The Healdsburg area

Healdsburg is in Sonoma County, California with a population of about 10,000. 75 miles North of San Francisco, it's beyond the climate-moderating effects of the Bay, so our summers are dry and hot (Mediterranean climate), while we get hard freezes dring the wet winters.

We're near the Russian River, which has been in the news for its floods. Those happen down-river, where the valley is narrow; it's a couple of miles across at my place, plus we're a few hundred feet up a hill.

This is winery country, and much of the Healdsburg economy is related to vineyards and tourism. I do software work based in the San Francisco area, but enjoy the quiet and the clean air up here (the only air pollution we get is from agricultural burning). Fortunately, I don't have a daily commute.

Here's some information about the climate:
Climate zone USDA 8 Sunset 14/dry or 15
Avg monthly rainfall July-Aug: .07" Dec-Feb: 8.0"
Annual rainfall 40" total
Mean low temp Jan 37F, July 48F
Mean high Dec 60F, July 91F
Frost dates 32F: Nov 15 - Mar 15 28F: Dec 31 - Feb 15
Note the cold nights all year and the extreme seasonal difference in rainfall. (Grapes require a dry Summer, or the fruit will mold on the vine. In Winter, the vines are dormant and can tolerate flooding. A perfect match for a Mediterranean river basin.)

Regional map generated through the US Census Bureau map server Notice all the towns which are lined up, NNW-SSE, following the earthquake faults. Healdsburg is on the Rodgers Creek fault, an extension of the Hayward Fault which runs through Berkeley.
North American map from Xerox PARC California has the only Mediterranean climate in North America.
Map of my immediate area from the US Census Bureau

I live about 5 miles North of town. Geyserville is actually closer than Healdsburg, but it's too small to be useful.

The Russian River flows South down the Alexander Valley just East of Geyserville; winds through the hills at the South end of the valley; and then, just South of Healdsburg, turns West towards the Pacific Ocean. Guerneville and the rest of the Russian River resort area is about a dozen miles downriver from Healdsburg.