====== When & Where Are Bellingham Bay Waves Good? ======

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===== The Secret Sauce for Good Days? =====

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The conversations below are a sampling of the great variety of conditions on Bellingham Bay that can result in wave catching, great fun, and/or consternation and befuddlement.

  -  [[:stories:zit_6_19_2011|]]
      - [[:stories:followup_7_03_2011|Followup 7/03/2011]]
  - [[:stories:prechristmas_2011|More Bay Mystery 12/23/2011]]
  - [[:stories:sw_wind_bbay_2012|SW Wind in Bay 10/20/2012]]
  - [[:stories:bay_west_becomes_sw_2016|How "West" winds can turn into SW or SSW in Bay 6/28/2016]]
  - [[:stories:se_wind_bay_2016|SE Wind in Bay 10/11/2016]]
  - [[:stories:surprising_day_5_14_2017|One of those surprisingly good days 5/14/2017]]
  -  [[:stories:bay_wind_convergenge_12_28_2017|More Bay Convergence of Multiple Wind Directions 12/28/2017]]
      - [[:stories:wind_convergence_2_24_2007|But Watch Out for Strong Convergence 2/24/2007]]
  - [[:stories:cryder_observes_bay_2018|N. Cryder's Observations 1/26/2018]]
  - [[:eliza_portage_bay|Eliza Is. to Portage Bay 6/30/2018]]
  - [[:flood_tide_other_variables_7_03_2019|Ebb, Flood Tide, etc… 7/03/2019]]
  - [[:magic_carpet_tide_change_thing_2019|Magic Carpets... 7/10/2019]]

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===== Too Big? / Too Unsettled? =====

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There are periodic discussions about whether it was wise to paddle on Bellingham Bay on big days. To a certain extent the conversation gets rekindled because newer paddlers are trying to find their limits. There seems to be a consensus among most local boaters that with the exponential increase of force of greater wind speed, there is a point when the difficulty presented by the wind outweighs any enjoyment from surfing on the resultant waves. And there are days when the wind is in most folks' high range when the waves are cluttered enough to not provide enjoyable paddling. There is also a general understanding that **weather patterns**  that are unclear, expected to change at an inexact time, or subject to various factors that tend to make things unpredictable (like [[:stories:wind_convergence_2_24_2007|convergence]]) **can present excessive risk**. Beam winds (from the West or East in the Bay) that are too strong for laps generally also reduce or eliminate the likelihood of safe or even enjoyable downwind runs.

  * [[:stories:little_too_nuclear|A Little Too Nuclear 2/04/2006]]
  * [[:stories:big_wednesday|Big Wednesday/Paddle Friction Fit Woes 11/15/2006]]
  * [[:stories:monday_madness_12_11_2006|]]
  * [[:stories:upside_downwinder|Upside Downwinder - On the Edge of Uncomfortable 4/12/2009]]
  * [[:stories:mousley_2010|Rob Mousley on Paddling in Extreme Conditions 3/04/10]]
  * [[:stories:downwind_se_wind_2012|To Downwind or Not to Downwind Bay w/ High SE Winds 11/03/2012]]
  * [[:stories:should_we_have_been_out_there|Was it A Good Idea 8/31/15]]
  * [[:stories:tad_spicy|]]
  * [[:stories:sunday_weather|Sunday Weather 3/30/2021]]
  * [[:stories:wildcat_westwind_4_4_2022|West and North Wind Makes Wildcat Run Go South 4/4/2022]]
  * [[:sloptest|]]

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==== Seasonal Wind History - Bellingham ====

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{{:locales:bellingham:bellwind.jpg?nolink&624x332|bellwind.jpg}}

{{:weather:windkey.jpg?nolink&493x56|windkey.jpg}}

chart: windalert.com

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