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Of course it's all relative.... I moved here from the Midwest and my experience is that the cold here is nothing like the cold in the Midwest. It is often sunny here and the snow does not typically last for months at a time. It's rarely windy in Denver, which also helps a lot in terms of making the winter tolerable. It snowed last Wednesday in Denver, most of it has melted, except for in a few shady spots. I agree with others that March is a good time to visit - we can have erratic weather at that time of year, to say the least. I've only visited TX, not lived there, but don't fathom how you all deal with the humidity. It's very dry here in comparison, so I expect that will take some getting used to for you and your family. Even moving from the midwest, it took me a while to adjust to the dry air in the winter. Lots of lip balm and a humidifier or two helped immensely.
Colorado is a very nice place to live. There always seem to be at least 2 weeks that are REALLY cold. But other than than it's not too terribly bad. The seasons are very nice and colorful.
As far as where to live, Arvada and Westminster are very comfortable suberbs and relatively convenient to Denver and Downtown. Also, both of these are closer to the mountains, so you get some better views in my opinion. Jefferson County schools for both Arvada and Westminster.
If you are willing to look outside of Denver, consider Grand Junction. The summers are just a tad warmer and the winters are a little more mild. It aoffers small town feel. To give you perspective, there are 2 Wal-Marts in town. There is a little bit of a "college town" feel as the North Ave (main st) runs right by Mesa State University.
The thing about Colorado is . . . . it's a sunny cold.
It might be 15 degrees outside, but the full sun warms you with radiant heat. It also warms you psychologically.
So just like Phoenix has a dry heat, Denver has a sunny cold.
Yeah and then when the sun goes down, look out.
The whole sun concept works great when it actually happens on those short winter days, but otherwise it isn't a lot of help when it isn't around.
There is no doubt there are a lot of winter days that are perfect with sun and little wind. I will not dispute that Colorado can have some brilliant days in winter, sure thing.
But when there is not the sun, the wind is howling or it's snowing it can be as harsh as can be. I've heard about all this great beach resort like weather in winter in Colorado for 32 years, while I am standing in a -30 wind chill or being blasted by snow sideways. Sure. Same with all this "dry heat" stuff about Phoenix and then you are roasted like a peanut and all the moisture and life is sucked out of you.
Statistically Colorado is one of the coldest states in the union. Winter is the dominate weather pattern. It's also the highest average state in elevation and has plenty of mountains to craft all sorts of weather variables as well as being the crossroads of outside weather patterns(jet stream, gulf of mexico moisture, cold canadian air, so on)
I'm well traveled and I have never experienced winter anywhere else like I have in Colorado.
So I think if you are going to move to Colorado you have to accept that for 9 months of the year, biting cold, high winds, snow(depending on elevation and location as to severity), could be a significant part of your life. It's just the way it is.
The whole sun concept works great when it actually happens on those short winter days, but otherwise it isn't a lot of help when it isn't around.
There is no doubt there are a lot of winter days that are perfect with sun and little wind. I will not dispute that Colorado can have some brilliant days in winter, sure thing.
But when there is not the sun, the wind is howling or it's snowing it can be as harsh as can be. I've heard about all this great beach resort like weather in winter in Colorado for 32 years, while I am standing in a -30 wind chill or being blasted by snow sideways. Sure. Same with all this "dry heat" stuff about Phoenix and then you are roasted like a peanut and all the moisture and life is sucked out of you.
Statistically Colorado is one of the coldest states in the union. Winter is the dominate weather pattern. It's also the highest average state in elevation and has plenty of mountains to craft all sorts of weather variables as well as being the crossroads of outside weather patterns(jet stream, gulf of mexico moisture, cold canadian air, so on)
I'm well traveled and I have never experienced winter anywhere else like I have in Colorado.
So I think if you are going to move to Colorado you have to accept that for 9 months of the year, biting cold, high winds, snow(depending on elevation and location as to severity), could be a significant part of your life. It's just the way it is.
Very well said. Even the mildest winter climate areas in Colorado can get significant cold and snowy winter weather events. Anyone who says otherwise is either ignorant or lying. Now, there ARE states with significantly more brutal winter weather than Colorado--anywhere in the northern Rockies, northern Plains states and Upper Midwest comes to mind. But Colorado does have places with winter climate that does exceed the severity of even some of those places on a regular basis.
As you also noted, wanneroo, few places in the US have as capricious a weather regime as does Colorado. Places only a few miles apart can have vastly different weather, and weather can change in any certain spot extremely quickly here. My well used example of the former was the winter day some years back when I flew from Denver to Gunnison--the ambient temperature in Denver was 60° F., when the plane landed in Gunnison 45 minutes later the ambient temperature there was -30° F. 90 degrees of temperature difference in 200 miles and 45 minutes. As for the latter, I've seen temperatures drop in winter by up to 40 degrees in an hour or so.
Very well said. Even the mildest winter climate areas in Colorado can get significant cold and snowy winter weather events. Anyone who says otherwise is either ignorant or lying. Now, there ARE states with significantly more brutal winter weather than Colorado--anywhere in the northern Rockies, northern Plains states and Upper Midwest comes to mind. But Colorado does have places with winter climate that does exceed the severity of even some of those places on a regular basis.
As you also noted, wanneroo, few places in the US have as capricious a weather regime as does Colorado. Places only a few miles apart can have vastly different weather, and weather can change in any certain spot extremely quickly here. My well used example of the former was the winter day some years back when I flew from Denver to Gunnison--the ambient temperature in Denver was 60° F., when the plane landed in Gunnison 45 minutes later the ambient temperature there was -30° F. 90 degrees of temperature difference in 200 miles and 45 minutes. As for the latter, I've seen temperatures drop in winter by up to 40 degrees in an hour or so.
Well one thing I would say is some of those lower elevation states, winter can be brutal but also it's more 4 even seasons and once winter is done, it's done, while due to the elevation, Colorado can easily get snow storms in May and September and once you are in the mountains, even in summer, nighttime temps are freezing or close to it.
What I want to get across to those that consider Colorado is not to be mislead into thinking that it is a balmy state with moderate weather. When the weather behaves, it can be stunning, but when the weather does not it can be unbelievable. I've never seen weather anywhere like I have seen it in Colorado.
And some places are worse than others, even in the Denver area there are some climate variations.
Basically you just have to be prepared for it and accept it for what it is.
The weather is not THAT bad here. I ride sportbikes and ride them from March-October....I would say the determined individual could workout outside for 8-9 or 9-11 months if ur oh so motivated. In Colorado it seems that some years are worse than others. One year only a little bit or snow and the next year we will have a blizzard every week for like 7 weeks straight (2007). But...I live work play Denver, and the weather rarely keeps me from what I want to do....
If you are willing to look outside of Denver, consider Grand Junction. The summers are just a tad warmer and the winters are a little more mild.
Having spent 6 summers and 5 winters in Grand Junction, I can attest that the summers are indeed a tad warmer, but the winters are definetely NOT a little more mild. During the winter, the overnight lows and the daytime highs in Grand Junction are often lower than the front range highs and lows. Additionally, there have been only 5 days during the past 5 winters with a January high of 50 or more, and there has not been even one day in the month of January with temps in the 60s. I remember the ocassional 65 degree January highs when I lived in Boulder, and a foot of snow would evaporate in a day or two.
We do get less snow than the front range, but even an inch or two can, and does stay on the ground for weeks at a time. All things considered, winters in Grand Junction are more harsh and colder than front range winters. No chinook winds to warm things up over here. Just the dreaded temperature inversions to hold in the smog and the cold air.
Another reason most people in Colorado live along the front range is because of the relatively temperate weather.
It can be the case there where one can run around in shirt sleeves or not much more in the dead of winter, provided the sun is out. At elevation, with little humidity, one will notice the difference between sun and shade at any time of year, but all the more with snow on the ground. If working outside then this equation would change, and likely feeling Colorado winters colder than other residents assume in their brief jaunts between warm SUV and shopping. But if able to time your excursions to afternoon when the sun is out and all has warmed up a bit, one might be excused in wondering what the big deal about winter is.
Commuting on slick roads might dampen that enthusiasm somewhat. Or moving to the mountains. I remember one January in Silverthorne when the temperature never rose above 0º. In early morning it was just double-digit minus something cold. But otherwise still days when skiing or exercising when stripping off layers the only thing one wanted to do, and winter seemingly mild. At least for a few hours.
I'm still of the opinion one needs to venture to the Sierra Nevada of California to discover what a warm winter in the snow can be. Not that it doesn't get cold there at times, and certainly knows how to snow. But it is not uncommon to be about in the middle of the day when the snow underfoot is the mush more typical of a late spring day in the Rockies, and all the icicles are busy melting again. The only reason snow can exist in such conditions is because with the next storm several more feet of it will appear. If cold one day, just as liable the next to be warm enough to work on one's tan, the weather a pleasure rather than anything to be bundled up against.
Colorado may not match that, but compared to a good many other places where winter is a persistent and not always welcome visitor measured in clouds, lack of sun, and serious cold, not much to complain of. Indeed enjoy.
At least along the front range where snow of appreciable depth can be admired at a distance on the near peaks.
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prepare yourself, March can be crazy , I visited in March 2009 , before I made a move out, and a blizzard hit, total white out conditions, I was in Loveland ! I lived in Castle Rock in the winter, it wasn't too bad, never had to dig out , but did have to brush a lot of snow off my car, and of course before I moved in late May there was 8in of wet snow.. most days though when it snow if the sun was out it was great, it would be 32 outside, and I would have my jacket off and be in short sleeves, and I am originally from Florida !!!!! Maybe my 2013 IT, will be good in Denver, then anywhere really in Douglas County would be nice to live with an easy commute to Denver. Very friendly county to live in , loved it there was sad to move.
The thing about Colorado is . . . . it's a sunny cold.
It might be 15 degrees outside, but the full sun warms you with radiant heat. It also warms you psychologically.
So just like Phoenix has a dry heat, Denver has a sunny cold.
It's a sunny cold alright. Even though the sun is out, it doesn't warm up. I would rather have it warm and cloudy.
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Relative balmy winters
