 Yet it is not fair to say we don't have seasons. There is many a Baja Gringo who will tell you that winter on the Azure Coast is the best time of year. Usually the sun shines as brightly as ever, and though the air may have a nip in it that one does not feel in the summertime, no one ever needs, mittens, ear muffs, and the like even for walking on the beach on the coldest days
The tides are sometimes higher in the winter, which only makes the beach even better for walking. Tide pools develop in unexpected places, and the stretch of firm sand becomes wider and more varied, even when the stretch of white, powdery sand is diminished. But not to worry about the width of the beach; it will return in the spring, and, after all, who needs so much wide beach in the wintertime? Not only that, but the beach is less crowded in the wintertime, which is not to say empty. On most days there are a few people sunning on the sand, especially in front of the hotels, while many more laze on the chaise lounges in the protected areas around the pools. There are certainly fewer people playing in the surf, because we all know the Pacific can be downright chilly in the winter. That doesn't stop the surfers riding the waves with, or even without wet suits. Actually they prefer the higher winter surfs.
 Of course, sometimes during the winter it rains. Then we Gringos turn philosophical. After all, we always need the rain; so usually we remind each other of how lucky we are to have it, and we bear it with relatively good nature, at least for a few days as we watch the soil and plants gratefully soak up the water and as the buildup of dust is washed away. However, if such cloudy, stormy weather continues for more than three days, many of us Baja Gringos begin to feel abused and depressed. We expect the sun to shine!
 When the rain stops, we are often blessed by a warm dry spell, known locally as a Santa Ana. The TV weather people explain it as a high pressure over the area to the east of us which causes strong winds to blow from the desert to the coast. Sometimes they will be so strong for a day or two that they are unpleasant, but they blow against the roll of the surf and often cause huge plumes to rise off the churning waters. It can be a spectacular sight.
They also bring the higher temperatures from the desert areas to our coastline, resulting in beautifully calm days in the high 70's and 80's on the thermometer. So we use more body lotions and bask in the beautiful mid-winter weather!
The worst winter weather occurs when an occasional storm out of the Arctic lasts long enough to get to our coastline. Really severe remnants of such storms are very rare, and never do they approach hurricane proportions. At worst, the high temperature may remain below 65. Its exciting to be out on the beach when the huge waves boom against the shore and roll in almost to where you're standing.
 Whales and dolphins are seen more often in the winter, and the birds that glide effortlessly over calm summer waters struggle against winds and spray and move much more strenuously over the white caps on the disturbed stormy sea.
Sometime in September, or more likely October, we find ourselves closing windows at night while watching TV. In the morning a warm robe starts feeling good, and then comes that morning when the heater must be used. Alas the summer is over. But most afternoons the sun will warm our houses through the wide windows overlooking our views, and the heater with a thermostat goes on only spasmodically for the next six months or so. Reporting the weather in this part of the world is not exactly an exciting job. We have no hurricanes or tornados, no extreme temperatures, and certainly no snow or sleet. Once every several years we have a hard enough rainstorm to do damage, even cause a few injuries or even deaths, nothing can ever compare to the horrors of a hurricane, tornado, floods, or other natural problems accepted elsewhere.
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