THE Surf Report

 

La Nina: The Unwelcome House Guest

SURF:

Still on the small side this week (unless you live in the OC)- and the water is still cooler than I like- but at least the sun is out! Even though El Nino is in charge for most of the Pacific- the lingering La Nina off the CA coast has been slow to dissipate. The result is cooler than average water temps, cooler than average air temps along the coast, and the occasional stubborn marine layer. For the weekend, we have background S swell for more waist high waves (and chest high+ surf in the OC). We'll also have a touch of small NW windswell. And here's the sun/tides/water temps for the weekend:

• Sunrise and sunset this weekend:
• 5:48 AM sunrise 
• 7:59 PM sunset 

• Water temps:
• La Nina is continuing the NW winds offshore- so we're stuck with water temps anywhere from 61-67 along the southern CA coast. Let's hope you're local beach is 67! For the heat wave next week (more on that below), I'm hoping we warm into the 70's finally.

• And tides are pretty mellow this weekend:
• 1' at sunrise
• 0' mid morning
• almost 5' late afternoon
• and 2' at sunset

FORECAST:

There's a small chance I'll be turning on the Emergency Boardriding System (EBS) next week. Small chance. 

We finally had a storm form of New Zealand last week which is ideally aimed for San Diego. The storm wasn't big but we may finally see some chest high SW swell around here by Tuesday. The southern hemisphere goes quiet after that BUT... the tropics look to be active again. The fly in the ointment of course is that cooler than average water temps off CA and Baja. 

If the hurricanes can grow large enough off Mainland Mexico and then not die quickly as they hit our swell window- we could see S swell around the 12th and maybe the 17th. And then I'll turn on the EBS. If anything changes between now and then, make sure to follow North County Surf on Twitter. 

WEATHER:

As mentioned above, La Nina has been slow to disappear in southern CA as low pressure off our coast has kept a steady NW flow along the coast, resulting in cool air and water temps. Looks like high pressure will start to build late this weekend and peak towards Wednesday/Thursday. Could La Nina finally be leaving us? (Don't let the door hit you on the way out). If so, water temps could finally warm up to normal (over 70) while the marine layer gets squashed in the afternoon. Result would be high 70's at the beaches (and maybe 120 in the deserts). That could last into next weekend. If so, you'll find me in boardshorts. In summary, here’s what we have for the upcoming week:

• This weekend: Low clouds in the AM, sunny skies by lunch. Temps 70/62
• Monday/Tuesday: More sun than we've seen and temps 75/65 along the coast.
• Mid week to next weekend: Lots of sun and temps near 80 at the beaches?...

BEST BET:

Early to mid-next week with fun SW swell. OR... mid-week and/or the 17th IF... those hurricanes come to fruition.

NEWS OF THE WEEK:

As I've reported a few times over the years, we have an abundance of juvenile great whites off our coast that seem to be keeping to themselves. That's the good news. What our new problem seems to be is aggressive sea lions. Here's the latest from NBC San Diego:

A sea lion bit a teenager twice while swimming off the coast of Del Mar on July 4th. SeaWorld said the animal may be another victim of a toxic algae bloom in the Pacific.

Dane Blair, 14, was celebrating the holiday with his family when the sea lion attacked Tuesday. Blair said he was in the water when the sea lion made eye contact from about 30 feet away before the animal dipped beneath the surface. “Next thing I know it takes a big bite here, on my leg,” he said while pointing to his right knee. He said the sea lion then bit him on his right buttocks.

“It definitely hurt my butt because it took a big, a big bite,” said Blair, a soon-to-be freshman at La Costa Canyon High School. Blair said he had to make it back to shore with the sea lion’s teeth attached to his backside. “And so, I’m freaking out right now.” He said he was able to shake the animal loose on the sand and run to his family.

Blair's dad Brian took smartphone pictures and videos of the wounds which were both deep enough to bleed but not deep enough to require stitches. Blair's shorts had teeth marks torn into the right side. Meanwhile, the sea lion didn’t move from the sand where the water occasionally splashes against it. “We’ve been coming to this beach for over 20 years. I’ve never even seen a beached seal or sea lion here,” Brian Blair said.

Lifeguards were notified and someone called SeaWorld. Something wasn’t right with the sea lion. “It looked really tired. Its eyes were closed, and its mouth was twitching,” said Dane. “It was lethargic,” added Brian. “It clearly wasn’t doing well.”

A SeaWorld spokeswoman said all the signs point to a naturally occurring algae bloom currently infecting marine life off San Diego’s coast. SeaWorld veterinarian Kelsey Herrick, DVM, said fish eat the algae but only animals that eat the fish are affected. “It does change the behavior and cause neurological symptoms and cardiac symptoms in sea lions and dolphins,” she explained.

“If this algae bloom is really causing animals to act erratically, we probably need to be a little bit more careful,” said Brian Blair. SeaWorld was able to capture the sea lion. The organization said it’s doing what they can to care for the animal. “I hope it gets better,” signed Dane.

PIC OF THE WEEK:

 

If the water right now is low 60's up there- count me in.

Keep Surfing, 
Michael W. Glenn
Constantly Recognized In Public
Wore A Lamp Shade At Michael Rubin's
Hurricane Hunter