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A huge swell is about to hit the West Coast. If you choose to go out in the ocean, kiting or surfing, caution is advised.
The forecast from Wetsand.com:
Tuesday the 4th WNW swell will increase with early AM sessions running head high to a couple feet overhead at west facing breaks, DOH by noon or so. By evening, west facing breaks could see size running 11-13 feet on the face. This swell will inevitably increase the risk of rip currents, especially during the outgoing tides. Alongshore currentsare also a concern. Caution is strongly advised. As for winds, it looks like some northerly winds will pick up along the coast, but should stay below 14 mph in most spots. More on the winds here, tides here, and wave heights here.
Wednesday the 5th gets even bigger big. According to this morning’s model run, breaks that can work a 270-degree angle could see face heights reach 15-20 feet with periods super long (for a NW’er) at 17-19 seconds. Please note that once this swell fills in, its long periods will no doubt make for disparity in size between breaks of varying bathymetry and westerly exposure. Breaks with steeper bathymetry that shoal well and refract the westerly energy ideally””especially those with excellent westerly exposure””will see bigger sets than the slower sloped, longboard-type breaks.
For more information on the swell, head to Wetsand.com or Surfline.com