Originally Posted by
johnny99
Weather is very erratic along the California coast. It can be sunny for weeks at a time during the winter, then rain every day for a week. If you're flexible, the weather people are pretty good at predicting these patterns several days in advance.
Yes, this is true. For riding it is important to consider the wind patterns as well. In summer the wind generally blows down the coast. In winter as low pressure systems approach the coast the wind will back and can blow quite strong from the SE to the SW in advance of the front, creating headwinds on the route. As the front passes the wind will veer to the W and then NW (tailwind). Often a high pressure system will follow a cold front and the wind will continue to clock to the NE and blow very hard and can be quite warm.
The weather is most predictable when the persistent high pressure ridge is over the state pushing cold fronts north of the bay area. Then the weather can be beautiful for weeks (and it's the cause of our drought).
Originally Posted by
johnny99
Don't know if it is global warming or something else, but the rain season seems be shifting in California. When I was little, the rain season would regularly start in October or November. Now days, we don't get regular rain until late December. Most reliable rain is now Feb-March.
Here in SoCal the last few years we've had rain in December and then almost nothing in January - March, our historical wet season.