Does California have really humid parts? (Bell, Eureka: college, to live in, area)

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Mr5150

With the humid parts of CA the temps are low. Coastal. 60s to 70s with high humidity is no big deal. Unlike eastern states where it’s over 90 with humidity running 60 to 80%. Miserable.

This, too.

I wouldn't say 95 at 15% humidity is "quite comfortable", though. It's still REALLY hot! Too hot to be outside.

[moshywilly]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Well, mugginess does happen, in the Bay Area and in Seattle, but not at all like East coast mugginess. And it's not a regular thing. Did you ever go into the water, at the beach in CA? It's cold, especially on the Central Coast and NorCal. And in the NW, it's a whole other concept of "cold"; you go numb in the water within minutes. The temps of the currents has a lot to do with the lack of humidity. Even when it's hot in Seattle or the Bay Area, it doesn't get East-Coast-humid.

I've been in a CA beach before when I was little, but I won't remember a thing. It was Venice Beach, but that is SoCal.


I did experience some mugginess in the Bay Area when I was there in March. I was shocked that some guy was swimming in the bay in March.

[jas75]

There are not humid parts of the state, so much as occasional humid spells during certain summer or early fall time periods. I lived in central Orange County for almost 15 years and it could get muggy sometimes if there was a persistent airflow from the tropics. I didn't mind it that much, just as well since I ended up settling in the South. This subtropical type of weather pattern is even less common going progressively northward within California, due to the lower ocean temperatures. In most of California away from the coast, heat is a more salient feature of the summer climate rather than humidity.

[Mr5150]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

This, too.

I wouldn't say 95 at 15% humidity is "quite comfortable", though. It's still REALLY hot! Too hot to be outside.

You'd be surprised how doable it is if you stay hydrated. You see a lot of people out and about in those conditions in my area, which is drier than where you live.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Well, mugginess does happen, in the Bay Area and in Seattle, but not at all like East coast mugginess. And it's not a regular thing. Did you ever go into the water, at the beach in CA? It's cold, especially on the Central Coast and NorCal. And in the NW, it's a whole other concept of "cold"; you go numb in the water within minutes. The temps of the currents has a lot to do with the lack of humidity. Even when it's hot in Seattle or the Bay Area, it doesn't get East-Coast-humid.

This. I just got back from Maryland (where I’m from originally), and there is NO comparison to our “humidity” vs theirs! I went for a walk at 10pm through the DC memorials, and was sweating profusely by the end - whereas I can go walking at night here, even in the middle of August, and not feel a drop of sweat or discomfort. We don’t get “muggy” even in the wettest parts of California, so it’s a very different kind of humidity if anything.

[Foxlikestoplay]

I live in Northern Florida - trust me, nothing compares to our state, nothing!

Happy to be a new Cali resident soon. I spent the entire summer traveling the state, what humidity?

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

I moved from the west coast to Nashville, TN, and lived there for about 5 years. While living there, I visited the area, including Atlanta and Florida.

The west coast will occasionally have what we call a muggy day. It is in no way, shape or form anything like the humidity I experienced in the southern U.S.

If you look at a weather forecast and it says the humidity is high early in the a.m. around San Francisco, for instance, it's only during the wee hours when the marine cloud layer comes over the area overnight, which cools us down, and then it burns off usually by mid-morning. And, then, it's super dry with very low humidity.

It makes for the perfect weather, in my opinion. You have nice, dry warm sunny days, with really nice cool evenings.

I've lived on the west coast, including WA where it snows, and TN and Canada and Mexico. I've also visited other states, including Maine and Washington D.C.

You just don't find weather any better year-round.

But, the bottom line to your question is, no, you will never experience any kind of humidity that makes you feel uncomfortable in CA, except on a rare occasion, and even then, it will be nothing anywhere near the discomfort you'll find from humidity in places like TN.

[moshywilly]

Originally Posted by NoMoreSnowForMe

I moved from the west coast to Nashville, TN, and lived there for about 5 years. While living there, I visited the area, including Atlanta and Florida.

The west coast will occasionally have what we call a muggy day. It is in no way, shape or form anything like the humidity I experienced in the southern U.S.

If you look at a weather forecast and it says the humidity is high early in the a.m. around San Francisco, for instance, it's only during the wee hours when the marine cloud layer comes over the area overnight, which cools us down, and then it burns off usually by mid-morning. And, then, it's super dry with very low humidity.

It makes for the perfect weather, in my opinion. You have nice, dry warm sunny days, with really nice cool evenings.

I've lived on the west coast, including WA where it snows, and TN and Canada and Mexico. I've also visited other states, including Maine and Washington D.C.

You just don't find weather any better year-round.

But, the bottom line to your question is, no, you will never experience any kind of humidity that makes you feel uncomfortable in CA, except on a rare occasion, and even then, it will be nothing anywhere near the discomfort you'll find from humidity in places like TN.

How much snow does WA get?

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by potanta

I go on Google Earth all the time for fun. I looked at random parts at the coast of California. I saw a super green part, which is Monterey, but some parts of the state's coastline are a desert. I checked Monterey's weather a month ago and the humidity percentages on that week's forecast were as high as what you get on the East Coast. The tones of green Google Earth shows are not perfectly accurate at times. The greenery Google Earth shows can make a place look prettier than what it looks like in real life.


I read up on the internet about what causes the "West" to have arid climates instead of having humid/subtropical climates like the East. The humidity that travels from West to East goes up the Cascade Mountains into the air and that dehumidifies the air. Then those clouds created by the humidity will more likely travel west causing places west of it to have more rain and more greenery. I am not sure why anything east of the Cascades rarely receives rain. How can the coastline of California be a desert if the coastline is west of the Cascade range? Like shouldn't it all be green?

Not the same type of humid, like you'll get on the East Coast.

-Monterey (and most of CA coast) - Does have high humidity percentages, but temperatures generally stay mild, so you don't often get the dewpoint out of the 50s. Definitely not hot and humid. On the rare hot days, its generally due to an offshore wind, which is very dry (desert-like)
-SoCal Coast - Can get a bit more humid in the summer time. Dew point can get into the 60s and it is generally worsening each year with global warming. That said, still nothing like the East Coast. Temperatures are still relatively mild at the coast (maybe low 80s at most) and we really don't get summer rains
-Deserts / Inland Regions - Get, very very hot in the summertime. Generally very very dry. Occasional humidity in the mid-summer in desert areas with monsoon, but generally not at East Coast levels

What you see as green on Google Maps is much different. CA tends to get most rain from late fall - early spring. It can be very green and lush in the winter, but it'll be bone dry in the summer.

Some of the regions along the central/northern coast and mountain regions can still retain greenery year-round, because they just get a ton of rain in the winter. However, it'll tend to be a dark green (pine/oak trees) rather than a leafy green that you'll find on the east coast. Also, the hillsides where there aren't trees will turn brown from late spring through mid-fall.

Sort of the opposite of the East Coast, where it is barren in the winter (due to deciduous trees).

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

Originally Posted by potanta

How much snow does WA get?

It depends on which area of WA you're talking about. For instance, Vancouver, WA won't get much in the way of inches of snow, compared to Bellingham, WA or eastern WA such as Goldendale. But, that doesn't mean they won't get a bunch of days with sleet and snow with days without a mix of snow or other types of freezing temps.

And if you just get a little ways outside of a major city, you may then being a slave to the weather, or her commander, et.