Hi neighbor,
A signal from halfway across the world showed up in Camarillo at 4am. That’s where this week’s story starts.
Plus: a few things to do this weekend, a local airport upgrade, and a new wildfire prevention effort.
Let’s get into it.
☀️ Weekend Weather
Local forecast via Grant @CamWX
🌦️ Warm, windy, then a possible shift
The atmosphere is stabilizing after a cold front brought light rain and scattered showers earlier this week. As the system moves through the Great Basin, gusty winds will develop across the region, transitioning into a Santa Ana pattern by Friday. Advisory-level gusts are possible in wind-prone areas, along with a noticeable warm-up pushing temperatures in Camarillo into the 80s.
Winds ease late Friday into Saturday as pressure gradients relax. Looking ahead, a cutoff low may take over next week, bringing cooler temperatures, more low clouds and coastal fog, and a slight chance of light rain between Monday night and Wednesday.
More local weather updates → CamWX.com
🔥 What’s actually worth doing this weekend
If you’re still figuring out your weekend, here’s a whale festival, earth day open house and vintage firetrucks
Photo: Celebration of the Whales Festival (via Facebook)
🐳 Celebration of the Whales Festival
Sunday · 11 am · Channel Islands Harbor (Oxnard)
Free waterfront festival celebrating the gray whale migration with marine exhibits, vendors, and plenty for kids to explore. Easy win if you want something outdoors and low-effort this weekend.
🐦 Bird Museum Earth Day Open House
Saturday · 10 am · WFVZ Museum
Most people have no idea what actually goes on inside Camarillo’s bird museum. This weekend they’re opening it up with hands-on classes, beginner birdwatching, and a behind-the-scenes look at local conservation work.
🚒 Crown Firecoach Meetup
Saturday· 9 am · Vons @ 940 Arneill Rd
Vintage fire trucks, local enthusiasts, and a rare chance to see classic fire apparatus up close. One of those super niche Camarillo events you’d never find unless someone told you about it.
🌦️Local Spotlight: Meet the Man Behind Camarillo’s Most Accurate Weather
Grant Miles and the 4AM signal that traveled across the world
Most people check the weather once and move on. Grant Miles checks it every few seconds. He’s also the one writing the forecast you read here each week.
At 4am one morning, his backyard station in Camarillo picked up something strange. A tiny spike that didn’t make sense until he traced it back to a volcanic eruption happening halfway across the world. It’s the kind of detail your weather app would never catch.
He’s been quietly building one of the most precise local weather systems in the area, tracking the small shifts that actually decide whether Camarillo gets sun, fog, or rain. Once you see how it works, it changes how you think about the forecast.
Around Camarillo
Goats reduce the buildup of dry vegetation that feeds wildfires
The county's newest wildfire weapon? Goats.
Ventura County is using goat grazing to clear 146 acres of fire-prone land this season, reducing the dry vegetation that fuels wildfires near homes.
The Ventura County Fire Protection District accepted a wildfire prevention grant from the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy to treat 146 acres of land in the Long Canyon and Rancho Road regions this fire season. The work will be carried out through a combination of goat grazing, hand crews, equipment, and prescribed fire.
The goal is to reduce the buildup of dry vegetation that feeds wildfires and create more defensible space around nearby homes before summer. No local match required. The $649,323 is fully funded by the state.
Big Upgrades Planned for Camarillo Airport
Camarillo Airport is planning nearly $88 million in improvements over the next decade, with most of the funding coming from federal and state grants.
The focus is on runway and pavement upgrades, expanding safety zones, and rehabilitating the control tower. About $6 million would come from local funds.
🏀 Camarillo grad drafted to the WNBA
From Camarillo High to a national championship at UCLA to the WNBA.
Camarillo’s own Gabriela Jaquez was selected 5th overall in the WNBA Draft by the Chicago Sky, part of a historic night for UCLA Bruins, which had five players taken in the first round.
From Camarillo High to a national championship at UCLA to the WNBA. Pretty cool!
Pet of the Week
Meet Major
Major is a 1 ½ -year-old German Shepherd who lives for fetch, water, and being right by your side. He’d love an active home (walks, runs, beach days all fair game) and may do well with the right dog sibling after a meet and greet.
He’s been in the shelter for about 10 months and is more than ready to get out and start his real life.
“Some dogs are cute. Some dogs are fun. And then there’s Major - the total package.”
Ventura County Animal Services is currently offering $0 adoption fees for all shelter pets, with a special need for adopters for large dogs.
Pets leave the shelter: Spayed/neutered, Vaccinated, Microchipped, Flea treated
A $25 licensing fee applies for county residents.
Know someone looking for a great dog?
Forward this email and help Major find his home. 🐾
Community Question
Quick one for you:
Out and about or staying in this weekend?
Just hit reply and let me know. I’ll share a few of your answers in next week’s newsletter.
If you made it this far, you’re officially more in-the-know than most of Camarillo.
Know something we should cover? Just hit reply.
Reply to this email or send tips to [email protected]
The Camarillo Caller is a local newsletter created by Camarillo resident Gabrielle Ridgeway.