Despite grumbling from some quarters, some San Diegans are welcoming the arrival of Tropical Storm Kay and its attendant high surf.
The system is spinning offshore and on a track to the northwest, remaining off the coast, according to NBC 7's Sheena Parveen. For Friday, that means wave heights between 3-6 feet, with dangerous rip currents and offshore east winds near 45 mph along the coast. The swell direction will mainly be in from the south/southeast during the day, which would cause the waves to be somewhat parallel to our coastline, obviously not ideal for surfing.
The storm will weaken over the next 24 hours as it moves offshore to the northwest but will continue to churn up our waters. Wave heights on Saturday will be higher, though, around 4-6 feet, with some sets peaking near 8 feet. The swell direction will still mainly be in from the south and slightly south/southwest. Still not an ideal onshore swell, but our coastline will be drier for the day as the storm pulls away, giving beach-bound surf fans an opportunity to stay dry while they monitor the waves. That said, there remains a chance for showers through the afternoon.
NBC 7 photojournalist and avid surfer Mark Sackett agreed that the conditions were likely to be less than optimal this weekend and that he expects everything to get blown out by the winds buffeting the region. Early on Friday, one gust reaching 109 mph was recorded on Cuyamaca Peak.
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"Looks like the wind is coming onshore and will be variable," Sackett said. "Today, it's offshore, so it looks OK. There's not much swell. By the time the surf gets here, it looks like the wind might switch and come from the south, which would make it a not-very-good surf day. Plus, the swell period is eight seconds, so that's gonna be a pretty jumbly swell."
There is, however, Sacket said, a window of hope: "Extremely south-angled beaches should be bigger and if the wind holds up there could be possibilities of good surf."
The best waves look early as far as wind goes — between 6-9 a.m., Sackett said. Look to the north, he added, for the biggest surf, including up in Oceanside and Orange County.
Low tides Saturday are at 3:58 a.m. and 3:59 p.m, with high tides expected at 10:17 a.m. and 10:09 p.m.
Looking ahead, water-goers can expect dangerous rip currents and high surf again on Sunday with the storm lingering offshore.
