Hello Heat.

There is some chatter out there about how winter is not over, and later this month, or even the next, we could see a return of a cold and wet pattern.  But for now, it is best to focus on the reality on the ground.  It is warm out there.  Maybe not quite as warm as I thought it would be when I looked a week ago.  The last of the cold was pushed out of the area on Saturday.  As we drove south, we noticed cool air and increasing clouds, as we caught back up to the storm en route to Palm Desert.  It was in the 50s in the foot hills of the San Bernardino and snow was falling in the higher peaks.  Made for an interesting ski day atop Mt. San Jacinto 10,00 feet above the desert floor. More on that later.

Palm Springs and the I-10 corridor, as seen from near Mt. Marion at 10,000 feet.

Sunday, things began to warm up, but it has been a slow process.  But don't fret, as we could break 80F by Friday in Santa Cruz.  Lucky for us, we will still be in the desert.  Can you say "hotness"?  Even our usual cool nights will change, with our lows Friday and Saturday looking like last week's high temps.  It could even stay up above 60F on friday night.  Break out the t-shirts and shorts folks.  And get on it early, as this deal won't last.  As early as Sunday, things begin to cool off, and by next week at this time, we will be back down into the low to mid 60s.  And about that return to winter, we could see some showers again before the end of the month.  Stay tuned.

For now, it is nice.  Warm today and warmer tomorrow.  Some clouds out there keep it from getting too warm, but lets say 65 today, 70 tomorrow, low 70s on Thursday and low 80s for Friday and Saturday.  Back down to about 70 for Sunday and mid 60s to start next week.  You may want to think about getting some gardening done.