A lot of visitors assume that once the summer has started — in June — that’s the best time to visit San Diego. Actually May and June often have the worst weather. We’ve even coined a name for it: May Gray and June Gloom.
Why? The city is located in what meteorologists call a subtropical climate belt. Around May descending air warms the land here, but cool breezes continue to blow in off the Pacific Ocean. When the two air masses mix, an inversion layer is created that works to hold the cool moist air in place. A “marine layer” is formed — basically a high bank of fog. From the ground, it looks gray and boring and feels chilly.
Sometimes it burns off and disappears by mid-day, and this happens earliest the farther from the coast you are. So if you’re here for a visit on a day like that, head for someplace like the Zoo or even, better, the Wild Animal Park (or the desert!).
On the other hand, sometimes the rules get broken — like today, when the sun’s been blazing all day and the temperatures have run from the upper 80s, into the 90s.
No one ever said weather followed the rules…
san diego local newsAvoiding the Blahs