It's Officially Fall in San Diego, But How Can You Tell?

Go almost anywhere in the the country at this time of year, and you'll see definite signs of fall. Trees turning, cool mornings and cool nights, and shorter days. Not San Diego. It's hot and humid here, flies and mosquitos are still around, but yes, the evenings are cooling off. So how do you tell when it's fall in San Diego?

Check out the trees. Instead of turning beautiful shades of yellow, red and orange, our trees go from green to brown. That's one way to let you know it's fall.

Pumpkins. They're everywhere. Pumpkin patches and fields of pumpkins can be found all around the county. Oh, and Christmas decorations. Yes, they come with fall now too. It used to be they'd wait until after Halloween, but with business being so bad, holdiday decorating comes early.

The busy beaches turn quiet, my favorite time of year. Moonlight Beach, which is swarming with men, women and children during the summer, almost shuts down after Labor Day. The kids are back in school, the camps are closed, and we adults can play at the beach with little interruption. The ocean water during September is still warm and inviting. Quiet beaches is another sign of fall.

People are starting to wear something other than flip flops and shorts. You might see someone wearing real shoes or long pants. Then again, the weather's still so warm here you might have to wait another month to see that.

Traffic is another way to know it's fall. The heavy traffic on the 5 during the summer months has dwindled. Now it's just regulars using the freeway. Most of the tourists have gone home.

Finally, the cougars in Del Mar have changed their look from summer to fall. They have replaced their blue mascara with a nice shade of mauve or tan. And their bright, low cut summer dresses have been replaced with sexy black dress.

Enjoy fall. It's a beautiful time of year. You might actually be able to put on a sweater soon and wear some real shoes, rather than sandals. And enjoy the wonderful new fruits and veggies that grow at this time. San Diego is great all year round.