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Just wondering how the weather on the NC coast is in winter.
I was originally looking at Myrtle Beach SC for it's lack of snow,but does NC get much snow and ice along the coast? I've seen ice to be a big prob in NC inland due to it's in-between the cold of VA and the warm of SC.
We left the Cape Carteret area yesterday about noon, the temperature was 75 degrees, and I was wearing shorts.
The temperature stayed with a degree or two of that 75 until we crossed Interstate 95. Within a mile or so the temperature dropped eight degrees.
By around 3:30 PM when we got to our friends house in Pittsboro, which is south of Chapel Hill, the temperature was 55 degrees.
Later we left and headed to Roanoke, VA. It was around 9 PM when we got there and the temperature was 40 degrees. I checked the Cape Carteret area temperature and it was 55 degrees.
We make this trip (Google map) regularly, and I95 is often where we see the temperatures really start to change.
This morning our coastal temperature is 60F and the temperature in Roanoke just in the mountains is 35. The trip is slightly over three hundred miles.
The high temperature in the next week will be 52 degrees in Roanoke and 67 in Cape Carteret. The low temperature will be 13 degrees in Roanoke and 27 degrees in Cape Carteret.
The difference is more than the actual numbers. We have found that at the coast we might stay at the low temperature for an hour or two, but in the mountains we could be close to the low temperature for five or six hours.
We have seen a couple of snow flurries in the air on Emerald Isle this year. None survived touching the ground. This is our third winter, and we have seen no ice on the roads or trees at the coast.
Locals tell me of a couple of snows in memory that lasted a day. I'm not sure how long ago they were.
Even in the Virginia mountains where we travel regularly snow of any consequence is rare. Our mountain in Roanoke has only had a dusting so far this year. There is a chance we could see some flurries this week.
Compared to the rest of the country even Roanoke nestled along the Blueridge Parkway seems pretty mild. Over our nearly twenty years in Roanoke we have seen some serious ice storms and a few big snows.
Even in Roanoke the power has never been out for more than two or three hours. That has only happened a couple of times.
If you are looking to avoid ice, the NC Coast from Morehead City south is pretty safe bet.
The weather here in Wilmington has a personality of its own, very unpredictable - but it is good outdoor weather, and consistently pleasant. It stays breezy and sunny most of the year, and even the peak of summer is windy enough to be nice. We do get more than our share of violent rain and wind, and late winter/early spring is cold and dreary. It does ice over, but it is not common.
Even in the Virginia mountains where we travel regularly snow of any consequence is rare. Our mountain in Roanoke has only had a dusting so far this year. There is a chance we could see some flurries this week.
Compared to the rest of the country even Roanoke nestled along the Blueridge Parkway seems pretty mild. Over our nearly twenty years in Roanoke we have seen some serious ice storms and a few big snows.
I lived in Roanoke back in the 90s and while they didn't really get much snow,the cold winds were...cold! Plus there was slippery ice.
There was one big snowstorm when I was there,I-81 was slowed down and when I got into Roanoke they had closed the stores early.
yes, as DSBotta says, it hit 75 here yesterday (I live north of Wilmington in Hampstead) but that was kind of unusual for this time of year - still, we were able to take a nice little boat ride (with our jackets on) and enjoy the ICww! One winter it snowed here a couple of times, but that was really a freak occurrence. We even had a few flurries a couple of weeks ago, but the snow melted as it touched the ground. Today is in the 50's, cloudy, but peaceful - had some rain earlier, which we needed. Have had our home here since '96 and don't ever recall an ice storm here - when we lived in Charlotte, we had several bad ones that really slowed everything down and a lot more snow. All in all, winter weather here is very pleasant. Lots of folks are out and about today - I'm going out and work in my garden in a minute. You are not really "trapped" by snow and ice here on the coast that I can recall and that is part of the attraction for the many who have moved here from the north!
Been in eastern coastal NC for five years and have only seen snow flurries once and that was a couple of weeks ago when I had biked into town and got to ride home in some pretty good snow (just for a half hour, none stuck to the ground).
And yesterday, Dec. 21st, I rode my bike into town again and it was in the high 60's, I sat outside at a cafe and had a beer and watched dolphins swimming by...today, it's cooler and drizzly, rained pretty good last night...
So the weather in coastal NC in the winter--changeable...but as I said...in five years I've not had to shovel or scrape or dig out from snow or ice...and the long Springs and Falls are mighty pleasant...
I lived in Roanoke back in the 90s and while they didn't really get much snow,the cold winds were...cold! Plus there was slippery ice.
There was one big snowstorm when I was there,I-81 was slowed down and when I got into Roanoke they had closed the stores early.
Mountains do get winds, and today is one of those days. However in the summer, they are often very welcome.
Roanoke current temperature 25F
Quote:
Partly cloudy and brisk. Lows 14 to 20. West winds 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 35 mph. Wind chill values as low as 2 below.
Cape Carteret current temperature 46F
Quote:
Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph.
State College, PA current temperature 12F
Quote:
Cloudy with scattered flurries. Windy with lows around 5 above. West winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. Wind chill values as low as 15 below.
The Crystal Coast still looks good in this scenario. We have some friends who moved down from Pennsylvania last year. We had dinner with them earlier in the week. I asked them if they were going back for Christmas.
They looked at me like I was crazy. It was evening. We were out to dinner and no one was wearing a coat.
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NC Coast has little winter
