Fair Weather Expected for the Weekend

You can just about depend on a thoroughly decent Southern California winter weekend beginning today, thanks to a ridge of high pressure centered over Utah, the National Weather Service said Thursday.

The high is no big thing as highs go, but it is strong enough to keep conditions generally fair through Monday. Some fog may appear in the morning hours along the coast and the skies may seem more hazy than sunny, but the outlook as a whole is good.

That means no rain for the Orange County area, with daytime high temperatures in the low to mid-70s and overnight lows around 50, forecasters said.

The high Thursday was 72 in San Juan Capistrano, while it reached 70 in Santa Ana, 69 in El Toro and 61 in Newport Beach.

The mountain areas around the basin will range from partly cloudy to fair, with highs in the 50s and lows sinking into the 30s.

The desert resort areas around Palm Springs will have fair skies, highs around 70 and lows in the mid- to upper 40s.

Other than that morning fog, coastal communities should see a fair amount of sun, with surf running from 2 to 4 feet at 12-second intervals.

The outlook for Northern and Central California is not nearly as good. The high is not blocking the normal march of winter storm fronts up there and, as a result, there may be occasional rain and snow in the higher elevations during the first half of the weekend.

San Francisco should see gradual clearing by Saturday, with highs in the mid-50s and lows in the 30s. San Diego and parts of Baja California just south of the border will have mostly fair weather, despite some late-night and early-morning fog, with highs in the mid-70s and lows around 50.

Las Vegas should have fair conditions, with highs in the mid-60s and lows in the 30s. Phoenix and Tucson are likely to be sunny and will probably warm up to around 70, with temperatures falling into the 40s at night.