WEATHER
La Gomera climate is subtropical oceanic on the coasts, that is, very mild and sunny most of the year, with very mild, spring-like winters and warm, sunny summers; there is also little rainfall, concentrated in the period from October to March. In the interior, the climate varies instead according to altitude and slope exposure: in fact, the slopes exposed to the northeast trade winds receive a moderate amount of rain and are green, while on the southern slopes, the rainfall is scarcer, often below 350 millimeters (13.5 inches) per year, to the point that the island appears to be divided in two, the northern part being verdant and the southern one semi-arid. The prevailing winds, the northeast trade winds, make the northern slope more humid, while they temper the heat along the coasts during summer. The trade winds blow more intensely in the afternoon, when they are often moderate or even quite strong. The days of calima, characterized by abnormal heat and light wind, when warm air masses from Africa prevail, are relatively rare, and are more frequent in spring and summer: in practice, these are the only days when the temperature exceeds 30 °C (86 °F) and when the heat is unpleasant. The calima is also felt on inland hills, and it's often felt even more than in the plains: this happens because warm air is lighter and tends to rise, and also because the coasts can receive a cool breeze from the sea.