Spring Makes Its Bow on Warmer Than Usual Note

Winter ended under sunny skies and a waning Santa Ana on Thursday, marking the beginning of spring with a temperature of 72 degrees, visibility of 15 miles and humidity of 35% at Lindbergh Field.

Spring began with the vernal equinox at 2:03 p.m. on a day that boasted temperatures about 10 degrees above normal throughout the county. The high at Lindbergh Field was 77, and the countywide high of 85 degrees was recorded in El Centro and Indio.

Highs reached 82 degrees in Escondido, Santee, Spring Valley, Fallbrook and La Mesa, and 81 degrees in El Cajon, Borrego, Montgomery Field, Poway, Ramona and at San Diego State University.

Coastal temperatures ranged from the 60s to the 80s, with a high of 74 in Del Mar and Point Loma, 80 in Imperial Beach and Chula Vista and 67 in Oceanside.

Warm weather is expected to continue through the weekend, although fog may shroud the shore in the early morning beginning Saturday, and temperatures will cool slightly with the departure of the Santa Ana and an influx of moisture.

According to the National Weather Service, a high-pressure system will protect the county from storms at least through Sunday. Ocean breezes will return and temperatures will moderate.

Highs will drop slightly and lows will rise, forecaster Wilbur Shigehara said. He predicted a “San Diego Chamber of Commerce” weekend.

Ocean breezes will replace the offshore flow of eastern breezes and provide sailing winds from the southwest to northwest of about 8 to 14 m.p.h. in the afternoon. Highs should reach 72 today and 70 Saturday. The surf is flat with waves of one to two feet. Ocean temperature is about 59 degrees.

Coastal highs are expected up to 75 today and up to 73 Saturday, with lows in the 46- to 54-degree range. Inland valley highs up to 83 today are expected to be in the 74- to 80-degree range Saturday, with lows in the 40s.

Mountain areas will be sunny and clear, with highs from the mid-50s to mid-60s and lows in the 30s and 40s.

Desert highs may reach 88 degrees, and nighttime lows should be in the 46- to 54-degree range.

Spring leaves behind a winter that offered unusual weather, Shigehara said. December was drier than normal, while January, normally the wettest month of the year, recorded only 0.75 of an inch of rain--and that rain came on the last three days of the 4th warmest January on record.

February surprised forecasters with 2.59 inches of rain--nearly twice the normal rainfall--and March has been extremely wet. Normally 1.60 inches of rain falls in March, but 3.10 inches have already fallen this month.