As Heat Soars, Crowds Hunt for a Beach or Mall : Weather: Temperature hits 92 in San Juan Capistrano. Weatherman says it will stay hot in the county for several days.

Around Orange County, people enjoyed a warm and sunny Saturday, crowding the beaches and filling the malls to escape temperatures that reached into the 90s in many areas.

The high temperature in the county was at San Juan Capistrano, where the mercury rose to 92, said Steve Burback, a meteorologist with WeatherData, which provides weather information to The Times.

The temperature in Santa Ana and El Toro reached 90, he said.

Burback said the heat wave was likely to continue for the next three to five days, although there is expected to be some patchy, late-night clouds overnight.

“We won’t see a break for a while,” Burback said.

That forecast will undoubtedly prove to be good news for the likes of Greg Spinnuzzi, 17, of Gardena, who surfs at Huntington Beach three to four times a week.

“It’s really decent weather and the surf is great,” Spinnuzzi said.

In addition to surfing, biking, boating, swimming or just plain relaxing in the shade were the order of the day Saturday.

Jason Ramsey, 15, and his 12-year-old pal, Jamie Riley, beached their 8-foot sailboat on the grassy shore of Huntington Harbour.

Jason, a freshman at Marina High School, was not only trying to get his mind off the heat but also off the torture of his first week of high school. The sailing excursion around the harbor seemed to evoke the right mood in the boys. “Today is pretty nice sailing with this wind,” Jason said as he tied off the small white sail. “I love the cool breeze.”

Roger and Judy Taillon, meanwhile, made the most of a relaxing weekend day by parking their beach cruiser bicycles and sitting on a bench at Huntington Beach for a picnic.

“We love the heat,” said Roger Taillon, 41, of Huntington Beach as his wife fed their Pomeranian health-food corn chips.

Huntington Beach lifeguard Kyle Lindo said that between 40,000 and 50,000 people flocked to the beach Saturday. At Newport Beach, lifeguards there said that as many as 110,000 people were attracted to the cooler ocean temperatures.

Lindo said that Huntington Beach lifeguards were busier than usual, making about 50 rescues. He said that rescues were up, not because of extremely high waves but because of the crowds.

“There are a lot of people in the water,” Lindo said.

Others decided to opt for air-conditioned malls rather than chance a sunburn and sandy shoes.

Joan Daugherty cooled her heels on a bench in the middle of crowded South Coast Plaza, watching her 7-year-old son ride the merry-go-round. “(The heat) is a good excuse to go shopping,” she said.