Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think a problem with this thread is that the OP didn't define what "mild" means to him/her, or give us a relative benchmark. Does mild mean only snows occasionally (in which case DC qualifies) or does it mean never snows at all (in which case Miami, FL qualifies)?
I agree with this, different people have standards. I'm generally more immune to cold than most people so I would consider DC mild, but other people wouldn't start calling it mild until Virginia Beach and down. Although Miami from December-February doesn't even "Milder Winters", it's pretty much always summer there.
Would not say NYC has mild winters sure it MIGHT have one every once in awhile, but it also gets tons of snow some years.
KodeBlue, not necessarily the case, b/c that precipitation band can easily turn to snow, that changes things as snow sticks around and causes a mess and traffic backups, rain doesn't.
It's been frigid (single digits) -17 windchill earlier today in NY this winter.
Milder compared to the midwest, sure... but not mild in general.
Mild to me is Carolinas, Tennessee, Northern Georgia/Northern Alabama, Arkansas, Oregon, Washington, southern portions of VA.
Your friends in DC are posting pictures of the city being covered in snow because it doesn't happen very often and it's worth documenting. DC hasn't gotten this much snow since 2010. Most of the winter DC has pretty mild "sweatshirt" weather.
I think a problem with this thread is that the OP didn't define what "mild" means to him/her, or give us a relative benchmark. Does mild mean only snows occasionally (in which case DC qualifies) or does it mean never snows at all (in which case Miami, FL qualifies)?
Valid point, allow me to elaborate. I'm originally from out west (btw, I'm not sure that the PNW meets the 4 seasons criteria; it's effectively a wet and dry season and we rarely get snow), so I'm still getting used to the colder weather/fluctuations out east. However, where I'm currently at, it's 17ish degrees and I felt warm because I may have overdressed (wore a North Face underneath a winter pea coat). This may be vague again, but if it got so cold that I'd still feel chilly wearing that getup (t-shirt + fleece + winter coat), then it might be getting out of hand.
Not sure how much that helps, but hopefully it adds some color
Sacramento gets four seasons. It is the only major metro in California that gets a real Colorful Fall with crisp temperatures. We have deciduous trees similar to the south or midwest, and a lot more deciduous trees compared to coastal California.
Sacramento winters are like the south like Atlanta, Dallas, without their tendency for cold snaps or hard freezes, but it rains more in the winter. It almost never snows in Sacramento, maybe a 1/4 inch of snow on average once every 20 years, but real major mountain snow can be had within 1hour drive up to the Sierra Nevada Mtns.(average 500 inches of snow in the mountains near Sacramento).
Sacramento springs are perfect: light amt. of rain without any hazardous thunderstorms or tornados, and tons of Sun.
Sacramento is the 3rd sunniest major metro in the nation. Sunnier than anywhere in Florida, Texas, Colorado or coastal California.
Daytime Sacramento summers are more comfortable than most of the humid South, Midwest, East, or the bone dry southwest, but hotter than coastal Cali. Humidity levels at the hottest time of the summer day rarely go above 20% (average 10-20%).
The heat index in Sacramento is usually 5 degrees COOLER than the actual high temp (on average) in the summer.
Sacramento summer evenings, nights and mornings are one of the COOLEST and most comfortable in the nation, just a few degrees warmer than the cool San Francisco Bay Area and the Pacific Northwest in the a.m.
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I heard Atlanta gets snow... If I'm right, that would be a great option.
Yes, and it also gets quite cold. This month has been brutal in Atlanta, as it has in much of the east. But even with lows in the single digits and wind chills well below zero on multiple days, Georgia has yet to see any significant snowfall this winter ...
What many people don't know is that even for the Southeast, Atlanta has one of the most diverse climates in the nation and is one of the few cities that experiences four very distinct seasons. Falls and springs in North Georgia are splendid and can last for a 2-3 months. And though it's reputation is for having long, hot and very humid summers, that's not always necessarily the case either. Last summer was remarkably mild and extremely rainy.
Most newcomers to Georgia are shocked during their first winter at how truly cold it gets down South.
Location: That star on your map in the middle of the East Coast, DMV
8,017 posts, read 7,398,585 times
Reputation: 5690
Quote:
Originally Posted by lammius
Your friends in DC are posting pictures of the city being covered in snow because it doesn't happen very often and it's worth documenting. DC hasn't gotten this much snow since 2010. Most of the winter DC has pretty mild "sweatshirt" weather.
I think a problem with this thread is that the OP didn't define what "mild" means to him/her, or give us a relative benchmark. Does mild mean only snows occasionally (in which case DC qualifies) or does it mean never snows at all (in which case Miami, FL qualifies)?
I wouldn't say that's completely accurate, DC gets cold and many of the cold fronts that come into the Mid-Atlantic, DC gets the best of it. It may not be as intense as NY or points north but the weather certainly doesn't vary THAT greatly. I'm basically saying when NY/Philly gets cold, DC gets cold, with an occasional exception here and there maybe twice a winter. As far as snow totals, the District itself and points in the immediate city core get the lowest totals in the area whenever a storm comes around. The official totals for the city which are done at Reagan National Airport (across the river in Virginia) may come out to 3-4 inches, but suburbs in and around the metro area you may see totals of 8-12 inches. This happens often for the majority of storms that pass through here.
I would not call an area a "four season" climate unless the winter gets some days below freezing and there is an occasional snowstorm with real accumulation. IMHO NYC, Philly, Baltimore, and DC are all cities with mild winters (due to the coastal effect), but it's still strong enough that it feels like winter.
The average high temperature in NYC in January is 38 degrees, which means more days than not it's cool but not freezing at least during the day. It only snows on average 11.5 days per year, although the accumulation (26.7 inches) is actually fairly substantial because there's usually one or two sizable storms in January and February. And this is the coldest of the cities mentioned.
The year I lived in DC (2003), I was wearing t-shirts and long pants into January. Mind you, that was apparently an unusually warm early winter around the country, but it was still not what I was used to.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.