Wikipedia climate question (Denver: appointed, home, earthquakes)

[KaaBoom]

Originally Posted by Katiana

Aren't those pictures from the Christmas blizzard of '82, a monumentally big snow that went down in the record books?

Naw, those pictures were from just a little blizzard in 1987. In 1982, the streets looked like this, after they plowed them. They never did even attempt to remove the snow. At that time Denver's policy was to push it to the side and let it melt. It finally did melt, two months later.

[KaaBoom]

Originally Posted by denverian

That's the same picture he trots out every year to show people how Denver is the equivalent of Barrow, AK. I love the Ford Granada and old '70s Mercedes in that picture

LOL, no I would never compare Denver's snow fall to that of Barrow AK. Thats a totally unfair comparison. Barrow only gets about 29" of snow a year. That's less then half of Denver's average snow fall.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by KaaBoom

LOL, no I would never compare Denver's snow fall to that of Barrow AK. Thats a totally unfair comparison. Barrow only gets about 29" of snow a year. That's less then half of Denver's average snow fall.

Oh, I get it now. Barrow in January is actually much more pleasant than Denver in January. Thanks for clearing that up.

[CosmicWizard]

denverian wrote:

Oh, I get it now. Barrow in January is actually much more pleasant than Denver in January. Thanks for clearing that up.

Only in your comment above, is anyone saying that Barrow is more pleasant than Denver in January. But someone did write that Barrow gets less than half as much snow as Denver.

Except for the coastal areas, most of Alaska gets very little snowfall. What gives the impression of Alaska having lots of snow, is the cold temperatures preserving even small accumulations for many months on end. Most of Alaska gets very little precipitation.

[KaaBoom]

Originally Posted by denverian

Oh, I get it now. Barrow in January is actually much more pleasant than Denver in January. Thanks for clearing that up.

No, please don't put words in my mouth. I didn't say that. I just said that Barrow gets less then half the snow that Denver gets. My point is that Denver gets hella snow. If you like snow, thats great. But if someone who is considering moving to Denver, and is concerned about it. I don't think you are doing them a service, telling they not to worry about it. Because they might end up not liking it.

[DenverBrian]

Originally Posted by KaaBoom

No, please don't put words in my mouth. I didn't say that. I just said that Barrow gets less then half the snow that Denver gets. My point is that Denver gets hella snow. If you like snow, thats great. But if someone who is considering moving to Denver, and is concerned about it. I don't think you are doing them a service, telling they not to worry about it. Because they might end up not liking it.

Oh, please. Anchorage gets hella snow. Denver? Not so much. As a matter of fact, not even in the top 101:

http://www.city-data.com/top2/c464.html

[corleyt]

Originally Posted by DenverBrian

Oh, please. Anchorage gets hella snow. Denver? Not so much. As a matter of fact, not even in the top 101:

http://www.city-data.com/top2/c464.html

I'm not from the Denver area, but I was under the impression that the Denver average snowfall was around 60 inches per year, shouldn't it at least be on that list then?

Edit: Actually on the Denver, CO city-data page it states "#24 on the list of "Top 101 cities with the highest average snowfall in a year (population 50,000+)"

No clue why it doesn't actually show up. Haha.

[Count David]

I'm from Southern CA and KaaBoom's pictures make me salivate.

I had seen it snow twice in my life before moving here in 2007 (once in the Mojave, once in Southern OR), bring it on!!!!!

And yes OP, that is the number of days it snows, not the number it sits on the ground.

For a look at last year's mild Denver winter OP:
The Unofficial 2010-2011 Denver Snow Thread

It sat on the ground for 43 days out in the open (and in the shade), and 81 days just in the shade.

[KaaBoom]

Originally Posted by DenverBrian

Oh, please. Anchorage gets hella snow. Denver? Not so much. As a matter of fact, not even in the top 101:

http://www.city-data.com/top2/c464.html

You are aware that Barrow and Anchorage are about 1000 miles apart, right? Which makes them about as different as Minneapolis and Dallas. Also Denver does get more snow then most of the cities on that list. Just saying.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by corleyt

I'm not from the Denver area, but I was under the impression that the Denver average snowfall was around 60 inches per year, shouldn't it at least be on that list then?

Edit: Actually on the Denver, CO city-data page it states "#24 on the list of "Top 101 cities with the highest average snowfall in a year (population 50,000+)"

No clue why it doesn't actually show up. Haha.

Denver does get around 60" per year on average. But that number is deceptive because it leads people from other climates to believe that there will actually be 60" of snow on the ground. Considering the strong sun at this elevation, and the fact that the lowest average highs for Denver are in the low 40s, the snow melts in between snows. Last winter the most snow I had on my property in Denver was about 5", and I only had to shovel once or twice. Some winters you'll get more and have to shovel more often. But it's rare to have snow on the ground for a long time. One other thing about our snowfall... the heaviest snows typically occur in October or late March/early April. When we get heavy snow in Fall/Spring, it's wet and melts very fast. Actual Winter is very dry in Denver so typical snowfalls are an inch or two or three here and there with melting in between.