Fog, Chill Chase Away Superheated Weather

Fog and chilly temperatures crept over coastal Ventura County on Tuesday, chasing away superheated weekend weather and setting the stage for a week of cooler temperatures, according to the National Weather Service.

Dense fog, kept offshore by moderate Santa Ana winds last week, blanketed the coast from Paso Robles to Orange County on Tuesday and will be back this morning. It should clear out by midday, but until then, expect just a few miles visibility--a marked contrast to panoramic conditions that prevailed over the weekend, said Stuart Seto, weather specialist for the weather service.

The pattern of chill, dense fog in the morning should last most of the week along the coast, where high temperatures are expected to reach 73 and lows around 52 in Ventura.

Fog reached inland valleys, but clear skies and warm days are expected to prevail in the eastern county, with highs around 82 in Ojai and Thousand Oaks today and lows near 50.

Compared to last week, Tuesday’s change in the weather may feel like a blast from Alaska. It occurred because the high-pressure system over the Great Basin that roasted Southern California into the weekend shifted east, allowing a cooler low-pressure system to move near the coast, Seto said.

Temperatures this week are returning to normal levels.

Highs late last week hovered in the upper 80s to low 90s throughout Ventura County--15 to 20 degrees warmer than normal for this time of year, according to the weather service.