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Weekend Forecast Looking Great, Even on the Lake

Posted at 6:54 AM, May 30, 2014
and last updated 2014-05-30 06:54:55-04

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (May 30, 2014) — As the month of June kicks off on Sunday, more people around West Michigan will be starting to think about hitting the beach.  While water temperatures won’t be great for swimming this weekend, we are beginning to see some changes that will bring conditions more in line with what we would hope for in the summer.

The weekend forecast features abundant sunshine and temperatures in the upper 70s to mid 80s.  Clouds will only start to make a comeback Sunday with rain returning Sunday night into Monday.

High pressure will keep winds light for Friday and Saturday, and with the overall flow out of the northeast and then southeast, wave action won’t be very high along the lakeshore.

Water temperatures can be tricky, especially this early in the season.  The below image shows water temperatures as estimated by satellite on Thursday afternoon:

LakeTemps

Lake Michigan Water Temperatures, 5/29/14

It’s kind of hard to read the numbers, but it shows temperatures in the mid to upper 50s near the lakeshore, followed by a sharp gradient just offshore. Temperatures for the central part of the lake are mostly in the low 40s.  While these conditions aren’t expected to change dramatically over the next couple of days, continued warm air should allow the water to warm up nicely as we head into the month of June.

However, with that in mind, all it takes is a decent offshore wind to push that warmer water out toward midlake and allow cold water to come up from beneath the surface.  It’s not all that unusual to have water temperatures that drop from the 70s into the 40s at the beach in the span of a day or two.

Air temperatures will vary greatly depending on your proximity to the water as well.  On Thursday, the Holland airport registered a high of 83°.  However, the buoy about a mile offshore near Port Sheldon only had temperatures in the low 60s Thursday afternoon.  The weather station at the Spyglass Condominiums near Holland climbed to near 67° around midday Thursday, then dropped back into the low 60s later in the afternoon.

You can check out the rest of the 7 Day Forecast anytimeon the Weather page.