Elk Grove, Ca. Climate
-
7/9/2007
Elk Grove is located in the lower Sacramento Valley of Inland Northern California. Its climate is a combination of Continental and Marine West Coast. Although only 100 miles from the Pacific Ocean, the city is separated from the open sea by the Coast Range. This allows for a variation in seasonal temperatures not seen at the coast. This is especially true in summer, when temperatures in the valley can peak at over 100F while those at the coast remain in the 50's and 60's. Conversely, in winter, Elk Grove can see daytime highs dipping into the upper 30's and lower 40's while those in the nearby Bay Area can remain in the 50's.
Its Continental influence provides Elk Grove with four seasons, although not as distinct or exaggerated as seasons east of the Sierra or in the midwest. Count on an "Indian Summer" most years with Fall arriving and the leaves changing in late October. Winter is characterized by high pressure producing many "balmy" days in the 60's F, but cool nights. Freezes occur less than ten nights a year, but inversion layers after recent rains can produce thick tule fog resulting in treacherous driving conditions causing major and sometimes deadly chain reaction collisions on area freeways. The fact that California drivers are notorious "tailgaters" doesn't help this situation at all. Elk Grove fog can burn off by noon, or it can persist around the clock, sometimes for days or weeks at a time.
Fortunately, Spring arrives early, sometimes in late February, bringing afternoon temperatures into the 70s and gradually warming to the 90's by May and, occasionally, to the low 100's by June. Total days at or above the century mark seldom exceed 15 annually. Most summer days are in the 90's.
Perhaps the most unique weather phenomenon in Elk Grove is the "Delta Breeze". We call it our natural air conditioner because, ironically, it occurs most frequently in late spring and summer when the weather is hot. Elk Grove is located less than 20 miles from the Sacramento River Delta, where the river empties into San Francisco Bay, leaving a natural "break" in the Coast Range. When warm air evaporates from the valley, cool marine air is pulled in through this gap from the ocean to take its place. The North Pacific is quite cold year-round, (about 55F), making these breezes refreshingly cool, if not gusty at times. It is not uncommon to rise in the morning following a blistering hot day to find the temperature in the mid-fifties.
Otherwise, Elk Grove gen
James | Elk Grove, CA