San Diego said goodbye to 2023 with a real bang, and not the kind delivered by fireworks.
A huge storm surge closed out the year, making for a “swell” New Year’s Eve in San Diego. Waves were so high officals closed piers in the area as the water pounded the pylons and sprayed over the top of them. Land that would normally be dry even at high tide were a foot under water.
At Windandsea Beach in La Jolla, the entire beach was covered in water. In Pacific Beach and Mission Beach, water rolled over the waist-high seawall, flooding some houses and businesses. It also dumped two inches of sand on the Strand (Boardwalk in local terminology). In some places, it looked like a hurricane hit San Diego.
All weekend, people were lined up for miles along the coast to witness this rare winter storm.
Slam Diego. Except this was created not by the Padres but by Mother Nature.
By late afternoon on Sunday, calm had returned to the coast. People were out shoveling sand out of their homes, businesses and the Strand. The gawkers had gone home, except for a few who had drinks at local bars since they were out anyway.
By evening, New Year’s Eve in San Diego took priority over big wave watching. By 5 o’clock, you could just feel the Gaslamp Quarter buzz beginning and throughout the city, bars and promoters were making final preparations for one of their biggest nights of the year. By 9, people were out in big numbers, there were lines at bars by 9:30 and by midnight, it was a party in the streets and various establishments.
So 2023 ended in San Diego with a “swell” weekend, started by the huge swell of waves that pounded the coast and ending in a swell celebration to start 2024.
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