Alright, let’s talk about this marine weather in Santa Cruz, you know, the kind of weather that matters when you’re out on the water, fishin’ or whatever.
Now, I ain’t no fancy weather person, but I know a thing or two about what the sea can do. I heard some folks sayin’ there might be gusty winds, that means it’s gonna blow hard, you know, like when the old man gets angry and slams the door. And they said somethin’ ’bout heavy snow too, but that’s probably more for them folks up north, not us here in Santa Cruz. We mostly get rain, and sometimes a whole lotta it.
They talk about severe thunderstorms and heavy rain, and even flash flooding. That’s when the water comes up fast, like a sneaky cat, and gets you all soaked if you ain’t careful. You gotta watch out for that, especially if you’re near the creeks or the ocean.
The other day, the weather guy on the TV was jabberin’ about highs in the lower 70s. That’s nice and warm, good for a day out on the boat. He said the wind would be northwest, 5 to 10 mph. That ain’t too bad, just a little breeze. But then at night, he said it’d get down to the mid 40s, and the wind would be northeast around 5 mph, then northwest after midnight. That’s when you need a good jacket, or maybe even two.
And for the sea, well, they got all these fancy numbers and directions. They talk about Point Piedras Blancas to Santa Cruz Island, and sayin’ things like “SW winds less than 10 kt, becoming S, then…” I don’t know what a “kt” is, but I guess it’s like mph for the ocean. They also mention “Santa Cruz Island” a lot, I guess that’s important for them boat folks.
- They say “W wind around 10 kt” and “partly sunny”. That’s good, not too windy and you can see the sun.
- Then they talk about “mixed swell… W 2 ft at 8 seconds and S 1 ft”. Swell, that’s the waves, right? So, some waves from the west and some from the south, not too big though.
And then, another time, they were saying “light winds” and “smooth seas”, with “small short period waves”. That’s like a lake, calm and peaceful. They said the wind would be “NNE 1 to 2 knots” and the seas would be “WSW 4 feet at 7 seconds”. So, a little bit of waves, but nothin’ to worry about.
Sometimes it gets cold though, they said highs in the lower 50s and southeast winds 5 to 10 mph. And rain, lots of rain, “likely in the evening, then a chance of rain after midnight”. You gotta be prepared for that, you know, got your rain gear and your boots ready.
They also talk about “light and variable winds” with “smooth seas” and “very small long period waves”, with winds “WSW 3 knots” and seas “SSW 3 feet at 18 seconds”. Sounds nice and easy, good for a little boat ride.
If you really wanna know about the marine weather, they say you gotta look at the NOAA Marine Weather website. That’s the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, them fancy folks who know all about the ocean and the sky. They’ll tell you everything you need to know, about the daily weather and storm warnings and all that.
So, that’s what I know about the marine weather in Santa Cruz. It can be nice and sunny, or it can be windy and rainy, or it can be cold and wet. You just gotta pay attention and be prepared, you know, like always.
Tags: [Santa Cruz Weather, Marine Weather, NOAA, Wind, Waves, Forecast, Ocean, Boating]