Pretty sure that glowing warm orb in the sky is a UFO.
SURF:
Been lots of talk lately about our government acknowledging there’s some things in our skies they can’t explain. I have something else to add to their list- a glowing warm orb I've seen the past couple days. I could be wrong, but it may be the sun. I saw it back in April- but May- not so much. Looks like the nice weather will continue for the time being AND a little bit of surf is headed our way AND it's a long holiday weekend! Hope you already found a parking spot at the beach 'cause it's gonna be PACKED. So what's in store for us?
A little storm formed off New Zealand last week and sent us some fun chest high+ SW that starts filling in later tomorrow and lasting through Sunday.
We also have waist high NW windswell filling in too. Look for shoulder high sets in far N County SD and head high sets in the OC. Memorial Day Monday will have leftover waist to chest high combo swell. And once the low clouds burn off in the mornings, days at the beaches will warm up to the high 60's with hazy afternoon sunshine. Sounds good to me. And here's the tides, sun, and water temps for the next few days:
- Sunrise and sunset:
- 5:42 AM sunrise (almost 5:30 AM!)
- 7:50 PM sunset (almost 8 PM!)
- The NW winds have subsided, the clouds have parted, and our water temps are 66-68!
- And the tides this weekend are pretty drained in the AM:
- -1' at sunrise
- 3.5' after lunch
- 2.5' in the evening
FORECAST:
After a fun holiday weekend, Tuesday and Wednesday start off in the waist high range but we have a new good S filling in late on Wednesday for shoulder high+ sets into Thursday and overhead sets in the OC. The weather should be good too... so I'm turning on the Emergency Boardriding System. Not the biggest swell mind you- but plenty good and our water temps are finally warming up along with nice weather. Can't beat it. Next weekend the S will be a shell of its former self and we're back to waist high surf with chest high sets. Get it while you can!
WEATHER:
A few days ago, the weather models were hinting at another weak cold front setting up over the holiday weekend... but that's been tossed aside. Now it looks like mild weather this weekend; low clouds in the nights/mornings, hazy afternoon sunshine in the afternoons, and temps in the high 60's. One word: pleasant. Next week, high pressure may strengthen by Wednesday and temps in the deserts could approach 110. For us- just more nice weather and temps in the high 70's? We'll see. If anything changes between now and then, make sure to follow North County Surf on Twitter!
BEST BET:
Saturday/Sunday with fun combo swell and nice weather. Or the middle of next week with better SW and better weather?
NEWS OF THE WEEK:
I reported back in November that the Great White shark population seems to be increasing along the Southern California coast (like you didn't know that already). And it looks like our friends to the N also are seeing the same results- more 'men in gray suits' are swimming off of Central CA. Here's Newsweek with the 411:
The population of great white sharks off the coast of central California is increasing, according to a study, which means populations of other animals like seals and fish may also be healthy.
Between 2011 and 2018, and over the course of more than 2,500 hours, a team of researchers identified nearly 300 adult and sub-adult individual great white sharks at Farallon Island, Año Nuevo Island, and Tomales Point—three sites where the apex predators are known to gather.
A similar study conducted in 2011 found 219 great whites, which suggests that numbers are slowly increasing in the area. Paul Kanive, a marine ecologist at Montana State University and lead author of the study, which was published in the journal Biological Conservation, told The Mercury News: "A healthy population of white sharks means there are healthy populations of the sea lions and elephant seals they eat.
"And that means that the lower levels on the food chain, like fish, are healthy enough to support the marine mammals. "Great white sharks and other top marine predators have a varied diet, which means they don't tend to hunt any specific prey to exhaustion, thereby allowing the various species to recover.
The study is the latest piece of research to reflect the importance of healthy shark populations. For instance, a 2008 report by ocean protection organization Oceana found that a decline in large shark populations along the eastern coast of the U.S. coincided with a spike in ray, skate and smaller shark populations, with the number of some species increasing tenfold.
The population of great white sharks off the coast of central California is increasing, according to a study, which means populations of other animals like seals and fish may also be healthy.
Between 2011 and 2018, and over the course of more than 2,500 hours, a team of researchers identified nearly 300 adult and sub-adult individual great white sharks at Farallon Island, Año Nuevo Island, and Tomales Point—three sites where the apex predators are known to gather.
A similar study conducted in 2011 found 219 great whites, which suggests that numbers are slowly increasing in the area. Paul Kanive, a marine ecologist at Montana State University and lead author of the study, which was published in the journal Biological Conservation, told The Mercury News: "A healthy population of white sharks means there are healthy populations of the sea lions and elephant seals they eat.
"And that means that the lower levels on the food chain, like fish, are healthy enough to support the marine mammals. "Great white sharks and other top marine predators have a varied diet, which means they don't tend to hunt any specific prey to exhaustion, thereby allowing the various species to recover.
The study is the latest piece of research to reflect the importance of healthy shark populations. For instance, a 2008 report by ocean protection organization Oceana found that a decline in large shark populations along the eastern coast of the U.S. coincided with a spike in ray, skate and smaller shark populations, with the number of some species increasing tenfold.
The species whose numbers surged most markedly of all was the cownose ray, which proceeded to all but wipe out most of the scallops, oysters and clams in the area, resulting in the closure of a century-old scallop fishery.
Oceana said in the report: "As top predators, sharks help to manage healthy ocean ecosystems. And as the number of large sharks declines, the oceans will suffer unpredictable and devastating consequences."
In their study, Kanive and his team identified several factors that may have helped great white shark numbers to recover in the area. In 1994, California passed a great white shark fishing ban and introduced tighter restrictions on gill nets, which can trap sharks, dolphins, turtles and other species. 1972's Marine Mammal Protection Act also led to the recovery of populations of seals, elephant seals and other marine mammals, which form the main bulk of a great white's diet.
The authors of the study said that the increase in great white numbers is slight enough to be described as "equivocal," and could also be explained by regional fluxes in density. However, they said they were "cautiously optimistic." Kanive wrote in an update on a GoFundMe page set up to help fund the research: "The results reflect a small (<315) population of white sharks in this area.
"In addition, we investigated population trends for each demographic (sub-adult and adult males and females) and found evidence of a modest uptick in numbers of adult males and females over the study period. "We are cautiously optimistic of a small but healthy population off central California."
PIC OF THE WEEK:
Came across this image online and I immediately said ‘Yowza! Look at all those set ups! So many good surf spots!’ and then it hit me- it’s the Farallons…
The elephant seal population attracts a population of great white sharks to the islands. In 1970 Farallon biologists witnessed their first shark attack and during the next fifteen years, more than one hundred attacks on seals and sea lions were observed at close range. By the year 2000, biologists were logging almost eighty attacks in a single season. The seasonal shark population at the Farallons is unclear, with estimates from thirty to one hundred. The Farallons are unique in the size of the great whites that are attracted. The average length of a full-grown great white shark is 13 to 16 ft, with a weight of 1,500 to 2,430 lbs, females generally being larger than males. Farallon great whites range between the "smaller" males at 13 ft to the females, which generally range between 17 to 19 ft. And if that doesn’t scare you… a killer whale was recorded killing a great white near the Farallons in 1997.
From 1946 to 1970, the sea around the Farallons was ALSO used as a dump site for radioactive waste. 47,500 containers (55-gallon steel drums) had been dumped in the vicinity. The materials dumped were mostly laboratory materials containing traces of contamination. By 1980, most of the radiation had decayed. Waste containers were shipped to Hunters Point Shipyard, then loaded onto barges for transportation to the Farallons. Containers were weighted with concrete but those that floated were sometimes shot with rifles to sink them. In January 1951, the highly radioactive hull of USS Independence, which was used in nuclear weapons testing and then loaded with barrels of radioactive waste, was scuttled in the area.
And if the great white sharks AND radioactive waste don’t scare the living heck out of you, it’s also home to many shipwrecks; most notably the liberty ship SS Henry Bergh, a converted troop carrier hit West End in 1944 and the USS Conestoga, a US Navy tugboat that disappeared with its 56 crew members in 1921. Also, scientist Jim Gray was lost at sea after setting out on a solo sailing trip from San Francisco to the Farallons on January 28, 2007. Despite an unusually thorough search, neither his body nor his boat was ever found. Of course they weren’t. And on April 14, 2012, the sailing yacht Low Speed Chase capsized during a race at Maintop Island, killing 5 of the 8 crew aboard.
But even with all of that… 3 people have successfully SWAM from the Farallons to the Golden Gate, with 2 more swimming to points north of the gate. The first, Ted Erikson, made the swim in September 1967, with the second, Joseph Locke, swimming to the Golden Gate on July 12, 2014, in 14 hours. The third person, and the first woman to complete the distance, Kimberley Chambers, made it in just over 17 hours on Friday August 7, 2015. Congratulations everyone?
The elephant seal population attracts a population of great white sharks to the islands. In 1970 Farallon biologists witnessed their first shark attack and during the next fifteen years, more than one hundred attacks on seals and sea lions were observed at close range. By the year 2000, biologists were logging almost eighty attacks in a single season. The seasonal shark population at the Farallons is unclear, with estimates from thirty to one hundred. The Farallons are unique in the size of the great whites that are attracted. The average length of a full-grown great white shark is 13 to 16 ft, with a weight of 1,500 to 2,430 lbs, females generally being larger than males. Farallon great whites range between the "smaller" males at 13 ft to the females, which generally range between 17 to 19 ft. And if that doesn’t scare you… a killer whale was recorded killing a great white near the Farallons in 1997.
From 1946 to 1970, the sea around the Farallons was ALSO used as a dump site for radioactive waste. 47,500 containers (55-gallon steel drums) had been dumped in the vicinity. The materials dumped were mostly laboratory materials containing traces of contamination. By 1980, most of the radiation had decayed. Waste containers were shipped to Hunters Point Shipyard, then loaded onto barges for transportation to the Farallons. Containers were weighted with concrete but those that floated were sometimes shot with rifles to sink them. In January 1951, the highly radioactive hull of USS Independence, which was used in nuclear weapons testing and then loaded with barrels of radioactive waste, was scuttled in the area.
And if the great white sharks AND radioactive waste don’t scare the living heck out of you, it’s also home to many shipwrecks; most notably the liberty ship SS Henry Bergh, a converted troop carrier hit West End in 1944 and the USS Conestoga, a US Navy tugboat that disappeared with its 56 crew members in 1921. Also, scientist Jim Gray was lost at sea after setting out on a solo sailing trip from San Francisco to the Farallons on January 28, 2007. Despite an unusually thorough search, neither his body nor his boat was ever found. Of course they weren’t. And on April 14, 2012, the sailing yacht Low Speed Chase capsized during a race at Maintop Island, killing 5 of the 8 crew aboard.
But even with all of that… 3 people have successfully SWAM from the Farallons to the Golden Gate, with 2 more swimming to points north of the gate. The first, Ted Erikson, made the swim in September 1967, with the second, Joseph Locke, swimming to the Golden Gate on July 12, 2014, in 14 hours. The third person, and the first woman to complete the distance, Kimberley Chambers, made it in just over 17 hours on Friday August 7, 2015. Congratulations everyone?
Keep Surfing,
Michael W. Glenn
Nobleman
May Have Shed A Tear At The Friends Reunion
Starred In '4 Summer Stories' Which Wasn't A Big Hit For Some Reason
Michael W. Glenn
Nobleman
May Have Shed A Tear At The Friends Reunion
Starred In '4 Summer Stories' Which Wasn't A Big Hit For Some Reason
