Gnarly Waves, High Wind Warning for Oregon Coast Again
Published 12/04/2015 at 5:15 PM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff
(Oregon Coast) – If you're in the mood for some gnarly storm watching on the Oregon coast, this is the weekend for it. Peak gusts up to 70 mph on headlands and beaches are possible, gigantic waves will be smacking the shore, and a major soaking is coming as well. All of this because of a series of storms trailing in, one after the other.
The National Weather Service (NWS) in Portland has issued a high wind warning for the coast, in effect from early on Saturday through the wee hours of Sunday. A high surf advisory is in effect from 7 p.m. Sunday through 9 a.m. on Monday. Meanwhile, rainfall will be heavy in the Oregon coast range through Thursday of next week, causing the NWS to keep an eye on rivers.
Sustained winds along the north and central coast will be 20 mph to 40 mph on Saturday, while gusts up to 65 or 70 are possible on the beaches and headlands. Places like Astoria, Seaside, Cannon Beach, Newport, Yachats, Lincoln City or Manzanita will start to see the heavy winds by late morning on Saturday, with the strongest coming in late afternoon. Winds will decrease later that night and by Sunday will be more in the 20 mph range.
The NWS said downed trees and power outages could occur during these peak times.
The high surf advisory means massive, dangerous waves will be smacking the beaches and rocky areas of the coast. During the peak advisory times of Sunday and Monday, waves as high as 30 feet could be breaking, causing significant hazards to anyone on smaller beaches or those standing too close on rocky areas.
Plenty of great viewing can be had from the parking lot areas of shorter beaches or rocky spots like those at Oceanside, Yachats, Depoe Bay, and parts of Newport and Lincoln City, Particularly dangerous will be spots like Gleneden Beach where there is little room between the cliffs and the tide. Jetties should be considered the most dangerous of all.
Beach erosion is quite possible, which means once the wacky wave conditions clear, beachcombing could result in plenty of fun finds in the way of sea life, objects that have been adrift at sea or even agates.
While rains in the Portland area and the coastline are expected to be more like half an inch to an inch throughout the weekend, the Oregon coast range is looking at four to seven inches over the 24-hour period of Sunday and Monday. The NWS said this rains will continue there on and off through Thursday, and some streams and rivers will be watched for flooding. Oregon Coast Hotels for this - Where to eat - Maps and Virtual Tours
Things you won't see much of on the coast include the gray whales – which have arrived early. Also, northwest Oregon will likely not see clear enough skies this week to view the Comet Catalina, which is now visible just before dawn. The comet will be around through January, however. More Oregon Coast Weather
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