It’s been an unusually mild summer here in California. And don’t get me wrong, I am NOT complaining.

Usually we can count on 100 degree-plus temperatures every day in the central valley for a good six months straight–June through October. But this year we’ve only had a handful of days over 100. And that’s fantstic.

My beloved city of Chico has mostly seen days hovering around 90. Manteca is pretty much the same. And out in Livermore, where I work, daytime highs have been in the 80s. San Francisco has been rather cold, as usual.

This week I spent a couple of days in the mountains. I was surprised to see how much snow is left on the highest peaks. I mean, here it is almost September and there is still a lot of snow up high. As we drove up Tioga Road from the eastern side, a la highway 395, there was so much snow I had to remind myself that it was late August and not early Spring.

Hunting season is right around the corner, and this cool weather has got me and my hunting buddies really excited. Opening weekend in mid-September can be a bit miserable some years because it’s so hot. This year we’re hoping that the cool weather will continue, and we’ll get a nice comfortable opening weekend. And, I hope, the cool weather continues throughout the season into late October.

It’s supposed to be 75 in Manteca tomorrow. That’s perfect weather, if you ask me. Now all we need is some rain.