It’s the best beach month of the year. Kick off your shoes and head to one of our favorite close-to-home beaches

Summer is the shortest season. At least, it feels that way.Astronomically speaking, summer ends September 22 at 9:30 a.m. PDT,but the season’s symbolic denouement is Labor Day: Kids are back inschool, and the proper set stops wearing white.

The West Coast, however, has never been particularly mindful ofconvention, nor does summer here pay much heed to the calendar. InCalifornia, from China Camp near San Francisco down to ImperialBeach on the Mexican border, September’s stretch of summer is likea perfectly formed wave that is just cresting. The San FranciscoBay Area is fog-free, and water temperatures reach their peak inSouthern California.

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And with tourist crowds down, September is when locals reclaimtheir sands. This is prime time for connoisseurs of all thingsbeach.

Endless summer? Maybe not. But one thing is certain: Septemberis a month that we all wish would hang on forever.

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