Wind, Drizzle to Put Damper on Holiday Festivities

There will be no idyllic scenes of palm trees waving in the warm Southern California sunshine to tantalize tourists this holiday weekend.

In fact, out-of-town visitors and locals alike would be wise to forget the picnic baskets and suntan oil and start looking for umbrellas and wool sweaters.

The forecast for this weekend’s weather has turned sour, thanks to a storm system rolling down the California coast from Oregon.

No heavy rain is expected here, but just enough gloom and drizzle to put a damper on outdoor activities. High winds will also accompany the weekend weather package, especially in the mountains and deserts, where gusts are predicted to reach 50 m.p.h. today.

The forecast for Monday is a bit more optimistic, with the wind and drizzle giving way to partly cloudy skies, according to Harvey Hastrup, forecaster for the National Weather Service.

But beach-goers and sports enthusiasts aren’t the only ones making last-minute alterations in their schedules because of the weather. The unexpected dankness also hindered the plans of the San Diego Police Department.

The police, all geared up to handle rowdy holiday crowds at the beaches, called off their heavy-duty enforcement plans Saturday when it became apparent that the masses weren’t going to materialize.

Plan Called Off

Police spokesman Bill Robinson said the department decided not to utilize a plan to block off the Mission Beach area to all motorists except those with proof that they live in the area. Also, the Beach Enforcement Team, which was set to patrol the sand from Ocean Beach to Torrey Pines State Park, found few people and no problems at the beaches Saturday, Robinson said.

Neither operation will be put into effect for the rest of the weekend, as long as the weather remains cloudy and the crowds small, he said.

The beaches are expected to stay windy and cool with some drizzle through today, Hastrup said, with high temperatures of 59-64 degrees and an ocean temperature of 65 degrees. The beaches will be slightly warmer but still cloudy Monday, with highs of 65-70.

The coastal strip and inland valleys will have highs today of 60 to 66, rising slightly to 67 to 73 Monday. Coastal lows tonight will be 54-60 degrees, and inland lows will fall between 45 and 53.

In the mountains, westerly winds of 30-40 m.p.h. with occasional gusts up to 50 m.p.h. will be accompanied by high temperatures of 48-58 degrees today. The winds are expected to die down to 25-35 m.p.h. Monday, with high temperatures of 54-64 degrees. Mountain low temperatures for the weekend will be 33-43 degrees.

The deserts will also have high winds from the west today, with widespread areas of blowing dust and sand, Hastrup said. As in the mountains, the winds are expected to drop to 25-35 m.p.h. Monday.