Pick your days!!

A successful day on the kayak depends on a long list of variables, and none is more important than weather. Weather and ocean conditions where I live vary dramatically. I northern California, it is not uncommon for wave height to increase from 5 feet to 20 feet in less than a day.
In order to be prepared, I plan my trips around the forecast. Unfortunately variability in forecast precision has caused me to both miss opportunities, as well as find myself in precarious situations. I have learned that the problem with most forecasts is not necessarily the precision in the forecast, but the large area of the forecast region. The weather man doesn’t have time to make a precise forecast for every spot, so everything is averaged into something for a broad area.
I recently began using a website (www.windy.com) that uses all of the same weather models as the National Weather Service and NOAA, but creates a specific forecast for any spot the user selects. Simply log on, drop a pin on the map and you can see what all of the weather models predict for your exact location. If you click on the date bar between the calendar it will even show wind and wave directions for whatever day/time you select.

My favorite feature is Windy.com will check the weather for you! Set up a location as a “favorite” and you can schedule an “alert” based on whatever parameters you want to see. When a forecast satisfying your criteria is in the forecast for your location, Windy.com will send you an email giving you a heads-up.

Best of all, this amazing technology is FREE.