SLO County dodges rain storm as mild weather heads to the Central Coast

The Central Coast will remain dry and mild through at least the end of October while the storm track continues to target the Pacific Northwest.

A pattern of gentle to moderate (8 to 18 mph) Santa Lucia (northeasterly) winds will develop during the morning, shifting out of the northwest during the afternoon and will continue through Wednesday.

This pattern will produce Chamber of Commerce weather with the inland valleys (Paso Robles) reaching the low 80s, while the coastal valleys (San Luis Obispo) hitting the mid-70s. The beaches will range between the low to mid-60s.

Over this period, marine low clouds with pockets of fog and mist will develop in the coastal regions during the evening and overnight, clearing during the morning and afternoon.

Fresh to strong (19 to 31 mph) afternoon northwesterly winds are expected along the coastline on Thursday through Friday, increasing to strong to gale force (25 to 38 mph) levels starting Saturday and going through the following week.

These onshore winds will allow low marine clouds to develop in the coastal regions overnight, clearing during the afternoon.

These winds will bring a cooler marine air mass to the entire region, with the inland and coastal valleys only reaching the 70s, while the beaches will mostly be in the 60s.

The long range models do not indicate a chance of rain on Nov. 4 and 5 as a cold front travels southward along the California coastline.

Surf report

A 2- to 4-foot northwesterly (295-degree deep water) swell (with a 7- to 11-second period) is forecast along our coastline through Monday, building to 3- to 5-feet with the same period on Tuesday into Wednesday.

A 4- to 6-foot northwesterly (300-degree deep water) sea and swell (with a 5- to 9-second period) is forecast on Thursday through Friday, increasing to 5 to 7 feet with the same period on Saturday into next week.

Combined with this northwesterly sea and swell will be a 2- to 3-foot southern hemisphere (200-degree deep-water) swell (with a 15- to 17-second period) on Wednesday through Friday.

Surface seawater temperatures will range between 54 and 57 degrees through next week.

On this date in weather history (Oct. 20)

1977: Dutch Harbor in Alaska reported a barometric pressure reading of 27.31 inches (925 millibars) to establish an all-time record for the state. (The Weather Channel)

1987: A storm system moving across the Saint Lawrence Valley produced 40 to 50 mph winds east of Lake Ontario. High winds downed some trees around Watertown, New York, and produced waves 7 feet high between Henderson Harbor and Alexandria Bay. Mason City, Iowa, and Waterloo, Iowa, tied for honors as the coldest spot in the nation with record lows for the date of 19 degrees. Severe thunderstorms in Oklahoma and northern Texas produced golf ball size hail and wind gusts up to 65 mph. (Storm Data)

This week’s temperatures

LOWS AND HIGHS, PASO ROBLES

LOWS AND HIGHS, SAN LUIS OBISPO AND COASTAL VALLEYS

John Lindsey is a retired PG&E marine meteorologist. Email him at JohnLindseyLosOsos@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @PGE_John.

This story was originally published October 20, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "SLO County dodges rain storm as mild weather heads to the Central Coast."