Foggiest Place Not in the City/Pacifica/Half Moon Bay (San Francisco: 2015, neighborhood)

[Scorpion3510]

Hi there!


What is the foggiest place and/or place with the most precipitation in the Bay Area? Specifically focusing on the East Bay.


I'm excluding the City, Pacifica, and Half-Moon Bay.


The more rain/fog the better!


Thanks!

[HockeyMac18]

Originally Posted by Scorpion3510

Hi there!


What is the foggiest place and/or place with the most precipitation in the Bay Area? Specifically focusing on the East Bay.


I'm excluding the City, Pacifica, and Half-Moon Bay.


The more rain/fog the better!


Thanks!

I don't have weather data in front of me, but I'd guess Berkeley, north Oakland, and parts of Alameda are the foggiest/wettest in the East Bay because they don't have any shielding from the Santa Cruz Mountains (like the southern inner bay cities do) or from the Marin hills/Northern Coast range mountains (like the cities north of Berkeley do).

Without a physical barrier protecting these areas from the onslaught of fog or rains in the winter, I have to imagine that they're the wettest spots in the region outside of the SF peninsula and Marin.


From my time of living in west Alameda and visiting my brother in Berkeley, that lines up with my anecdotal observations.

[Scorpion3510]

When you say Berkeley/North Oakland, do the hills have more versus closer to the Bay shoreline?

[HockeyMac18]

Originally Posted by Scorpion3510

When you say Berkeley/North Oakland, do the hills have more versus closer to the Bay shoreline?

That's a good question - there might be a bit more precipitation in the Berkeley/Oakland hills vs. the shoreline areas due to the slightly lowered temperatures as the clouds rise above the hills there. So, yes, I imagine the hills are slightly wetter.

My experience in these areas has mostly been in the flat areas.

[marcopolo666]

The rain is generally only present from Dec-Mar, and fog during the summer months. (I said "generally", not "only" !!)

Yes, the places in the east bay "sort of" across from the golden gate, for the reasons mentioned (I grew up in the east bay in the 60s). Concerning fog, it is often present along the bay shore (I remember cold nights fishing at Golden Gate fields in the fog).

All along skyline blvd (in the WEST bay, along the peninsula, from 92 down to above Saratoga) will often have fog during the summer months. (Now that I live in the south bay, on really hot days I often drive up highway 9 to skyline and walk through the redwoods in the fog to cool off in the late afternoon.)

[ketch89]

West Berkeley for foggiest spot in the East Bay, for sure. The Berkeley/Oakland hills probably have slightly more precipitation.

[Scorpion3510]

Yeah that's kind of what I've been finding. Seems like Berkeley / Oakland have the most fog with Alameda right behind.

The wettest spot on the maps I've seen appears to be in the Mill Valley area in Marin County but I'm not sure their fog cover.

I guess the most accurate way would be to find hours of sunlight by area but I haven't found a map of the bay area that shows that.

[HockeyMac18]

Originally Posted by Scorpion3510

Yeah that's kind of what I've been finding. Seems like Berkeley / Oakland have the most fog with Alameda right behind.

The wettest spot on the maps I've seen appears to be in the Mill Valley area in Marin County but I'm not sure their fog cover.

I guess the most accurate way would be to find hours of sunlight by area but I haven't found a map of the bay area that shows that.

If you're talking Bay Area-wide, certainly the ocean(western)-facing areas of Marin and the SF peninsula will be the wettest (in the winter) and foggiest (mostly in the summer).

I believe Marin is a bit wetter because the rise from 0 ft to the top of Mt Tam (2,576 feet) is more abrupt and/or higher than the comparable mountains in the Santa Cruz mountains - most of the Santa Cruz mountains that are near the coast (such as Montara Mountain or Scarper Peak) are smaller than Mt. Tam, and the mountains in the Santa Cruz Mountains that are taller than Mt. Tam (such as Loma Prieta, Crystal Peak, Mt. Chual, Mt. Umunhum, and Black Mountain) are a bit further inland...both factors combined cause less precipitation to fall over a small area like we find in Marin.

Either way, both areas are quite wet and foggy.



If you're looking for the foggiest place in the region, look no further than Pt. Reyes (due to its location jutted out to a point further west than other places on the coast):
5 Foggiest Places in North America - Farmers' Almanac

oint Reyes has two monikers of notoriety: not only is it known as the windiest place on the Pacific Coast (some clocked at hurricane force levels), but it’s known as the second foggiest place on the North American continent. Thanks to the Pacific Ocean, which contributes by providing the moisture and by its temperature, that contrasts greatly with the air surrounding it. The area gets 200 foggy days per year that can stick around for weeks, especially during the summer months. Visibility is commonly reduced to mere feet.

https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/histo...lighthouse.htm

Point Reyes is the windiest place on the Pacific Coast and the second foggiest place on the North American continent. Weeks of fog, especially during the summer months, frequently reduce visibility to hundreds of feet. The Point Reyes Headlands, which jut 10 miles out to sea, pose a threat to each ship entering or leaving San Francisco Bay.

[Scorpion3510]

I guess I should clarify the question. It should be the most foggy/wettest area that is populated. Though I will have to check out Point Reyes!

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by Scorpion3510

It should be the most foggy/wettest area that is populated.

The foggiest place around the coast is by the 99 Ranch Market in Daly City. It is foggier than Pacifica or the SF Sunset neighborhood.