Bay Area: Light rain may kick off weekend, but hot temperatures incoming after that

Dec 16, 2023

As other parts of the country endured treacherous downpours and a wet first week of autumn, a slightly stormy, yet brief dose of rain was expected to hit the Bay Area late Friday before a forecasted rise in temperature begins next week.

Though the projections came in at no more than one-tenth of an inch in virtually all of the region, according to the National Weather Service, most of the Bay Area, from the Golden Gate Bridge to Big Sur, was set for some precipitation late Friday into early Saturday morning.

“Most people are going to deal with some rain, at least,” said NWS meteorologist Dalton Behringer. “Particularly the Santa Cruz mountains.”

The showers, projected to arrive between 11 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday, weren’t expected to total more than one-tenth of an inch in any of the major Bay Area population centers, such as San Jose, Oakland, San Francisco and Walnut Creek. Still, the rain was likely to hit a bit harder closer to the coast and in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

But true to the classic Northern California form, with the month of October approaching, so were warming temperatures. After a gloomy Saturday which was forecast for highs no warmer than 71 degrees in Contra Costa County and 68 in the rest of the Bay Area, steadily rising highs were predicted to reach the 90s by Wednesday.

“The middle of next week will be above average,” Behringer said. “Really looks to be about Wednesday to Friday for the peak of (the high pressure system).”

Forecasts were highest in the inland portions of the East Bay, with a high of 92 in Concord predicted Thursday. In San Jose, highs of 88 on Wednesday and 90 on Thursday were in store. San Francisco was projected for a high of 82 on Thursday.

“In the foreseeable confident forecast (we could see more rain),” Behringer said. “It does look like when we get to the middle of the month or so, we may see more of a progressive pattern when it comes to storms.”