heating up

This weekend beautiful weather abounded here in the Northstate. Chico's high temperature yesterday was 79 degrees, while today's high was 80 degrees. Sunshine was abundant both days, although there was some late day clouds that rolled in today. These clouds are associated with the southern end of a powerful cold front affecting the Pacific Northwest with rain and wind tonight. This cold front, ironically, will heat us up this upcoming week. That's because winds behind this cold front will shift to the north/northwest by Wednesday and Thursday. Northwest winds are downsloping winds here in the Scaramento Valley, which rush down off the Trinity Mountains and are funnelled into the valley. This allows the air to warm rapidly- hence highs by Thursday pushing 90 degrees. Once these winds abate, so will the heat. Highs by next weekend will be back in the 70s- about where we should be this time of year. Low temps through the period will be in the mid 50s. Here is Chico's detailed forecast from the National Weather Service: Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 56. Light and variable wind. Monday Partly sunny, with a high near 83. Calm wind becoming west around 6 mph in the afternoon. Monday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57. Light and variable wind becoming north around 6 mph after midnight. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 84. North northwest wind 5 to 11 mph. Tuesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 53. North northwest wind 8 to 13 mph. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 86. Wednesday Night Clear, with a low around 54. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 89. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 54. Friday Sunny, with a high near 82. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 55. Saturday Mostly sunny, with a high near 79. Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 52. Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 75.

still loving this fall weather

This weather has been lovely the past week. Yesterday afternoon was a bit breezy, with winds from the southeast between 20-25 mph. The winds were from a low pressure system to our south, which was spitting out raindrops to places such as the San Francisco Bay area. That low pressure system will not affect us here in Chico, as it continues to move to our south and east. The result is more of the same kind of weather we've been experiencing- sunny and mild. Today's high is only expected to be in the upper 60s! We usually don't see these kinds of temps until November. Be forewarned: next week the heat will return, albeit briefly. Highs by the middle of next week will approach 90 degrees! Thankfully, this time of year, the heat doesn't usually last more than a couple of days due to the lower sun angle and shorter amount of daylight hours. It's another busy weekend full of all kinds of events in Chico. Just a quick rundown of a few of them: Focus Film Festival, highlighting films and documentaries which explore the theme of diversity and inclusion, began last night at Sierra Nevada Brewery and continues tonight through tomorrow at Colusa Hall on the Chico State campus; the Harvest Sidewalk Sale, in which downtown Chico merchants take their wares outside to the sidewalks both Saturday and Sunday; the Second Saturday Artabout, in which art galleries throw open their doors in a specific area of Chico for the public to peruse for free (this weekend the neighborhood of SOPA, or South of Post Office, will be the designated hotspot); the Parade of Lights downtown, in which floats, marching bands, car clubs, and non- profit organizations parade through downtown with festive and colorful lights, is Saturday night; Autumnfest at Patrick Ranch, south of Chico on the Midway, which includes pumpkins for picking, hayrides, children's activities, and tours of the historic farmhouse, kicks off Saturday and runs through the end of October; and the North State Symphony will hold a chamber concert at Rowland- Taylor Recital Hall on the Chico State campus Sunday afternoon. Don't forget there are also various arts- related events happening under the Artoberfest umbrella. Whew! Lots going on in our small city! Here is Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 69. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 8 mph in the morning. Tonight Mostly cloudy, with a low around 52. South wind around 5 mph becoming light and variable in the evening. Saturday Mostly sunny, with a high near 77. Calm wind becoming west 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 54. North northeast wind 3 to 5 mph. Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 81. Light and variable wind. Sunday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 54. Monday Partly sunny, with a high near 81. Monday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 55. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 84. Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 55. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 89. Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 55. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 87.

lovely weather continues

I don't know what else to say, other than this has been the best stretch of weather we've seen in quite some time. The past two days have seen high temps in the mid 70s, and that trend will continue. It will start to warm up into the low 80s by early next week, but, all in all, a nice pattern of fall weather. Some of the trees in Chico are just beginning to turn into their fall color. I can't wait until the leaves begin falling! Here is Chico's detailed seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 77. Light and variable wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the morning. Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 52. Southeast wind 6 to 8 mph. Thursday Mostly sunny, with a high near 74. Calm wind becoming south southwest 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Thursday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 48. Southeast wind around 10 mph. Friday Mostly sunny, with a high near 73. South southeast wind 6 to 8 mph. Friday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51. Saturday Partly sunny, with a high near 76. Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 52. Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 79. Sunday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 54. Monday Partly sunny, with a high near 80. Monday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 55. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 83.

beautiful fall weather

This weekend has been absolutely fantastic in Chico, as far as the weather is concerned. Both yesterday and today have been sunny, with highs in the mid to upper 70s (normal high for October 7th is 84 degrees). This spectacular fall weather will continue for the next seven days, with sunny skies and mild temperatures. Highs should be mainly in the 70s, with lows hovering in the mid 40s to around 50 degrees. If you (like me) have an office job, it sure is going to be tempting to shrug off work and enjoy the weather this week. Here is Chico's fine fall forecast from the National Weather Service: Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 46. South wind around 6 mph becoming east in the evening. Columbus Day Mostly sunny, with a high near 75. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon. Monday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 45. Southeast wind around 6 mph. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 72. Calm wind becoming south southwest 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 45. South wind around 5 mph becoming east in the evening. Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 74. Wednesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 49. Thursday Mostly sunny, with a high near 75. Thursday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 52. Friday Mostly sunny, with a high near 72. Friday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 49. Saturday Partly sunny, with a high near 77. Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 51. Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 82.

Lots happening this weekend!

Wow! There is an abundance of events happening in the Chico area this weekend. Here's a quick rundown of some of the events: Oktoberfest is happening tonight and tomorrow at (the world famous) Sierra Nevada Brewery; the National Yo-Yo Competition will take place all day tomorrow (Saturday) at the Downtown Plaza in Chico; it's the first weekend of Artoberfest (see my link to the right for specific events related to this); Johnny Appleseed Days (a celebration of the apple harvest) and Blues and Brews Festival occur this weekend in Paradise; Perry Mason Days (yes, THAT Perry Mason) in Oroville all this weekend; Autumnfest at the Patrick Ranch Museum south of Chico in Durham; and the Sierra Oro Farm Trail, where you can visit various farms and get a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of farm life, is happening this weekend at various locations around the Chico area. For more listings of events, check out both the Chico E-R and News and Review links on my home page. There is some fabulous fall weather to go along with all of these events, with sunny skies and highs in the 70s both Saturday and Sunday. Get out and enjoy! Have a great weekend, Chico!

Loving this weather!

After about three straight weeks with temperatures at 90 degrees or above, we finally had a below average high temperature today. The high at the Chico Airport this afternoon reached 84 degrees, one degree below the average of 85 degrees. It's expected to be even cooler the next several days as southerly flow brings up cooler marine air from the Delta. In fact, highs are going to be below average through the middle of next week. Nice! Even overnight lows the next seven days will be at or below average (52 degrees is the average low for early October). Fall is finally here! Next comes the changing of the leaves on the trees. As you can tell (and I've said this numerous times in previous posts), I love fall! It's my favorite time of the year. The stifling heat of summer in the Northern Sacramento Valley gives way to refreshingly cooler air. The days are shorter, and the leaves begin showing their true autumn colors. It's simply wonderful! Okay, I'm done. Here's Chico's fabulous fall forecast from the National Weather Service: Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 54. South southeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light east southeast after midnight. Friday Sunny, with a high near 75. Calm wind becoming south southeast 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 44. East wind 3 to 7 mph. Saturday Mostly sunny, with a high near 74. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon. Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 44. South wind around 5 mph becoming light and variable in the evening. Sunday Partly sunny, with a high near 73. Sunday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 47. Columbus Day Partly sunny, with a high near 75. Monday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 46. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 78. Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 45. Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 80. Wednesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 46. Thursday Mostly sunny, with a high near 81.

nice cool down coming

After a hot start to October (97 degrees yesterday in Chico), expect a nice cool down the next several days. We'll have a couple of more hot days, but after that, temperatures will actually be below average! Low to mid 80s will rule Thursday through next Monday, while lows will will dip into the lower 50s. That will seem downright cold after highs in the upper 90s the past couple of days! Here is Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Light and variable wind becoming south southwest 5 to 7 mph in the morning. Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 58. South wind 5 to 8 mph becoming east northeast after midnight. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 92. Northeast wind around 6 mph becoming west southwest in the afternoon. Wednesday Night Clear, with a low around 56. South wind 6 to 8 mph becoming east southeast in the evening. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 84. Light and variable wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 53. Friday Mostly sunny, with a high near 82. Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 52. Saturday Mostly sunny, with a high near 82. Saturday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 52. Sunday Partly sunny, with a high near 82. Sunday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. Columbus Day Partly sunny, with a high near 80.