Despite a breeze, this weekend is set to be the warmest stretch for the foreseeable future. Those factors will provide some fire risk before temperatures tumble and a window for rain opens next week.
On Friday and Saturday, high temperatures across the Central Valley from Sacramento to Fresno are set to rise to the upper 80s with a few spots briefly touching 90. Skies will remain mostly clear this weekend across Northern and Central California as winds continue to flow out of the northeast offshore, allowing for warm temps in the 70s and 80s stretching deep into the Bay Area and along the coast.
It’s a great weekend to visit the ocean. Even the mountains, despite winds Friday gusting above 30 mph, won’t be half bad. Saturday especially looks nice for late-season hiking as winds begin to slow across the Sierra and with highs in the 60s and 70s.
Sunday’s temperatures will taper ahead of the real cooldown next week. Highs will dip a few degrees into the low to mid-80s between Sacramento, Modesto and Fresno, with some gusty afternoon winds out of the south at 20 mph. This change in direction will mark the end of warm temps along the coast, so make those plans for Saturday if you can.
Fire threat continues into Friday
The series of red flag warnings continue Friday across Central and Southern California. While most of the warnings will expire in the Northern Sierra and Coast Range later Friday morning, the gusty offshore breeze and dry conditions will linger for an extra day for the southern half of the state. A red flag warning will remain in effect until 10 p.m. for the Sierra from Yosemite and everywhere south.
Winds will occasionally gust upwards of 50 mph in the Southern Sierra as dry air races down slopes and accelerates as it heats up. Further south, a Santa Ana wind event continues for Southern California, with winds gusting up to 70 mph in the mountains surrounding Los Angeles and west towards Santa Barbara. Winds above 30 mph are also expected across portions of San Luis Obispo County on Friday.
Across the state, around 190,000 customers were under threat of public safety power shutoffs as of Thursday as utilities work to prevent sparking fires after wind damage to power lines. Shutoffs could continue into Saturday morning for most, before winds begin to ease by the afternoon.
Blast of cooler fall weather arrives next week
Say goodbye to high temperatures in the 80s and 90s. Next week a massive trough of cooler low pressure air is set to dip down as early as Tuesday from the Gulf of Alaska, ushering in temps well below normal and a chance of showers and mountain snow.
By Wednesday, high temps across the Central Valley are set for the low 70s or even 60s as clouds move overhead and the occasional raindrop falls. If it hasn’t felt like autumn yet, it certainly will later next week. These cooler temps are expected to linger well into the following weekend, and could remain cool close to Halloween…