Summertime Plays It Cool on Last Day

Shrouded in fog and touched by a cool ocean breeze, the last day of summer in Ventura County brought with it more than a hint of fall.

With temperatures in the low to mid-60s across the region, a scattering of Ventura beach-goers on Friday lamented the changing of the seasons.

“I hate it when the season changes because I usually get sick,” said Camarillo resident Takeo Kingi, who spent the day fishing on the pier. “I enjoy the summer, the beach and the long evenings.”

But others, like Rob Williams of Agoura Hills, prefer the cooler weather.

“I’d rather have a day like this than to be torched by the sun,” said Williams, who tried surfing Friday for the first time. “Besides, I just moved out here from Chicago. I’m used to 10 or 15 degrees below zero. In California, I plan to surf all winter long.”

Terry Whittingham, a day-care operator from Santa Clarita who brought a group of children to the beach despite overcast skies, can’t wait for the fall.

“I’m ready for summer to end,” she said. “I don’t have to run my air conditioner every day. So that makes me happy.”

This summer brought spells of extreme heat, with temperatures surpassing 100 degrees in inland areas such as Simi Valley and Ojai. But forecasters said the summer did not break any heat records. And the season ended with a week of fog that reached deep into the valleys.

Forecasters said a low-pressure system originating in Northern California continued to push a cool sea breeze across much of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties Friday, bringing early-morning fog and cooler temperatures with it.

“I hate it,” said Rea Strange, a meteorologist with Pacific Weather Analysis in Santa Barbara. “I’m always walking around in my bathing suit during the summer months. But for the last couple of days, it’s been a little bit too nippy.”

Although the cooler weather kept many away from the beach Friday, Lance Sorenson of Northridge said he and his wife, Susan, couldn’t have picked a better place to celebrate his 46th birthday.

“This is about the deadest I’ve ever seen it,” Sorenson said. “But I’ll take a beach to myself any time.”

The county can expect more fog and low clouds over the weekend, with temperatures remaining cool along the coast and moderate inland, said Rob Krohn of the National Weather Service in Oxnard. There is also a slight chance of showers early next week, he said.

Meanwhile, fire officials said Friday that the unusually high humidity the county has been experiencing in recent days reduces the chance of brush fires. Heavy rains earlier this year also served to shorten the wildfire season.

But Assistant Fire Chief Bob Roper said the public should be reminded that brush fire season runs through early December and that warm Santa Ana winds are expected to kick up over the coming weeks.

Because property owners are required to do much of their weed abatement during June and July, it’s important that they take care of any significant growth since then, he said.

“If there’s a little bit of stubble, we need to cut it down. We encourage people to go back and clear the area between the grass around their homes and the thick brush.”

He said that officials with the Fire Department’s Arson Watch program are also working with community groups to look out for potential problems during the brush fire season.

“When the Santa Ana winds start, we need the neighborhood watch groups to be our eyes in the community,” he said.

Those seeking more information about Arson Watch can call 389-9769.