Bozeman winters- is it REALLY that cold? (living, place)

[roneb]

Originally Posted by MikeyMike11

Yes they are brutal. I've lived here for almost 20 years, and in 2018 it was below 0 degrees for 4-6 weeks. Many roofs collapsed, including MSU's north and south gyms. I spent a lot of time and money clearing snow. The winters here are rough. People are moving here because they just don't know any better. Many are moving here to escape the liberal politics of the coasts, not knowing we have as many liberals as conservatives here. The rich folk tend to just stay inside all winter, occasionally venturing out the to go skiing or snow mobiling. People are also moving out pretty fast too. They usually last 1-2 winters before calling it quits.

This post sounds like you're intentionally discouraging and trying to keep the riff raff out! LOL.

Just kidding... But I have never found Bozeman weather to be that objectionable. Of course, I grew up in Bozeman and Anchorage, AK and went to college in western Minnesota! Anchorage temps were actually milder (coast), but more snow and lasted longer.

[ejisme]

Originally Posted by roneb

This post sounds like you're intentionally discouraging and trying to keep the riff raff out! LOL.

Just kidding... But I have never found Bozeman weather to be that objectionable. Of course, I grew up in Bozeman and Anchorage, AK and went to college in western Minnesota! Anchorage temps were actually milder (coast), but more snow and lasted longer.

I think what is hard for new comers isn't so much how cold the core winter months are, those are expected, but how long the winter is. That was our "shock" when we moved to Great Falls. First snow in September was kind of "cool", first good snowfall in October was acceptable. Near/below zero for Halloween was rough. Then November to early March brutal cold with occasional snow (with a few days in the 50s F) is fine and expected. It's those southern and coastal spring-like days of late March, April and May that just don't show up in Montana, (maybe for a tease-you week in April). March to May are still winter months mostly. It was really rough dressing our son in long-johns under his little league baseball uniform, and a stocking cap, in April/May, and us freezing in the bleachers at his games. Add in the 15 - 25 mph winds and it was tough to appreciate a nice Spring baseball game!! April/May daytime temps in the 20s F, without wind chill, were pretty common. Then the first five years we lived in Great Falls it snowed in the first week of June, every year. Nothing that lasted more than a few hours, but for someone from coastal California, Oregon or Washington, that's pretty extreme. Then you get 3 1/2 months of beautiful Spring/Summer/Fall weather, and it's back to winter. When people visit Montana it's usually in those 3 1/2 months. They decide to move in the late summer months, and winter smacks them in the face. A few winters in and many are looking for areas around Denver, SLC, Boise, etc.

[Reziac]

Yeah, grew up in Great Falls, and can't remember a June when it didn't snow -- might stick for three days at most, but often it was serious snow, 6" at a crack. And often it had been "summer" for a month or more first. (Easter was always mild and everyone showing off their new spring dresses.)

Montana has four seasons.... we just have them all in the same month!

[nowhereman427]

How cold is cold?
What's the lowest temps?

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by nowhereman427

How cold is cold?
What's the lowest temps?

Montana, home to all the most startling records...

https://montanakids.com/facts_and_fi...e_Extremes.htm

[nowhereman427]

Originally Posted by Reziac

Montana, home to all the most startling records...

https://montanakids.com/facts_and_fi...e_Extremes.htm

Thanks for that info. I would think Wyoming has more adverse weather conditions.

[ejisme]

Great Falls usually had several days below zero, with the low hitting in the -teens to -20s F. Then the days would be +/- 5F. But, then the wind would change to the southwest and the lows would be in the teens F with highs in the 40/50 F for a week or so. Then switch back... again and again. Those temps would be in the core winter months of Nov to Feb. Earlier and later it rarely got below zero, but several nights would be close, and highs most days in 30s to 50s F. Sept and Oct would have several hard freezes, as would April and May. There would be some teaser weeks in March to May were the temp might get up to 70s F, and we'd all feel like spring was here!! Then the wind would change and it'd be a high in the 30s all the next week. The wind blows many, many, most days. The coldest days it's pretty still, but Great Falls is one of the windiest cities in the country. More windy days than Chicago or Cheyanne. I'm not sure if Bozeman has the same winds, but I'm sure there are plenty of days.

I see in the attachment above that Rogers Pass had the lowest recorded low temp. I'd agree with that. We drove to the in-laws in NE Oregon each Christmas, and then again in January through Rogers Pass from Great Falls to Missoula. We had a Chevy truck and a Subaru Forester with outside Temp displays. One or the other bottomed out at -25 and the other at -32. It was common to hit those bottom temps on those drives, so it could have been even colder out there.

[Reziac]

During the Great Winter of 1969, we had 30 consecutive days where it officially never got above zero, and at one point KMON's weather station on the bench north of Great Falls registered an unofficial -72F before wind chill.

Where I lived on the flats outside of Belgrade, on those extra-cold winter mornings I'd often see my thermometer bottomed out, well below the -45F mark. (Wasn't just me. Neighbor reported the same.)

On the other end of the scale, there are unofficial reports from the SoCal desert near Ridgecrest topping +142F.

The official readings tend to be in spots that are ....slightly more civilized....

[MTSilvertip]

The winter of 1979 on the Bozeman Pass we had -68F. That was without windchill, which we did have a small wind of around 15 MPH. Things got pretty stiff for a while.
In 1975 I believe, (Bozeman Pass again), between sundown Good Friday and dawn Easter Morning we got a snowfall of 5 feet of snow. Took a little while to dig out.

Yeah, a couple of those good old fashioned winters would sure put a lot of mcmansions on the for sale pages.

[Reziac]

1979ish woulda been when we regularly guestimated our overnight temp at -65, far as we could tell from how far it was from -45 to the bottom... think that was also the winter where the road blew a few feet deep just north of me (I could get out, neighbors couldn't) then froze hard as iron, and the county got a grader and a bulldozer stuck trying to clear it out.