You’ll noticed a lot of boats staying in the harbor or venturing just a little way out this month, and there is a darn good reason — wind. There have been far more days when Small Craft Advisories have been issued than days without.
Come to think of it, there have been sustained winds and gusts over the gale threshold on more days than I care to remember. As a charter captain, I know painfully well that high winds are bad for business.
High winds have a nasty habit of changing the surface of the sea from a horizontal state to a nearly vertical state, and the level of danger climbs with the seas. If you are a boater or are planning to go out on a boat, you need weather and sea state information. Many disasters at sea occur because boaters go out when they should stay in.
Here is what I do before going out on charter and I invite you to do the same. I go to the marine forecasts pages and pour over the forecasts at https://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/data/forecasts/fzus56.klox.html and other sites such as iwindsurf for NOAA buoy observations, etc.
On many springtime days, high winds are roaring around points Arguello and Conception, aimed toward San Miguel, Santa Rosa and Santa Cruz islands. We are blessed with the calmest water around, along the mainland coast from Santa Barbara on down to Carpinteria.
We can safely navigate these local waters on most — but not all — days. If you like quick boat trips or cruises on our Sea Landing and Sail Center boats, it can still usually happen, and the crew will have a good handle on winds and seas.
If you are private boater and on your own, there is much to be learned from taking a close look at the waves. On days when high winds push all the way into the shore, I have looked at the water hours before the wind arrived and told my passengers to expect high winds soon. They often wonder how I can possibly tell how far the wind is just by looking at the water.
The steepness of the waves tell the story. The angle of the wave, the interval between waves, and the presence of whitecaps are important information that allows a boater to make wise decisions.
I have safely and comfortably crossed the Santa Barbara Channel at high speed against 12-foot swells because they were gentle swells spaced something like 17 seconds apart. Five-foot wind waves with a five-second interval can be deadly because those are steep walls of water requiring slow and cautious piloting skills.
When the height and interval of waves are the same (e.g. five feet at five seconds) we call that “squared seas,” and it is not going to be a cakewalk out there.
Monitor the wind waves while out on the water and be prepared to scurry for the security of harbor when they grow, become steep and closely spaced. That means the wind is getting close and conditions are worsening fast. Please make the safe decision, even if the fish are biting or the whales are putting on a show.
— Capt. David Bacon operates WaveWalker Charters and is president of SOFTIN Inc., a nonprofit organization providing seafaring opportunities for those in need. Visit softininc.blogspot.com to learn more about the organization and how you can help. Click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.
