Gold Beach Weather

The Climate: Bottom Line

The bottom line is simple…6 months of drought and six months of rain.  Rarely any snow.  The snow doesn’t stick.

The Rest of the Climate Story:
This part of the Oregon Coast is called the “banana belt”.  It extends into the Southern Oregon Coast from California.  Sunset Magazine describes this as Zone 17, which also appears just above San Francisco and above Vandenberg AFB.

The Summer months rarely produce rain or storms.  The weather is mild, August is foggy.  The wind blows.  The tourists come to town.  Wild flowers are still sprouting and showing off.  The Osprey young are hatching and growing and fledging.  Salmon are returning to the rivers.  Summer is beautiful on the Oregon Coast.

The Fall months are the interface between Summer and Winter.  It is in the fall months that final seeds are dropped.  Plants that are not perennial take their last breath.  The weather becomes a little cooler.  There is an occasional rain shower.  Perhaps an early Pacific Storm.  With the first rain comes the first new growth.  You will see blades of grass appear in the fields.  The fall is mushroom season on the Oregon Coast.  There are fewer tourists.  They don’t understand how beautiful it is on the Oregon Coast in the fall months.

The Winter months are when most of the rain falls. There are refreshing Pacific Storms that blow through followed by beautiful clear and sunny days. It is in the winter months that the forests and meadows try to soak up as much moisture as possible as they prepare for their growing season and for the summer drought. This is the season of fewest tourists. This is the season when some locals choose to take a vacation. It is also the season when many others escape to Gold Beach from climates that are much more cold and harsh. Rarely does it snow in Gold Beach. When it does snow it is considered beautiful. Part of the beauty is that the snow melts within hours. The winter months on the Oregon Coast are beautiful.

Spring is great!  This is when the grasses shoot up out of the ground.  All of the wild flowers bloom.  Sheep are born.  The Osprey come back to town.  Fishermen get their boats out and start trolling in the bay.  The Jet Boats prepare for the season. Tourists are encountered a bit more frequently.  The Pacific Storms disappear as distant memories.  There are still squalls occasionally, and rain showers, but summer and the drought is on the horizon.  Spring is beautiful on the Oregon Coast.