Sunniest parts of San Diego? What about overcast? (Pomona, Santa Barbara: school, salaries)

[odannyboi]

OK, I've been doing some google searches and searches on this forum, but I've noticed that SD weather is pretty different in different parts of the city. You'll have fog and overcast in one part but sun in another.

For example: when i visited a month ago, there was quite a bit of fog when I was driving down from LA. Then I did a walking tour at SDSU (NE of downtown) and the sun was beating down on my face at around noon. Then in the afternoon, downtown was kinda sunny. But about 30 minutes later near ocean beach, there was overcast that reminded me of living in Seattle (I hate overcast).

The weather report was listed as "Sunny".. ie no clouds. Where do they measure this? I visited Santa Barabara in May 2009 and the report said "Sunny" for all 4 days I was there but it was overcast the whole time! (Is the "Sunny Socal" thing a lie for some portions? .. EDIT, I'm exaggerating this)

Weather is a big reason people move to SD despite enduring lower than market salaries and "high COL" (which I didn't really see, I am used to being nickle and dimed in Chicago)... but it looked like OC and LA had better weather with barely any fog or overcast. On all 3 days I was there, the weather report said it was sunny for all 3 areas, so the observation holds water.

Are the beaches generally cloudy and overcast during the year and at what time of the year? I am applying to school in SD, OC, and LA and am looking for the total package in terms of location. Thanks in advance.

[mlarsen23]

I would not say that the beaches are generally cloudy, but certainly the closer you are to the beach, the more likely it is to be cloudy. Some days it can be sunny everywhere except for within half a mile of the beach. The interaction of the cold water with with warm air just makes the beach a potentially cloudier place. In SoCal, Go out 20 or 30 miles and it will almost always be sunny. But it is also gets hotter the farther you get from the beach.

There are lots of sunny days and mostly great weather in Southern California, but there are cloudy days, and cloudier times of the year (May/June in San Diego). Also, this past summer was particularly cool and cloudy. I am not sure that on average the coastal weather differs tremendously between Santa Barbara and San Diego, but on any given day it could be quite different.

Most people consider the weather to be not just sun vs. clouds, but also temperature, humidity and precipitation. If what you want is lots of sun, daytime temperatures usually between 60 and 80 degrees, little rain and no snow, and generally low or non-oppressive humidity, then you will like coastal Southern California weather. But if it's all about sun and only sun, then you would probably be better off someplace like Palm Springs or Phoenix, where cloudy days are few and far between.

[1AngryTaxPayer]

When it's 105 inland you'll be glad that marine layer exists.

[oddstray]

I don't know for sure, but I would guess that coastal areas of OC and LA county also have the marine layer. I lived in Pomona (went to CalPoly), and the inland parts of those counties didn't have much cloudy weather.

[BRinSM]

I live a quarter mile from the beach in LA, we'll go days (sometimes weeks) at a time where the sun won't come out at all due to thick cloud cover. If you drive inland just a few miles, the clouds usually break up before noon and you'll have a nice afternoon. this pattern is most prevelant in the early summer (may/june), but can extend further into the summer as it did in 2010 (which was like the year without a summer if you lived near the coast). I visit san diego fairly frequently and the coastal weather is the same from my experiences. if you want all sun all the time, you'll want to live at least 5 miles inland.

[vdy1985]

UCLA is 4-5miles from the coast, absolutely perfect weather with plenty of warm sunny days.

[odannyboi]

Originally Posted by mlarsen23

I would not say that the beaches are generally cloudy, but certainly the closer you are to the beach, the more likely it is to be cloudy. Some days it can be sunny everywhere except for within half a mile of the beach. The interaction of the cold water with with warm air just makes the beach a potentially cloudier place. In SoCal, Go out 20 or 30 miles and it will almost always be sunny. But it is also gets hotter the farther you get from the beach.

There are lots of sunny days and mostly great weather in Southern California, but there are cloudy days, and cloudier times of the year (May/June in San Diego). Also, this past summer was particularly cool and cloudy. I am not sure that on average the coastal weather differs tremendously between Santa Barbara and San Diego, but on any given day it could be quite different.

Most people consider the weather to be not just sun vs. clouds, but also temperature, humidity and precipitation. If what you want is lots of sun, daytime temperatures usually between 60 and 80 degrees, little rain and no snow, and generally low or non-oppressive humidity, then you will like coastal Southern California weather. But if it's all about sun and only sun, then you would probably be better off someplace like Palm Springs or Phoenix, where cloudy days are few and far between.

awww maaan... I want sun AND beach

I was entertaining Miami but they have no actual industries plus no real diversity in terms of landscape.

[odannyboi]

Originally Posted by vdy1985

UCLA is 4-5miles from the coast, absolutely perfect weather with plenty of warm sunny days.

I'm too dumb to get into UCLA. I can settle for Loyola Marymount perhaps..

[bouncethelight]

Originally Posted by odannyboi

awww maaan... I want sun AND beach .

I love the beach, and I've tried living there several times, but I love the sun more, so I now live inland. You will definitely get sunny days on the beach - lots of them! But you'll get more if you move inland.

[BacktoBlue]

Just because you move inland doesn't mean you can't enjoy the beach still. It's not like you live far from the water like those in the Midwest.