Safe Conditions for Spooners Cove?

[bwerthan]

Hey everyone, I'm a new Cal Poly student and new to kayak fishing as well. I took out some of our rental kayaks and went out to MDO (spooners) last month (actually 9/30/18) and had an awesome day. Swell was WNW and about 3 ft at 12 secs and winds were coming roughly from the north at about 3 knots. Anyway I've been looking at NOAA and other sites over the last month and the seas have never been approaching as calm as that. I really want to get back out and it would be easier to commit to a trip if I owned a kayak, but because I have to rent them in advance I want a baseline for safe conditions to get on the water. This way I don't waste my time and money. So what is the threshold for you guys when you're checking the forecast (at spooners or leffingwell or shell beach... ect) to determine if you're gonna go out? Also any tips for forecasting in general. Thanks!

[H2joe]

For Cambria (Leffingwell Landing) https://magicseaweed.com/Cambria-Surf-Report/261/
For Cayucos (Windmills)               https://magicseaweed.com/Cambria-Surf-Report/261/

One or two stars= Calm seas are more than likely.  3 stars or more, probably too rough for a newbie, or most, in my opinion.

To get a good understanding of what these forecasts really look like in action, look at a forecast and then find a beach camera one of these locations.  Now you will have a real-time understanding of the relationship between forecast and actual ocean conditions.  I google search "morro bay beach camera" or Cayucos, Cambria, Pismo, etc.

So if you want to fish Friday morning, start looking at the forecasts and videos (videos during the same time you plan to fish) earlier in the week.

Finally, regardless of weather,  try and find someone to fish with.  The older and wiser, the better!

[H2joe]

I did not mention Spooners because, I am just not a fan of the spot.  Sure it can be great, but i don't have peddles and, when I'm at MDO, the drift im constantly drifting to SoCal.

[Big_Mac]

When it comes to MDO I'd play it safe. Look for those NW winds and swell... and stay away from any Southerly swell. When it comes to cutoffs....it's really a personal thing. How experienced are you? Are you going out with a friend that can help you get out of sticky situations? Are you a strong paddler? Do you have a radio? These are all questions you should ask yourself before going out there. If you are renting a kayak then you definitely want the least amount of swell and wind when you are trying to plan things out. It's really hard to give you an exact number. I have been out there with 8' swells from what seemed like all directions when the report called for easy conditions. The opposite is also true. You really need to make the call when you get to your launch site. i know that sucks....but it's how we all play the game. Don't ever go out in bad conditions because you got everything ready to fish that day. There will always be another day....there isn't another you. And hey...if it's ever bad at MDO, Morro bay is just a short drive away. Oh...and when it comes to the current out there; it can be a real pain in the ass. Look for relatively small differences between high tide and low tide. The smaller the difference...the smaller amount of water there is moving back and forth. Just my 2 cents. Have fun!

[bwerthan]

Thanks for the info guys I'll definitely be more wary next time out at spooners. Good links. And Big_Mac that exactly what I did last time I tried to go out. MDO was white water so I headed to Morro and it worked out. I'll hopefully see you out there