Arizona winters (Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma: RV parks, rent, calculator)

[curly5759]

Just going to agree with the Previous posters, Az is much hotter than 80-85 in most of the places you mentioned. I'm just outside of Cottonwood, it will 106 today.

[gemstone1]

This web site: Weatherbase Vacation Finder is the best way I have found to find or eliminate locations based on weather/temperatures. Simply choose a month, select a minimum and maximum temperature based on your likes, and it will return all locations that match your criteria.

Regards
Gemstone1

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by JuliaPurdy

Thinking seriously of relocating to AZ from Vermont. We are active people in our 70s but tired of fighting the cold especially. Some snow would still be nice. Also trees. And mountains. Ideally we'd hope for maximum temp range 80-85 in summer, 30 in winter, snowfall normally 2" at any one time, melts fast, spring comes in February. How would it compare with Spokane, for instance, does anyone know? We have our eye on Show Low, Cottonwood, Prescott, Prescott Valley, Camp Verde... We are retired low-income so we need reasonable rent. Thanks!

In Arizona, there really is no such place with minimal winter snowfall along with summer high temps in the 80 to 85 range. Places like Prescott & Payson tend to have lighter snows that melt rapidly, but their summer highs are easily in the 90s, and their hottest maximums are low 100s during most years. Cottonwood & Camp Verde also have minimal snowfall in the winter, but this is because they're at a lower elevation level, and this means hotter summer temps.

The only location I can think of which comes closest to what you're looking for is some of the mid elevation towns in SE Arizona ... particularly Bisbee. They very seldom reach the 100s, and their hottest temperatures are usually in the 90s before the summer monsoon arrives. That part of the state is greatly influenced by the monsoon season, and normally has high rainfall amounts during July & August, which often means lower daytime highs. Their winters can be cold with some snowfall, but usually nothing too heavy. It's also in an area with lots of mountains, but it's not heavily forested.

[zodiacbytecode]

Oh wonderful, a fellow Vermonter.

I split my time from Vermont during the year and the Sun Belt during the winter months. Last winter I was in South Texas, and the year before that I was in the Florida Keys.

I have also spent winters in Arizona, where I have developed an personal affinity towards Yuma, AZ.

However, if you are going to live in AZ year round then I don't recommend Yuma as it can quite hot during Spring, Fall, and especially (and obviously) summer.

I'm quite a boring quiet person; a homebody if you will.
I just love spending time at home with my pets and friends that come to visit. So I hardly, if ever, go out when in Yuma or even on my farm in VT, with the exception of short morning/afternoon hikes in the area.
However, I do hear folks bemoan about the lack of things to do in Yuma. But I'm here ONLY for the warm weather that serves as a refuge from the harsh New England winters that, at times, seem endless. I keep to myself and my personal activities which involve my animals.

For me, Yuma serves its purpose in my life. Pretty much every day is sunny. It might dip to 45 degrees at night once in a while in the dead of winter. Daytime temps hardly ever go below 65 degrees during this time.

I was in Yuma during that cold snap a few years ago, I think during the day it was in the upper 50s.
But being a fellow Vermonter, you know that all you have to do is just put on a warm sweatshirt and you are good to go!

Florida does offer warmer temps and a more tolerable summer IMHO, but for me I am all about SUN! I just love Love LOVE sunny clear skies.

I typically leave Vermont sometime after Thanksgiving and usually return around the Easter holiday. Sometimes I am even able to catch a final snowstorm or two before the summer eventually begins, which I have to admit I do quite enjoy.

I have already decided to spend my winter this year in Yuma (my third winter here in the past 10 years) and I will also be house hunting as I also have decided to finally buy a permanent home here.

I tried out other locations within the Sun Belt every winter, and I just feel spending every winter in Yuma is the right fit for me.
I love the desolate desert, the cacti, the openness. It is such a dichotomy from what we see in Vermont.
The desert seems so vast, I just love it.

So take it from a Vermonter, you will love Arizona. But for year round living I would choose Sedona or Prescott IMHO.

I have thought about leaving VT altogether, and have a summer home/farm in Flagstaff and wintering in Yuma, in order to avoid the biyearly cross-country week-long road trip!

But the Green Mountain state is home, and I don't think I will ever truly leave. I feel even when I'm in my late 90s (Lord willing) and I am too elderly to travel, I would choose Vermont over Yuma, AZ to live out my final years.

ANYWAY, when you do move to Arizona perhaps you can spend the weekend in Yuma during the winter and see what you think of the place.
You'll find lots of New Englanders here. Mostly Mainers for some reason.

[mrshowtime3]

Originally Posted by Starbar

OK that’s fair, I guess it just boils down to personal preference more than anything. I know people who absolutely hate dry heat and prefer humid heat, I can’t really blame them as it can be good for your skin. I personally hate being all sweaty so I’ll take dry heat any day. One time when I lived in Seattle it was May and we had a high of 68°, but with the humidity it felt like it was in the lower 80s. I was sweating like it was too.

Never understood the no sweating in dry heat idea. Are you sitting still? If you are out in the sun doing anything you are sweating. Or at least I am.

[gemstone1]

Yes, you sweat profusely at 115 degrees, but with the humidity at 10% or less, it dries instantly, so you are hardly aware you are sweating.

Regards
Gemstone1

[eddie gein]

Originally Posted by gemstone1

Yes, you sweat profusely at 115 degrees, but with the humidity at 10% or less, it dries instantly, so you are hardly aware you are sweating.

Regards
Gemstone1

True, but unless you have experienced the intensity of the Arizona sun...you have no clue what it's like. And was stated earlier in the thread, the good news is that the dry heat makes things much more comfortable in the shade in Arizona. The bad news is that it's hard to find shade.

[mrshowtime3]

Originally Posted by gemstone1

Yes, you sweat profusely at 115 degrees, but with the humidity at 10% or less, it dries instantly, so you are hardly aware you are sweating.

Regards
Gemstone1

If I hike in 90+ out here I sweat and can tell im sweating. And my shirt would be proof of the sweating. This is a tall tale that needs to die.

[zodiacbytecode]

Originally Posted by mrshowtime3

If I hike in 90+ out here I sweat and can tell im sweating. And my shirt would be proof of the sweating. This is a tall tale that needs to die.

oh heavens no, I typically go on hikes in Yuma during the winter. I carry a warm sweatshirt in my backpack and I rarely use it.
Since it is typically in the upper 60s or 70s and sunny. I may sweat some, but the mild brisk breeze, of the Yuma winter, cools me off.

I couldn't imagine hiking in Arizona during any season, other than winter.

[JuliaPurdy]

Just to let you know, I lived in Spokane for 12 years and the snow there is negligible... but folks there still don't know how to drive in it (heck, they don't know how to drive in rain either) and the city becomes paralyzed with an inch. Thankfully it goes away in a couple of days...
But thank you for your helpful input.