IMHO California's climate is overrated (San Francisco, Sacramento: land, spiders, area)

[saibot]

Originally Posted by muffincake

East coaster here and I agree...It never rains, never a cloud in the sky, always just hot, hot, hot.

You haven't been here very long, have you? Sounds like you are looking at a brief snapshot in time. I've a native and I can assure you it does rain, we do get clouds, and it's not always hot.

[JRichards1996]

I can't speak for SoCal but NorCal's climate is overrated. In the Bay Area our climate is cold, cloudy, and overcast for about 70% of the entire year. I call it the land of the perpetual autumn. We're lucky if we get a few hot summer days. You have to wear sweatshirts almost everyday and it's hard to get a good tan.

[Curmudgeon]

Originally Posted by JRichards1996

I can't speak for SoCal but NorCal's climate is overrated. In the Bay Area our climate is cold, cloudy, and overcast for about 70% of the entire year. I call it the land of the perpetual autumn. We're lucky if we get a few hot summer days. You have to wear sweatshirts almost everyday and it's hard to get a good tan.

Since you clearly have very negative opinions and perceptions of the state as a whole and since you've achieved that magic, vaunted age of 18 and nominal adulthood, why do you still live there?

[Bulldogdad]

California's Weather Climate is the best in the world because within in a few hours drive you can find just about any the suit you.

The political climate on the other hand........

[dalparadise]

I actually feel sorry for people who complain about the Bay Area's climate, as they must be hopelessly unhappy people. While it is amazingly varied within a small area, it is also extremely predictable. It's sunny, cool, and Spring-like 8-9 months of the year, with a couple of weeks of legitimate Summer temps in April and October. Then, it's a bit more rainy and cooler for the remainder of the year, with week-long periods of perfectly crisp, cool, Fall- like days. Humidity is fog-related and only appears at cool temps. The sun is bright and the air is usually clear. There are almost no insects. It almost never goes above 90 or below 40 in SF.

I did a six-mile hike today up some steep hills, on an 81-degree SF Indian Summer day with a cool breeze blowing in from the Pacific. I barely broke a sweat. I've lived in places where the 100' from the front door to my car had me sweating bullets.

California has probably 10-12 distinct climate zones, so referring to it as a singular climate is an error in the first place. That said, calling the Bay Area climate awesome and life-affirming--among the finest in the world--is not overrating it at all, in my opinion.

[muffincake]

Originally Posted by dalparadise

Are you in SF, or somewhere over the hill like Walnut Creek? It is never hot for more than a day or two around the Bay. We don't get Winter here, you are right, but it's about three hours east of Walnut Creek in the Sierra.

Sactown. It consistently feels like I've stepped into an oven. I could probably count all the times it's rained. And I was at the Bay this weekend and it was 80 degrees the whole time... I was hoping it would be cooler, but nope.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by dalparadise

I actually feel sorry for people who complain about the Bay Area's climate, as they must be hopelessly unhappy people. While it is amazingly varied within a small area, it is also extremely predictable. It's sunny, cool, and Spring-like 8-9 months of the year, with a couple of weeks of legitimate Summer temps in April and October. Then, it's a bit more rainy and cooler for the remainder of the year, with week-long periods of perfectly crisp, cool, Fall- like days. Humidity is fog-related and only appears at cool temps. The sun is bright and the air is usually clear. There are almost no insects. It almost never goes above 90 or below 40 in SF.

I did a six-mile hike today up some steep hills, on an 81-degree SF Indian Summer day with a cool breeze blowing in from the Pacific. I barely broke a sweat. I've lived in places where the 100' from the front door to my car had me sweating bullets.

California has probably 10-12 distinct climate zones, so referring to it as a singular climate is an error in the first place. That said, calling the Bay Area climate awesome and life-affirming--among the finest in the world--is not overrating it at all, in my opinion.

Great post. I will always love Berkeley and Oakland's climate.

[Mini-apple-less]

Originally Posted by JRichards1996

I can't speak for SoCal but NorCal's climate is overrated. In the Bay Area our climate is cold, cloudy, and overcast for about 70% of the entire year. I call it the land of the perpetual autumn. We're lucky if we get a few hot summer days. You have to wear sweatshirts almost everyday and it's hard to get a good tan.

What part of the Bay Area do you live in? I lived in Concord back in the mid-late 90s and it is hot and sunny for about half the year.

[dalparadise]

Originally Posted by muffincake

Sactown. It consistently feels like I've stepped into an oven. I could probably count all the times it's rained. And I was at the Bay this weekend and it was 80 degrees the whole time... I was hoping it would be cooler, but nope.

You caught the Bay Area on one of the 3-4 weeks per year in April and October that it gets into the upper 80s. Agreed that Sac can feel like an oven in the summer. It gets pretty cold in winter, too.

SF is usually 60-70 night to day in the summer and 50-60 during the winter with remarkable predictability.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by JRichards1996

I can't speak for SoCal but NorCal's climate is overrated. In the Bay Area our climate is cold, cloudy, and overcast for about 70% of the entire year.

You are referring only to one place: San Francisco, and only certain neigbhorhoods. You must not venture out of Sunset?

Originally Posted by dalparadise

The sun is bright and the air is usually clear. There are almost no insects. It almost never goes above 90 or below 40 in SF.

The no-insect thing is good, but unfortunately I think it's an artifically created situation (regular spraying of pesticides). Regarding the clear air, this is true. What I was told was it has to do with the prevailing wind patterns which push the air from Northern California downwards into the Central Valley and Southern California. So the pollution is pushed away. I'm not sure how much pollution there would be if it weren't for this.... Smog laws and regulations are pretty stringent and seem to be effective...

Originally Posted by valsteele

What part of the Bay Area do you live in? I lived in Concord back in the mid-late 90s and it is hot and sunny for about half the year.

Anytime you get over the hills, it immediately gets much hotter. In fact in my mind the hills are the demarcating point for what's considered "Bay Area".
I don't know what people mean by "Sac": I guess Sacramento? Well, that's Central Valley: completely different climate. Hot summers, cold winters. The reason extremes don't happen in the Bay is due to the ocean: water acts as a "thermal ground", it keeps things consistent.