Hot, dry, voggy weather should hang around like an uninvited and unwelcome visitor through the weekend.

A so-called surface ridge sitting over the islands has changed the typical tradewind weather pattern, forcing winds to come instead from the south, bringing along vog from Hawaii island’s Kilauea Volcano up as far as Kauai, said National Weather Service forecaster John Bravender.

The vog was so thick Tuesday night that a kayaker became disoriented while trying to paddle from Maui to Hawaii island and had to be rescued by the Coast Guard 19 miles northeast of Kohala.

The 38-year-old kayaker told the Coast Guard that he got lost in the vog and drifted off course. He made a cellphone call to the Coast Guard at 6:29 p.m.

After an HC-130 Hercules Coast Guard crew dropped a radio and life jacket, the crew of the cutter Kiska plucked the kayaker from the ocean at 11:31 p.m., the Coast Guard said.

All islands will see similar conditions through the weekend but the brunt was being felt on Oahu and in Maui County on Wednesday, Bravender said.

"That surface ridge is keeping conditions dry and stable," he said. "There are a lot of clouds out there across Oahu and Kauai. But, because the ridge is very stable, there’s no rain coming out. So it’s dry. And without the wind to bring in fresh air continually, there are definitely muggy conditions."

Unrelated to the surface ridge, a couple of large low-pressure systems farther north of the main Hawaiian Islands should kick up surf as high as 15 feet on north shores and 8 feet on west-facing shores, Bravender said.

But that surface ridge will keep winds light and give surfers generally smooth waves, he said.

By Friday, the National Weather Service expects a weak front to approach Kauai, bringing relief in the form of showers Friday night and Saturday. The front and ridge are then expected to move north on Sunday, giving way to rain across Maui and Hawaii island.

In the meantime, people suffering breathing problems because of the vog should remain indoors with the air conditioner on, or drive to and from work with air conditioning, said Kim Nguyen, executive director of the American Lung Association of Hawaii.

"At least you’re not ingesting the vog that would aggravate your system," Nguyen said. "If you know that you are sensitive to vog or if you are lung-health sensitive, stay indoors."

For smokers who are affected by vog, Nguyen said the current weather provides a perfect opportunity to cut back and even quit.

"Now’s a great time to consider cessation strategies — and avoid being around other smokers," she said.