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Which of these two regions has the best four-season climate?
I’ve understood that the New England region has a humid continental climate whereas the intermountain West has a much drier and sunnier semi-arid continental climate. Which of these two has the best most authentic four-season climate with great seasonal variations? Which one do you prefer? Is New England too humid in the summer? Does the West have issues with pollution (I’ve read this specifically about Salt Lake City)? Which one has the best natural landscape (to use the four seasons the best way) – lakes, mountains, forests?
I’m interested especially in the Intermountain West that covers Idaho, Utah and Colorado and northern New England such as Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.
You can just call it Mountain West. No one says Outer-mountain West (Sierras, Coastal Ranges, and Cascades?). No need to call it Inter-mountain West.
Generally speaking, Mountain-West seasons (pending elevation and latitude) are more volatile and have greater diurnal temperatures, but more agreeable daily highs and humidity.
Winter: Snowfall is sometimes more and sometimes less, but will oftentimes melt with a couple of days due to higher daily highes in winter. Lows can get very cold, but it is a drier cold. The scenery is brown and white. Snowfall can occur earlier and later than New England. It is sometimes snows as early as September and as late as June. Such is unheard of even in the northern fringes of New England.
Spring: Can be warm. Can be cold. Can be snowy. Can be dry. Very windy.
Summer: Dry heat with highes usually less than 100s (again, pending elevation and latitude) and lows much lower than New England. Humidity occur during summer thunderstorms, but temperatures are likewise less during the storm.
Fall: Less hot than summer. Not as volatile as Spring. Beautiful fall colors in the mountains, but New England is hard to beat.
I spent a decade working for a large corporation based in MA which allowed me to spend several years working in a variety of locales in the region at various times in the year.
IMO, New England has the most authentic four-season climate with greatest, consistent, seasonal variations between the two. A key word in that phrase is consistent. I know new Englanders say wait a minute and the weather will change. While it does change fairly quickly there, it is no where as quick, nor inconsistent, as what will be found in the Mountain West. In the west, you can literally have sunny, partly cloudy sky with comfortable temps and two blocks over that is 40* lower in temp while having a wind whipped thunderstorm with golf ball sized hail (in the summer) or a heavy snowing blizzard(in the winter). It is also possible to get snow from October through May, but have weeks or even months in there where we get no snow, it is sunny and 65*. Conversely, I've been in the mountains and had roads closed due to snow in July. But, the extreme elevations changes available in the west create most of the issue with that.
I did not feel that the New England area was oppressively humid in the summer, but it was noticeably more so than the west. The west lacks the humidity to support the large number of deciduous trees that give New England its green summers and varied fall colors. The autumn golds in the west are very intense and set against a cobalt blue sky, are impressive in their own right, but no where near as varied.
Pollution like what you mention with SLC is not true pollution so much as hot/cold inversions that trap dust and dirt under layer of atmosphere. Yes, there are some man made pollutants in there too, but such issues tend to be limited to winter time and while they look bad, do not always generate health alerts like those seen in big city smog situations. A day of winds will clear them out in no time at all. These inversions can also occur during rainy periods in the summer and while they do not look as bad as winter inversions, they do create weird temp variations where going up in altitude can put you in warmer and sunnier conditions than being at lower elevations.
Which is the best natural landscape, that is really a personal assessment and depends on what you want to do in them. The Rockies are rugged and impressive. The ranges in new England are tall for their areas and offer wide vistas and greenery. Both areas get used year round. New England snow tends to be moisture laden, heavy, and turn to ice quickly. Rocky Mtn snow is light, airy and floats as it falls. New England summers have pale blue skies. Rocky Mtn summers are intense blue skies with high risks of sunburns because of the lack of atmosphere.
If your considering moving, also keep in mind that in the Mountain West, population density is radically different. Populations are centered around cities in the west. Historic commuter towns 30 minutes out of population centers with quaint stores and great schools don't really exist in the west. It can be fairly desolate and barren between cities. Jobs will also be concentrated within these population centers and those found in the mountains tend to pay less and have more applicants because many are willing to sacrifice to live there.
I am guessing the "Intermountain West" the OP is interested in comparing is actually the "Mountain West" which includes about 90% of the "Intermountain West" (from a quick glance, 10% or so spills over into CA, OR, and WA which is never really considered "Mountain West").
For a true four-season approach, you need water/moisture. Much of the west is too moisture-starved, and that heavily affects and stunts what's available tree/foliage-wise. Less that can grow means less to see in nature.
New England, obviously. Part of the seasons isn't just weather patterns, but also foliage. New England's more rainy and moist climate allows for it to have more deciduous forests.
You can just call it Mountain West. No one says Outer-mountain West (Sierras, Coastal Ranges, and Cascades?). No need to call it Inter-mountain West.
Generally speaking, Mountain-West seasons (pending elevation and latitude) are more volatile and have greater diurnal temperatures, but more agreeable daily highs and humidity.
Winter: Snowfall is sometimes more and sometimes less, but will oftentimes melt with a couple of days due to higher daily highes in winter. Lows can get very cold, but it is a drier cold. The scenery is brown and white. Snowfall can occur earlier and later than New England. It is sometimes snows as early as September and as late as June. Such is unheard of even in the northern fringes of New England.
Spring: Can be warm. Can be cold. Can be snowy. Can be dry. Very windy.
Summer: Dry heat with highes usually less than 100s (again, pending elevation and latitude) and lows much lower than New England. Humidity occur during summer thunderstorms, but temperatures are likewise less during the storm.
Fall: Less hot than summer. Not as volatile as Spring. Beautiful fall colors in the mountains, but New England is hard to beat.
I know that I’m neither American nor English speaking as a mother tongue, but I’m pretty sure that it is called intermountain west. So, you mean that the seasons are not as predictable as in the northeast? Does east or west get the most snow? Is drier cold better than humid cold? Windy, really? That far away from the coast? Certainly, the northeast would need to be even worst in that aspect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by TCHP
I spent a decade working for a large corporation based in MA which allowed me to spend several years working in a variety of locales in the region at various times in the year.
IMO, New England has the most authentic four-season climate with greatest, consistent, seasonal variations between the two. A key word in that phrase is consistent. I know new Englanders say wait a minute and the weather will change. While it does change fairly quickly there, it is no where as quick, nor inconsistent, as what will be found in the Mountain West. In the west, you can literally have sunny, partly cloudy sky with comfortable temps and two blocks over that is 40* lower in temp while having a wind whipped thunderstorm with golf ball sized hail (in the summer) or a heavy snowing blizzard(in the winter). It is also possible to get snow from October through May, but have weeks or even months in there where we get no snow, it is sunny and 65*. Conversely, I've been in the mountains and had roads closed due to snow in July. But, the extreme elevations changes available in the west create most of the issue with that.
I did not feel that the New England area was oppressively humid in the summer, but it was noticeably more so than the west. The west lacks the humidity to support the large number of deciduous trees that give New England its green summers and varied fall colors. The autumn golds in the west are very intense and set against a cobalt blue sky, are impressive in their own right, but no where near as varied.
Pollution like what you mention with SLC is not true pollution so much as hot/cold inversions that trap dust and dirt under layer of atmosphere. Yes, there are some man made pollutants in there too, but such issues tend to be limited to winter time and while they look bad, do not always generate health alerts like those seen in big city smog situations. A day of winds will clear them out in no time at all. These inversions can also occur during rainy periods in the summer and while they do not look as bad as winter inversions, they do create weird temp variations where going up in altitude can put you in warmer and sunnier conditions than being at lower elevations.
Which is the best natural landscape, that is really a personal assessment and depends on what you want to do in them. The Rockies are rugged and impressive. The ranges in new England are tall for their areas and offer wide vistas and greenery. Both areas get used year round. New England snow tends to be moisture laden, heavy, and turn to ice quickly. Rocky Mtn snow is light, airy and floats as it falls. New England summers have pale blue skies. Rocky Mtn summers are intense blue skies with high risks of sunburns because of the lack of atmosphere.
If your considering moving, also keep in mind that in the Mountain West, population density is radically different. Populations are centered around cities in the west. Historic commuter towns 30 minutes out of population centers with quaint stores and great schools don't really exist in the west. It can be fairly desolate and barren between cities. Jobs will also be concentrated within these population centers and those found in the mountains tend to pay less and have more applicants because many are willing to sacrifice to live there.
Thank you for your insights! I do know that the west has more sparsely populated states, but places like Maine and Vermont are hardly very populated either. The only large city in the northeast is Boston, whereas mountain west both Denver and Salt Lake City + smaller cities in those states.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thoreau424
For a true four-season approach, you need water/moisture. Much of the west is too moisture-starved, and that heavily affects and stunts what's available tree/foliage-wise. Less that can grow means less to see in nature.
Clearly moist and humidity means more forest and greenery. In the fall and winter, I suspect that it is magnificent to behold. But what about summer? Does not humidity also mean hard to breathe and lots of bugs => kills the experience?
Quote:
Originally Posted by BadgerFilms
New England, obviously. Part of the seasons isn't just weather patterns, but also foliage. New England's more rainy and moist climate allows for it to have more deciduous forests.
Same question as stated above, besides scenery, does the forests also make summer difficult? => Beautiful to watch but difficult to live there?
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