My husband may be going out to San Francisco on business in mid-winter. I'm not familiar enough with that part of the country to know what the weather is like at that time. I'd be tempted to go along if the weather is quite nice in that season-- especially if the weather is good in the Big Sur area. Would appreciate in-put from knowledgeable folks on this question. Also: what's weather like in northern California then, e.g. around Gualala or Mendocino?
Thanks very much!

Hello poss, I don't know where you live but having lived in the SF Bay Area all my life I would not consider the weather as "quite nice" in January and February. That is our winter and consequently one can expect rainstorms and so forth. The weather has changed so much the past years (for example where I live it is normally in the hight 90's but we have been averaging the high 70's this September). You are talking about the areas on the coast, again not what I would anticipate as good pleasant weather in January and February. If you wanted to stay in San Francisco you could have a good visit even if the weather is stormy etc. as there are many activities you can enjoy indoors. Best wishes to you.

poss: There is really no way to know what weather will be like along the coast at that time. It could be glorious, crisp, clear - or it could be major winter storms. Have you ever watched the ATT pro-am golf tournament from Carmel? Some years it is gorgeous, and some years it is dreadful.

If there ARE winter storms, hwy 1 in Big Sur is not somewhere you'd want to be. In fact Hwy 1 up closer to SF and down in Big Sur sometimes are closed because of landslides causedby winter storms.

But if the weather IS bad there is plenty to fill your time in SF.

If its any help my family has stayed in Carmel the last five years for the last couple of weeks in January and the beginning of February and intends to do so again next year. They live on the East Coast and the weather has never been so bad that they wont come back again. Now maybe they are incredibily lucky but in the 3 week period they stay in Carmel they have only ever had 3 or 4 days of really rainy weather each time. I live in SF and my friends always know when my sister is in Carmel because the weather is nice.

www.weatherunderground.com

SAB: Maybe poss should hire your sister to come w/ them for weather insurance

Janis, LOL, if only SAB's sister could travel around N CA during the winter months so we could be assured of not having terrible winter storms that would be great!

Hey we don't call her the weather witch, I mean, goddess for nothing.

Hey SAB, all I am asking is that she comes up here to the Sacramento Valley around the middle of January. It is the least you can do for us. Just put her on a Greyhound Bus and I will pick her up. I mean if that would eliminate the horrible storms we usually have then I would be eternally gratefull!! Best wishes.

Thanks to everyone. I think I'll not plan to go out to the coast in winter months (though I agree that there's plenty to do in San Francisco even if the weather is not good). We spend winters in Naples, FL, so I'll stay put and wait til an opportunity comes up to enjoy Big Sur in more reliable outdoor weather.

I would plan a trip in late spring - April or May - or in September.

In the spring you will get the wild flowers and there is less chance of rain in late spring. In the early fall you get warmer temperatures, a lot less fog than in the summer and very rarly is there any rain.

Normally Sept. is great time for a trip to the California coast, but this year has been awful. Fog and even rain. At this point who knows what our weather will be doing. Our weather has been very strange. At least we aren't dealing with hurricanes though.

LI--my sister wouldn't know what a Greyhound bus looked like. Seriously, it is amazing the good weather she gets when she goes places on vacation-I've even had coworkers ask me if she was in town 'cos the weather was so nice. I think its a reward for the numerous hardships she has been through and overcome in her life.

Hi SAB, I was just "making a funny joke" of course about the Greyhound Bus. It is a joke here in Vacaville because those that are let out of prison evidently are given a Greyhound bus ticket to leave town, LOL.

It is good to hear that your sister has overcome difficult times and is now living a beautiful life. Good for her! Take care.

And poss, late spring or September would be a good time to visit California. Best wishes to you.

Hey LI--I know that there are sometimes posters that take comments too seriously or too personally, but I knew you were joking-- just found the image of my sister on a Greyhound bus hysterical--picture an attractive middle age business executive with a British accent wearing a St. John's suit on a Greyhound bus.

Hi SAB, thanks for the post..I truly am happy that your sister is doing so well. That is wonderful, a happy story to be sure. And thank you for understanding my sense of humor. Best wishes to you and your loved ones.

You know? I really wouldn't try Big Sur/Highway 1 at that time of year. We have had lots of road closures due to slides, etc.

Save it for summer.