Bright weekend forecasted

June Casagrande

Here comes the sun, and with it, here come the sun worshippers.

As a bright forecast promises to bring small, pre-spring crowds to

Newport beaches, lifeguards say it’s still too early in the year for

them to start beefing up staffing levels.

That’s because, when it comes to staffing lifeguard towers, it’s

not just about the heat-seeking crowds -- it’s about the water

temperature.

“In general, nice weather increases foot traffic and general beach

population, and normally the more foot traffic there is, the more

likely it is that we would have incidents,” said Lt. Boyd Mickley, a

Newport Beach lifeguard. “But this time of year, the water’s pretty

cold. So even if it’s a nice day, there are fewer people in the

water.”

On Thursday at around 1 p.m., the water temperature off the

Newport Beach Pier was 56 degrees. That’s too cold for most swimmers,

although surfers are a different breed, Mickley said.

“Surfers usually don’t let water temperature keep them from coming

out,” Mickley said.

Some of the year’s first opportunities to enjoy some sunshine will

come late Saturday and stay through Sunday, said Mark Moede,

meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

Saturday will start out cloudy on the coast with sunshine coming

out in the late afternoon and temperatures in the low 60s, Moede

said. Then Sunday should bring even more sunshine starting earlier in

the day.

“Sunday will be kind of a beach day,” Moede said. “It will be in

the high 60s at the beach, but when you’re right out in the sun it

feels warmer. So Sunday should be the better beach day.”

The crowds at Newport beaches will be moderate, Mickley said, and

they tend to cluster around the beach areas with ample parking. So to

avoid the crowds, beachgoers should avoid places like the Balboa Pier

and Big Corona State Beach and instead trek to places like West

Newport.