Beating the Heat : Residents Flee Town, Seeking Cooler Climes for Holiday Weekend

Spurred by oven-like heat that deadened everything in its path this past week, Los Angeles residents got out of town with a vengeance Friday in search of cooler climes for the long weekend.

“I don’t even know where I’m going and I don’t much care, just so it’s not hot,” said Margaret Simeon, 26, who was shopping for a bathing suit at an Encino sporting goods store. “You know those commercials, ‘You deserve a break?’ That’s me.”

As early as Friday morning, cars and minivans stuffed with camping gear and people wearing shorts and sandals shared freeways with tie-clad commuters who hadn’t been able to sneak away early.

Heading south on the Golden State Freeway near Castaic, Ken Kaylor’s family vacation plan was bulging from the back of his white pickup truck: Piled precariously were sleeping bags, lawn chairs, card tables and two aqua-colored ‘Big Wheels’ bikes with lavender tires.

“Kind of looks like the Beverly Hillbillies, huh?” said Kaylor, a resident of Lake Hughes, in the hot high desert.

For the past week, the contractor has been working outdoors in the Antelope Valley, each day getting singed by an unrelenting sun. Friday, he took the day off to drive his family to a Ventura beach campground, where all were hoping for cloudy skies.

“We had reservations for the July 4th weekend about three months ago, and it worked out about perfect,” said Kaylor. “It’s going to be overcast and cool. Eighty-degree weather is going to be a lot cooler than 115.”

Forecasters say the weekend weather back home in Los Angeles--even in the inland San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys--should be cooler, though not necessarily cool.

“The marine layer has finally kicked in, so it won’t be as warm,” said Curtis Brack, a meteorologist for WeatherData, which provides forecasts for The Times. “But the valley areas will still be pretty warm.”

Temperatures will hover around the mid-90s in the valleys and the 80s in downtown Los Angeles. Hot, yes, said Brack, but a lot better than earlier this week when much of Southern California boiled through seven consecutive days of 100-degree-plus weather.

“Now we’re getting back toward more normal temperatures for this time of year,” he said.

Vacationers and day trippers seeking cooler spots, as usual, will be best off heading high in the mountains or out along the coast, where highs will hit only the 60s and 70s.

While Caltrans expects the usual heavy traffic on local freeways and roads to the beach this weekend, the only major problem they predict will be on the southbound Golden State Freeway between Wheeler Ridge and Ft. Tejon, where two lanes will be closed for shoulder repairs. That project could particularly affect the return trip.

“The closed lanes will probably impact people heading back into L. A.,” said Caltrans spokesman Russ Snyder. “So we are advising people to return a little earlier than usual to avoid the rush.”

The worst times for traveling, Snyder said, will be Sunday and Monday evenings between 4 and 8 p.m. He said traffic also could back up at the interchange between the Golden State and Antelope Valley freeways where crews continue to repair earthquake damage.

On Friday, many were trying for an early jump on the exit traffic--some more successfully than others.

“I was all packed up and ready to hit the road for a little fishing, when I forgot something pretty important,” said Gary Vincent, a 40-year-old from Culver City who had stopped to buy supplies on his way out of town. “Yeah, I forgot my fishing gear.”

He was not the only one lacking the necessary equipment.

“This is the busiest rental time of year for us,” said Rob Henderson, store manager at REI, a Northridge camping gear store. “People are making a run for the insect repellent, picking up last-minute stuff and getting out of Dodge.”

A U. S. Forest Service official, however, warned prospective campers that if they hadn’t already gotten to their favorite campground site or reserved a spot by this morning, they probably would not get one this weekend.

“On holiday weekends, we just don’t have enough sites to meet the demand,” said Bob Libershal, a fire prevention officer with the U. S. Forest Service at the Monte Christo campgrounds in Angeles National Forest. “And this year, demand is going to exceed supply again.”

Campers who are not lucky enough to get a spot can camp anywhere in the forest, Libershal said, but are prohibited from building fires at areas outside established campgrounds.

Williams is a Times staff writer, Alger is a special correspondent. Times staff writer Phil Sneiderman contributed to this story.