A warming trend is expected now that last of Bay Area's February rain is done

"We already have a ridge building overhead, National Weather Service meteorologist Roger Gass said Wednesday of high pressure that is increasing off the Baja coast and creating the weather change. As a result, he said, the rain from a fourth system that finally passed through the region late Tuesday and into Wednesday approximately 72 hours after it was first forecast to arrive was expected to be finished by late Wednesday morning."

"That warm-up is likely to take some areas of the region including San Jose and Concord into the low to mid-70s by Friday. Closer to the water, the thermometer is likely to reach 70 degrees at the most but it more likely to stall in the upper 60s."

"The heaviest of it came in the North Bay, where about 1 inches fell in Santa Rosa and an inch dropped on Mt. Veeder in Napa County in the 24 hours before 6 a.m. Wednesday. About three-quarters of an inch fell in Mill Valley in Marin County; a half-inch fell in downtown Oakland, a quarter-inch dropped in Hayward and less than one-tenth fell on Concord."

The Bay Area's extended wet weather pattern from February is ending as high pressure builds off the Baja coast, bringing a weather shift. A fourth storm system passed through late Tuesday and Wednesday, delivering light rain with the heaviest amounts in the North Bay, including about 1 inch in Santa Rosa and on Mt. Veeder. Other areas received varying amounts, from three-quarters inch in Mill Valley to less than one-tenth inch in Concord. Temperatures will warm significantly, reaching low to mid-70s inland by Friday and upper 60s to 70 degrees near water. A slight cooldown follows Saturday through early next week, with minimal rain chances limited to far northern Napa County.

Read at www.mercurynews.com