A late but swell present

BALBOA PENINSULA -- The waves just won’t go away.

A Pacific storm generated some big surf for Newport Beach last week and weather forecasters are expecting more waves to continue pounding California shores. Tuesday, the National Weather Service issued a high surf advisory for beaches in Orange and San Diego counties. A west-northwest swell could peak Thursday before calming down on Friday, the advisory said.

In Newport, today’s waves could come in at 4 to 7 feet, National Weather Service forecaster Steven Vanderburg said. Thursday’s surf could reach 5 to 10 feet.

If that’s not enough, more waves could be on the way after New Year’s Day.

“There’s a whole bunch of storms. It’s a real progressive pattern,” Vanderburg said.

The prospect for quality surf this winter contrasts with the conditions beachgoers faced this summer, when, overall, Newport Beach received some pretty flat surf. What waves did reach the shore were often red with algae and filled with jellyfish.

Tuesday, surfing conditions around Blackie’s Beach were decent. A fair number of surfers could be seen bobbing in the waves, which around noon looked to be coming in as high as 8 feet. The surf was sizable enough for two rippers to catch the same wave and speed along the water in opposite directions.

“I caught a 7-foot one,” said Taylor Chiavalotti, an 18-year-old surfer from Tustin, as she took a break on the sand. “There are some nice sets out there. It’s good.”

If only the water was a little warmer. On the beach, a crisp breeze made the air feel wintry, at least by California standards. The water was colder. Christian Kent, a 7-year-old surfer from Mesa Verde, said the waves felt “like 1,000 ice cubes.”

Along Blackie’s, the waves near Newport Pier came in at about 4 feet with the bigger surf being found near the jetty west of the pier. Catherine Heideman, a 25-year-old from Irvine who said she is still learning the sport, said she went looking for waves near the pier. She came to the beach equipped with a white and powder blue surfboard that she received as a gift.

“I got this board for Christmas, so I had to give it a try,” she said.

20051228is6wcgncDOUGLAS ZIMMERMAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)A surfer rides a wave near Blackie’s Beach on Tuesday. Forecasts call for a huge swell, with double-overhead waves, to hit west-facing breaks today.