June (Not So) Gloom.
SURF:
May has been quite pleasant around here lately. A little bit of surf, water temps are tolerable, and May Gray hasn't dominated our weather. As we head into June this weekend, looks to be more of the same. Friday/Saturday looks to have small waist high combo swell and we have a weak cold front moving by to the N which will give us a little more June Gloom for the weekend. BUT... it will also increase our NW windswell slightly.
Add in a new small SW swell and we'll have fun chest high surf by Sunday. And here’s the sun, tides, and water temps for the upcoming weekend:
- Sunrise and sunset:
- 5:41 AM sunrise (paddle out at 5:30 AM!)
- 7:53 PM sunset (paddle in at 8 PM!)
- Water temps are hanging on to 63.
- And tides are starting to fluctuate finally:
- about 3.5' at sunrise
- 0.5' at lunch
- and up to 5.5' towards sunset
FORECAST:
Next week is looking pretty fun- and the June Gloom should start to back off too for more sun in the afternoons.
We've got new SW swell filling in on Monday along with a contiunation of the NW windswell for chest high+ waves. That will last into Wednesday.
We may also see a very LATE season NW groundswell towards Thursday for chest high surf in SD.
And the southern hemisphere looks to stay active too and we should see more fun but small SW again towards next weekend and a 2nd slightly larger swell around the 12th could be possible. All in all some fun waves the next 2 weeks. If anything changes between now and then, make sure to follow North County Surf on X (Twitter).
WEATHER:
We've had some springtime weather in recent memory with 3 months of cloudy weather and other times with 3 months of sunny weather. So far in 2024- we've been in between. No complaints. As mentioned above, we have a weak cold front moving by the N this weekend and we'll see a bit more clouds Friday/Saturday. Sunday should be a transition day with HOPEFULLY the sun peaking out in the afternoon, and then a warm up next week for the inland valleys. That could go either way for us- a slight warm up and a touch more sun in the afternoons- or socked in clouds at the coast all day. I'm hoping for sun. Here's what's in store for the coming week:
- Friday/Saturday: Mostly cloudy. Temps 68/57.
- Sunday. Transition day with MAYBE some sun in the afternoon? Temps 67/58
- Monday and beyond: Should see mostly sunny afternoons. Temps 70/60.
BEST BET:
- Sunday through Wednesday with fun combo swell
- More fun SW swell next weekend
NEWS OF THE WEEK:
A surfer normally spends 75% of their time on the surface of the ocean. The other 25% is underwater while duck diving or wiping out (which I wouldn't know about). Since we spend a majority of our time above the surface, we really don't see what's going on beneath us (nor do we want to know). So I don't blame you if you haven't seen recently what's been going on below your dangling feet on the San Diego seafloor. Here's the Smithsonian to explain...
Usually, when scuba divers explore the waters off San Diego, they see lots of fish—and maybe the occasional shark or octopus. But, in recent weeks, they’ve found the seafloor completely covered in small, red crustaceans. The plentiful creatures are called tuna crabs (Pleuroncodes planipes)—they’re related to hermit crabs but are actually a type of squat lobster. Measuring one to three inches long, these bright animals can fit in the palm of a human hand. Tuna crabs typically live in the waters off Baja California, Mexico. But, for at least the third time in ten years, they’ve been swarming farther north, near Southern California.
It’s not totally clear what’s causing the unusual throngs of tuna crabs outside their normal territory. Sometimes, they even wash up on beaches in droves, which scientists have described as a “striking and puzzling phenomenon.” But the crustaceans’ recent appearances near San Diego suggest “something different is happening in the ocean,” says Megan Cimino, a marine scientist at the University of California, Santa Cruz, to the New York Times’ Jules Jacobs.
“When we think about climate change, the first thing to come to mind might be warming temperatures, but climate change can result in more variable ocean conditions,” she adds. Scientists have previously linked tuna crab swarms to stronger-than-normal ocean currents that start near Baja California. Sometimes, those strong currents align with El Niño, but not always.
Tuna crabs are susceptible to ocean currents, because they are not strong swimmers, spending part of their lives floating up through the water column, where they feast on plankton. (This also makes them vulnerable to predators, such as tuna, which is how the crustaceans got their common name.)
“It’s not that the crabs are deliberately making their way to us,” says Charlotte Seid, a marine biologist who manages the benthic invertebrate collection at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego, to NBC 7 San Diego’s Danielle Smith. “They live in those waters and get swept up, sort of like birds outside of their migration route, and they find their way to California, even farther north than us.”
For now, the tuna crabs carpeting the seafloor are providing local predators—including birds, squid, whales, porpoises and large fish—with a plethora of easy calories. But, eventually, those that don’t get eaten will either wash up on shore, like they did in 2015, or get pushed back out to sea. “The crabs start to die because the local waters are much cooler,” Michael Shane, a marine ecologist at the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, told ABC News in 2015. “It’s not entirely alarming, but it has been unusual to see them in these numbers year after year,” Seid tells NBC 7.
In the meantime, the crabs are creating a ruddy-hued spectacle for divers. “It was interesting for me personally as a recreational scuba diver to see so many of them alive, seeing them interacting with other species,” Seid tells CBS 8’s Brian White. “Recently I saw a little baby octopus chewing on a dead one, so kind of keeping that food chain going.”
Usually, when scuba divers explore the waters off San Diego, they see lots of fish—and maybe the occasional shark or octopus. But, in recent weeks, they’ve found the seafloor completely covered in small, red crustaceans. The plentiful creatures are called tuna crabs (Pleuroncodes planipes)—they’re related to hermit crabs but are actually a type of squat lobster. Measuring one to three inches long, these bright animals can fit in the palm of a human hand. Tuna crabs typically live in the waters off Baja California, Mexico. But, for at least the third time in ten years, they’ve been swarming farther north, near Southern California.
It’s not totally clear what’s causing the unusual throngs of tuna crabs outside their normal territory. Sometimes, they even wash up on beaches in droves, which scientists have described as a “striking and puzzling phenomenon.” But the crustaceans’ recent appearances near San Diego suggest “something different is happening in the ocean,” says Megan Cimino, a marine scientist at the University of California, Santa Cruz, to the New York Times’ Jules Jacobs.
“When we think about climate change, the first thing to come to mind might be warming temperatures, but climate change can result in more variable ocean conditions,” she adds. Scientists have previously linked tuna crab swarms to stronger-than-normal ocean currents that start near Baja California. Sometimes, those strong currents align with El Niño, but not always.
Tuna crabs are susceptible to ocean currents, because they are not strong swimmers, spending part of their lives floating up through the water column, where they feast on plankton. (This also makes them vulnerable to predators, such as tuna, which is how the crustaceans got their common name.)
“It’s not that the crabs are deliberately making their way to us,” says Charlotte Seid, a marine biologist who manages the benthic invertebrate collection at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego, to NBC 7 San Diego’s Danielle Smith. “They live in those waters and get swept up, sort of like birds outside of their migration route, and they find their way to California, even farther north than us.”
For now, the tuna crabs carpeting the seafloor are providing local predators—including birds, squid, whales, porpoises and large fish—with a plethora of easy calories. But, eventually, those that don’t get eaten will either wash up on shore, like they did in 2015, or get pushed back out to sea. “The crabs start to die because the local waters are much cooler,” Michael Shane, a marine ecologist at the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, told ABC News in 2015. “It’s not entirely alarming, but it has been unusual to see them in these numbers year after year,” Seid tells NBC 7.
In the meantime, the crabs are creating a ruddy-hued spectacle for divers. “It was interesting for me personally as a recreational scuba diver to see so many of them alive, seeing them interacting with other species,” Seid tells CBS 8’s Brian White. “Recently I saw a little baby octopus chewing on a dead one, so kind of keeping that food chain going.”
BEST OF THE BLOG:
Wanted to say thank you again to everyone that played, donated, or sponsored our 9th annual charity golf tournament presented by Venture LLP. We raised serious funds that benefited Foster The Earth with the goal of helping vulnerable children and young adults in the foster care system through exposure to the great outdoors
And as we look to the future, we have yet ANOTHER event in our sights, this time a mixer to support a local business. From the masterminds that brought you Surfhouse, we give you.... Coffee Coffee! Come join us on Thursday EVENING (coffee isn't just for breakfast anymore), June 20th at 5:30 PM to grab a drink, maybe a slice of pizza or two, network, and learn about the origins of this local 'surfer' owned business in Leucadia. And feel free to bring a friend! The only prerequisite is to have a passion for riding waves. Thanks for supporting your community and we'll see you on the 20th!
And as we look to the future, we have yet ANOTHER event in our sights, this time a mixer to support a local business. From the masterminds that brought you Surfhouse, we give you.... Coffee Coffee! Come join us on Thursday EVENING (coffee isn't just for breakfast anymore), June 20th at 5:30 PM to grab a drink, maybe a slice of pizza or two, network, and learn about the origins of this local 'surfer' owned business in Leucadia. And feel free to bring a friend! The only prerequisite is to have a passion for riding waves. Thanks for supporting your community and we'll see you on the 20th!
PIC OF THE WEEK:
This is why they call it the Golden Hour.
Keep Surfing,
Michael W. Glenn
Demand Excellence
Roller Derby Any Chance I Get
I've Been Thinking About This. If I'm Here And You're Here, Doesn't That Make It OUR Time?
Michael W. Glenn
Demand Excellence
Roller Derby Any Chance I Get
I've Been Thinking About This. If I'm Here And You're Here, Doesn't That Make It OUR Time?
