Weather forecast: Warm weekend, windy the rest of week

After days of record-breaking high temperatures and arid conditions at the peak of our rainfall season, the change in the weather pattern is expected later on Monday into Tuesday.

Strong high pressure over the West Coast will result warm temperatures on Sunday, with most locations reaching into the high 70s to the low-80s under mostly clear skies, apart from a few ribbons of high-level clouds.

The San Luis Obispo County Airport is forecast to reach 82 degrees on Sunday. The record daily high temperature for Feb. 13 is 88 degrees recorded in 1971. The Paso Robles Airport is expected to reach 81 on Sunday, the record for the airport is 78 degrees set in 2015.

A significant change in the weather pattern will occur later Monday into Tuesday as a low-pressure system and an associated cold front moves southward out of the Pacific Northwest through the Central Coast.

This system will produce fresh to strong (19 to 31 mph) northwesterly winds and increasing clouds on Monday afternoon and night. Strong to gale-force (25 to 38 mph) post-frontal northwesterly winds will develop on Tuesday. These winds will bring in a much colder air mass and a chance of a few sprinkles/ rain showers on Monday night into Tuesday. Light snow accumulations possible along the Sierra Nevada are expected above 6,000 feet. Cool, partly cloudy, and breezy weather is forecast on Wednesday.

Fair weather is forecast on Thursday into the weekend with moderate to fresh (13 to 24 mph) northwesterly (onshore) winds and areas of marine low clouds and fog with temperatures generally in the 60s and 70s and low temperatures in the 30s and 40s.

Current longer-range forecast models indicate wet and unsettled weather could return the following week (Feb. 21 through Feb. 25) with potentially much needed rain and mountain snow across all locations.

Surf report

Sunday’s 2- to 4-foot northwesterly (290-degree, deep-water) swell (with an 8- to 12-second period) remain at this level into Monday morning.

Fresh to strong (19 to 31 mph) northwesterly winds starting Monday afternoon will generate a 4- to 6-foot northwesterly (305-degree, deep-water) sea and swell (with a 5- to 13-second period) on Monday afternoon, increasing to 6 to 8 feet by Monday night.

Strong to gale-force (25 to 38 mph) post-frontal northwesterly winds will generate a 9- to 11-foot northwesterly (315-degree, deep-water) sea and swell (with a 5- to 11-second period) on Tuesday. This northwesterly sea and swell will decrease to 6-to 8-feet (with a 7- to 12-second period) on Wednesday morning..

A powerful 947 millibar storm with hurricane force winds on the west side of the International Date Line on Sunday will generate a 6- to 8-foot west-northwesterly (285-degree, deep-water) swell (with a 20- to 22-second period) on Wednesday afternoon and night and remaining at this height but (with an 18- to 20- second period) on Thursday.

Seawater temperatures will range between 55 and 57 degrees through Sunday, decreasing to 54 to 56 degrees on Monday into Thursday.

This week’s temperatures

LOWS AND HIGHS, PASO ROBLES

LOWS AND HIGHS, SAN LUIS OBISPO AND COASTAL VALLEYS

PG&E safety tip

PG&E Safety Message: Stay away from downed power lines. Assume downed power lines are energized and dangerous. Stay away from the lines and keep others away from them. Call 9-1-1 immediately to report the location of a downed line. After reporting the downed line, call PG&E at 1-800-743-5000.

John Lindsey’s is PG&E’s Diablo Canyon marine meteorologist and a media relations representative. Email him at pgeweather@pge.com or follow him on Twitter @PGE_John.