Entries
Cicadas and Native Lilies
Native Lilies, such as the Humboldt lily, are blooming this month in widely scattered locations throughout San Diego County's higher mountains. To find them take a walk on the Noble Canyon Trail in the Laguna Mountains, or explore the pine …
Summer Birding Opportunities
Birdwatchers need not despair now that the winter migrants are gone. Plenty of shore birds can be found on summer evenings in the natural coastal wetland areas of San Diego County. From south to north the publicly accessible coastal wetlands …
Dry July
July is San Diego's Driest Month, according to precipitation data compiled since the year 1850. Only four hundredths of an inch of rain falls on average this month, compared to almost two inches in January, the wettest month. July also …
Get Your Grunion
Grunion will be active on area beaches early next week (Tuesday through Friday, July 7-10), roughly during the hours of 10 p.m. and 1 a.m., following the nocturnal high tide. The small, silvery grunion tend to spawn on wide, gently …
July Heat
The Heat of Summer will most likely reach its feverish peak in inland San Diego County during the month of July. (Coastal San Diego is different: since its weather is greatly affected by the slowly warming mass of ocean water …
Moon of Blood
July's Full Moon rises impressively from the east horizon on Monday, the 6th, very close to the time of sunset. Folk names for the July full moon include "hay moon," "wort moon," "moon of blood" (in reference to mosquitoes), "blessing …
Waxing Moon Competes With Fireworks Tonight
Only two days short of full-moon phase, a waxing gibbous moon illuminates the evening sky after dusk on Independence Day, stealing just a bit of thunder from the fireworks displays. This and every July 4 (actually July 3 at 7 …
Latest Sunset of the Year Tonight
8 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time in San Diego marks the latest sunset of the year, this Saturday, June 27 -- a week after the summer solstice (our longest day). From now until late July there will be little change in …
Cobbled Shorelines, Colorful Foliage, and June Bugs
Cobbled Shorelines are greeting some beachgoers early this summer season, as in past years. North County beaches tend to suffer most, as the natural sand replenishment in the area is disrupted by dams blocking the flow of sediment down the …
The Best Grunion Runs
June's best grunion runs could occur Monday through Thursday, June 22 through June 25, roughly during the hours of 10 p.m. and 1 a.m. This corresponds to one or two hours after highest nocturnal tide, during a string of nights …
The Tides of June
Extreme High and Low Tides for June occur near the month's end. Highest tides of around +7.0 feet happen at 9:22 p.m. on Monday, June 22, and at 10:10 p.m. on Tuesday, June 23. Extreme low-tide events occur at 3:50 …
Where's the Moon Been Lately?
Happily hanging out in the early morning sky until Monday, June 22, when it reaches new-moon phase. It will return to easy visibility as a waxing crescent moon, visible low in the western sky, by Wednesday, June 24 -- absent …
Summer Solstice
The time when the sun reaches its northernmost point in the sky occurs this year at 10:46 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time on Saturday, June 20. Think of it as an excuse to throw a terrific Saturday-night solstice party, with a …
"Century" Plants
Agaves (a.k.a. century plants), are coming into bloom in many summer gardens this month. After a decade or more (not a century) of growth, the larger kinds of agave send up a tall, yellow-blossomed flower stalk from a base of …
2009's Earliest Sunrise
Earliest Sunrise This Year, reckoned in Daylight Saving Time, occurs June 14 at 5:38 a.m. This event occurs about a week before the longest day of the year -- the summer solstice -- because of factors related to the shape …
Elderberry, Magnolia, and Buckwheat
Elderberry, two species of which range over most of San Diego County, is in full bloom this month. The flat-topped, creamy-white blossoms of this large shrub or small tree can be seen in the natural coastal canyon areas such as …
Ocean Water Temperatures
Ocean temperatures are rising into the mid- or high-60s this month, perhaps reaching the 70s in July and August. The usual early-summer cool weather along San Diego's coastline, disappointing to many tourists, is mostly caused by the sluggish warming of …
Full Moon This Weekend
The Full Moon Rises Majestically into a deeply darkened eastern sky at around 8:25 p.m., some 35 minutes after sunset, on Sunday evening, June 7. The June full moon has been called the "rose moon," "strawberry moon," or "honey moon" …
June Gloom
The cool and intermittently overcast conditions likely to dominate the beach and coastal areas through the remainder of this month mock the already sizzling temperatures inland. If it weren't for the ocean's enormous resistance to changes in temperature, the hottest …
Lilac of the South
Crape Myrtles are in bloom around San Diego this month through the end of summer. This smallish, vase-shaped tree blossoms in colors ranging from white or pale pink to lavender, red, and blue. "Lilac of the South" is one of …