you might find something to ride. Saturday - look for SOUTHERLY winds to ramp up as another storm system takes aim on us. This should be a rain maker for Sunday into Monday - but only bring winds with it on Saturday and increasing clouds. Look for a mix of NW swell in the 8-9 ft range and south swell 2-3 ft range (all deep water) from Friday through Sunday (and then building swell on Sunday). I imagine we'll have some residual wind lump on the water for Friday from the big blow today. So, tune your wave and wind hunting brain on for the next couple days - local knowledge is gonna be key to finding anything rideable. cya in the water.

NW swell continues/S swell midweek

Plenty of size still around tonight - buoys at 13 ft 14 sec/300. Look for plenty of swell sticking around through Wednesday - especially at the nw facing breaks. Head high/dble overhead plus for sure. Plenty of nw swells lining up through the end of this week and into the following. Look for background sw swell Tues through Fri from 200-215 - probably good for inconsistent 1-3 ft surf. Look for a bit bigger south (175-190) Friday into Saturday. Could see some head high sets from this over that time. Winds: look for light to offshore winds over the next few mornings (possible through Thursday) with moderate nw blows in the afternoons. There is the potential for stronger nw winds towards the weekend - more on that mid week or so. So overall, plenty of surf on tap through the next 7-10 days. Know your winds and what spots deliver and you'll score. cya in the water. (Thanks to Matt for the pic!)

Swell UP

New Swell jumping up quicker than expected - already 16 ft at 14 seconds from 310 (very N angle). Bigger still to our north with buoys in the 19-20 ft range. Look for swell to hold through Sunday morning. NW winds right now - on the light side - but still nw. cya in the water.

Weekend Forecast

Calendar says April - but we're still in winter time mode in the North Pacific - thanks to El Nino. Another small storm overhead today into the evening - bringing south winds. Swell is 9ft plus at 12 seconds from 290 - on the way down through Saturday morning and then look for the swell to jump back up Saturday eve into Sunday as a fresh new swell comes ashore. Surf heights will easily jump back up in the double overhead range at nw facing breaks. We have a stronger storm on tap for Sunday - so look for s/se winds to make a mess of it. We might get lucky Saturday morning for a sesh - but winds are going to be "light" n/nw - and we have negative low tides in the mornings right now. Not a great combination. Next week we dry out some - but models are hinting at perhaps more rain the weekend of April 10/11. I'm also tracking a decent s/sw swell that could show weekend of April 10/11 as well. Could be a bit smaller than the sw swell we had around here last weekend. Overall, a pretty decent start to the southern hemi season down under - no doubt in part to El Nino - it's early Fall down under and they're seeing good storm development. cya in the water.