Winters... how long, nearby escapes? (Eugene, Medford: spring break, 2014, rental)

[joe_obody999]

Preface: I visited Eugene for a week April 2014 and really liked the city, perfect size, perfect traffic, love bike lanes, loved the Cornucopia, the mall, movie theater, loved how it was an hour to Florence and dunes and ocean and an hour into the mountains and faery tale forests. Retired, so looking for a city to call home without ungodly cold and snow and shoveling and ice; tried midwest (IL), spent a few months checking out NC, SC, GA, FL, KY, TN. Honestly at this point it is either Eugene OR or perhaps Brevard NC (7000 population though so quite small, very little culture or cuisine etc); I like a change of seasons but am sick of snow and bitter cold. I need culture, artsy academic town, forests (Minnesotan), water. About my only concern with Eugene is surviving the dreary cold rain winters, so....

How many months long is winter? I have looked at a boatload of meteorlogical charts and tables, but those are numbers, what I really want to know is how do locals perceive the length of "winter". I know that is a bit of a subjective timeframe, but I guess most would define it as when you to pretty much daily wear mittens, a cap, a coat, and in this case when the cold dreary rains seems to be almost daily, some snow mix at times, etc? I am trying to get a feel for how long "winter" is, how many months of the year I might have to (for psychological reasons) escape Eugene for one or more sunnier warmer destinations. I am in Duluth MN so I am no stranger to cloudy dreary and cold and snow, but sunnier is always better; the problem is the sun belt does not appeal to me for several reasons except perhaps for vacations.

Escapes: I am thinking if I could envision leaving Eugene for even if needed up to 3 months each winter, at least a month, so 1-3 months, and just drive or fly to a sunnier warmer destination and do a vacation rental for a reprieve. On that notion, how far south would one need to go in winter to escape the rain? Medford, Ashland, Las Vegas, Napa Valley CA, Carmel CA, Mexico?

[oregonwoodsmoke]

I'm from the other side of the mountains and I don't think Eugene ever gets winter. It's 12 degrees in Central Oregon right now and was probably about 5 degrees overnight. Anytime I brave the snow and ice to get over the pass to the Willamette Valley during winter, it is cool and wet, certainly not cold enough for me to wear a jacket, although I don't put on a jacket until it gets below 40 degrees, so maybe a local resident wouldn't agree with me about the need for jackets. As a generalization, I consider winter weather in the Valley to be sweatshirt weather, if you have a waterproof sweatshirt.

The winter issue in the Willamette Valley is rain and cloudy weather and a lack of sunshine days. The weather can be dreary.

Where do you escape to? A lot of the Willamette residents come across the mountains to Bend, where it is a lot colder but sunnier. They come to ski and do winter sports.

Locally, the residents who want to escape the cold, go to Arizona for the winter.

For short escapes, there are often reduced plane tickets to Las Vegas. Las Vegas can be pretty cold in the winter, in spite of it's hot weather reputation.

For really nice weather for a winter escape, the only real options are Hawaii, San Diego, or Mexico.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Adding: anywhere in South America. When we are having winter, they are having summer.

[mamh]

First off this native Napan aka the Napa Valley, cross Napa off your winter escape list, it can be cold and quite damp down there in the winter..In the spring its quite pretty.
Why are you not willing to settle in and enjoy our nice some what damp winters that also include good doses of winter sunshine. Winter up here starts in late October and goes till maybe late February..Its all very easy to take because there is always plenty going on to keep one busy.We look forward to the winter season to do inside things just like we look forward to spring and summer.
Get a place to live out here and make yourself just kick back and enjoy for a full year ....You'll like it............
Good luck.

[Metlakatla]

Eugene got winter a couple of years ago -- temps got down to -10 in Dec. of 2013, and then it snowed for over a week in Feb. 14. Cold weather doesn't consistently happen there, though; there have been entire winters where I haven't worn a coat once, let alone mittens or hats. But -- the gloom gets to some more than others. I'd suggest getting a vacation rental in Oaxaca for January. November is usually the rainiest month, but it follows a gorgeous fall. But Jan., most people affected by the gloom are ready for a break.

[haggardhouseelf]

Being a native Texan, the Eugene winters seem very mild to me with regard to temperatures and storms, ice, hail, snow, etc. We have lived in Eugene since 2004 and we've only experienced bad ice and snow and really low temps maybe twice. Most years you may get some ice that melts by 10am or earlier, and the only snow you see is off in the distance over the sisters or Coburg hills. Winter 2013 felt freakish, where we had quite a bit of ice and snow. Otherwise I'd say the winters in Eugene are very mild. There are even breaks from the dreary overcast skies, like we've had today and yesterday. It's been cold - in the 20's and 30's - but we've had beautiful sun and clear blue skies!

As far as escapes... most people we know head to Hawaii. Flights are reasonable from PDX and if you watch closely you can catch a good deal. For accommodations it's actually less expensive, and you get more for your money, to rent a condo or beach house. We have found February is actually a really good time to go. It's after the busy Christmas season and before the Spring Break partiers arrive. You can use AirBnB, Craigslist, or ask around and you'll be surprised how many people you'll meet who have second homes on one of the islands, or their parents do and they can hook you up. We have found there is a surprising number of Hawaiians in Eugene.

Another option to warm yourself up without leaving Oregon are the hot springs. A little Google-fu and you'll discover all sorts of options from the lets get nekkid and hike out in the woods spots to the family-friendly and bathing suits required places like Belknap Hot Springs or more spiritual places like Breitenbush.

And then there's always hot yoga, bone broth soup, and tea. We have some amazing places here for all three of those endeavors.

[Steve McDonald]

For me, Winter in Eugene begins on Dec. 1st and ends on Feb. 1st. Today, on Jan. 8th, there's bright sunlight and temp. in the upper 40s. I was in Duluth on a Nov. 1st once and it felt like I had landed above the Arctic Circle. Already, snow was everywhere and it was well below freezing during the day. I can't imagine how there could be an alternate choice between a Southern town and Eugene. I've been in both such places and there was really no comparison. The typical people I met down South thought that a balanced diet was a six-pack of malt liquor and half a dozen Moon Pies. The culture in Eugene is based on high levels of activity (exercise, not motorized) and healthy nutrition. You can't help but become healthier and in better shape, just by living here.

[bler144]

Winter really depends on the year. But I'd say in my 20 years or so in Oregon, winter in the valley tends to run from Dec. 1 to early April.

But it's not going to be solid rain/clouds that entire time. 40-45 and rainy is fairly common, but there will be some warmer days (50-60) and some sun / partial sun days mixed in there as well.

And even when it's gray it's often not gloomy - the rain brings out the green and even the flowers. You tend to get a steady trickle of stuff blooming. Trillium, if I recall, should be starting to come out in the next month or so. Lot of that around Eugene.

[Lamppy]

Everyone talks about the rain in Oregon, but no one talks about how really depressing the fog layer can be. In December, January, and February the Willamette Valley has fog days that can last two days or as long as two weeks. During that time, you won't see the sun and you probably won't be able to see across the street. And it's cold! Fortunately, you don't have to drive far to get out of the fog. My husband and I retired to Oakridge, which is 45 miles/55 minutes to Eugene. Many days, when it's sunny, we hop into our car, put on our sunglasses, and drive to Eugene to do some shopping. Half-way down the hill, when we run into fog, we realize that we forgot to bring jackets. During the winter, it can be 10-20 degrees colder in the valley than in Oakridge. Oakridge has recently started a campaign called, "flee the fog," and they expect to have a webcam up and running soon. BTW, our neighbors moved here from Minnesota last year and they could not be happier.

[bler144]

Oakridge really isn't "in the valley" though. The valley floor doesn't regularly see that sort of persistent fog you're describing.

But sure, the stretch between Oakridge and Pleasant Hill can see a lot of fog and other conditions - but commuting in to Eugene from Oakridge generally isn't advised for that reason.

Eugene can see inversions which do trap some low elevation clouds, and worse, wood smoke and other particulates. It was foggy for a few hours in the south hills the other day.