winters in New Hampshire? (statistics, deal, tree)

[itsajourney]

One thing that I do miss is the occassional "Noreaster" that we used to get when I lived in PA. I actually enjoyed being snowed in once in a while. One of the most awesome things I ever saw in PA was a Noreaster that came with thunder and lightening. Thunder and lightening during a snowstorm was an unforgetable experience--and the colors in the sky were absolutely the most beautiful that I have ever seen.

We were there in the mid-90's when we had a few winters where it was one storm after another--thought the snow was never going to melt--and we had no where to put it. That winter actually made for some great memories.

[steveusaf]

Originally Posted by Radical347

They're pretty bad. No scratch that -- that's sugar coating it. They're hideous. I am from the midwest (NE) and thought it wouldn't be that much different -- not so. In NE, it gets very very cold many days but you also have your fair share of 50-60 degree days, sometimes 70. In NH, it gets very very cold around Dec. or Jan. and stays cold until about April. I went to school in Hanover (the biggest mistake of my life, among other things but due in no small part to the weather.) The winter of 03 was particularly bad. From January to mid-March I don't believe the temperature ever lifted above 32 once, even in the daytime! And then there were about two weeks in a row when it never got above 20. Hanover is a bit northern and more inland than the bigger/more famous towns in NH (Manchester, Nashua, Portsmouth) but the weather does not vary *that* much. When it's so cold that you walk outside and your contacts start freezing to your eyes, the last thing that you care about is how pretty the snow is. (And there wasn't even a whole lot of snow, just cold! & It probably didn't help that I don't get off on scenery and trees and middle-of-nowhereness in general to begin with either.) At that time that was considered one of the worst winters, but from what I hear they've had a few like it since and it's only been 6 years.

When I used to hear people talk about hell frozen over, I didn't realize they were talking about New Hampshire.

After that I ran off to California and never looked back.

Wow. Isn't North Dakota considered midwest? NH winters are mild compared to what I just endured this past winter. Not even many pretty trees to look at, no ocean, and no mountains to make the winter pretty. I'll take a NH winter anyday!

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by steveusaf

Wow. Isn't North Dakota considered midwest? NH winters are mild compared to what I just endured this past winter. Not even many pretty trees to look at, no ocean, and no mountains to make the winter pretty. I'll take a NH winter anyday!

NH has far less wind and milder temps. ND must be awful in the winter with the strong winds, few coniferous trees, and subzero temperatures.

[Radical347]

Originally Posted by steveusaf

Wow. Isn't North Dakota considered midwest? NH winters are mild compared to what I just endured this past winter. Not even many pretty trees to look at, no ocean, and no mountains to make the winter pretty. I'll take a NH winter anyday!

True, I can't imagine North Dakota (or other northern-midwest states up there, like Minnesota) would be much better. The mid or southern midwest states are the ones that can have wild temperature fluctuations in the winter, i.e. freezing one day and 60 the next. (NE, KS, MO...perhaps IA, the southern part of SD, or CO if you count it too.)

[kalimara]

So I'm coming from Salt Lake City/Park City Utah and going to Portsmouth this January for a long visit-are winters worse in Portsmouth? Park City especially gets pretty cold (below zero in the mornings and nights for, eh, 1 maybe 2 months) and LOTS of snow from December to March/April, as does Salt Lake, but there's also a lot of sunshine in Utah winters. So it's a trade-off I suppose. Will Portsmouth kick my trash or am I stressing unnecessarily? I just hear all these stories about killer noreasters and the like and get all worked up...yes I am a wuss. Thanks!

[Verseau]

I don't think you have to worry too much, kalimara. We do get a lot of snow in NH and there's always the risk of the occasional Nor'easter, but the roads are usually cleared and salted quickly. I don't think you'll encounter any conditions worse than what you've experienced in Utah.

The only real difference is that Portsmouth is a bit warmer -- it's in the mildest climate zone in the state, being right on the ocean. You can expect typical temps to range from the low/mid-teens in the early morning to the high 20s / low 30s in the afternoon. You may even find that the snow doesn't always stick around on the ground -- warm spells do occur and melt the snow along the coast. On the other hand, we also have cold spells and subzero temperatures are definitely possible.

Oh, and winters aren't especially cloudy here, either. The amount of sunshine remains pretty constant year-round.

[fishnfool]

Not sure if you ski or board but don't expect the snow in NH to be anything like that in Utah either (the self proclaimed "The World's Greatest Snow" right? ) ....powder is pretty rare in NH, it's usually very icy and hard packed.

[MovedfromFL]

I'm still worried about the "grey days" factor in NH. The sunshine charts on city data for various towns show sunshine levels well below the US national average. Here in Georgia, we have sunny days in April/May and October as well with low humidity. Those months still looked to be grey in NH. (bummer) I enjoy the nice sunny spring and fall days here, but winter is terrible. Not too cold of course, but WET! It rains (drizzles) constantly in winter here and it is very cloudy. Some days it stays foggy all day long. (we're at 1250 elevation)

Lately, it has rained for about 3 weeks straight. Humidity is about 96-100% all day. My husband has some weight lifting equipment in the garage and he says his leather lifting belt is growing mold all over it. We are under a lot of tree cover, so that makes it damp as well, but I find these wet GA winters very depressing. I think grey will be worse than cold any day.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by MovedfromFL

I'm still worried about the "grey days" factor in NH. The sunshine charts on city data for various towns show sunshine levels well below the US national average. Here in Georgia, we have sunny days in April/May and October as well with low humidity. Those months still looked to be grey in NH. (bummer) I enjoy the nice sunny spring and fall days here, but winter is terrible. Not too cold of course, but WET! It rains (drizzles) constantly in winter here and it is very cloudy. Some days it stays foggy all day long. (we're at 1250 elevation)

Lately, it has rained for about 3 weeks straight. Humidity is about 96-100% all day. My husband has some weight lifting equipment in the garage and he says his leather lifting belt is growing mold all over it. We are under a lot of tree cover, so that makes it damp as well, but I find these wet GA winters very depressing. I think grey will be worse than cold any day.

In my experience, NH has many sunny days during the winter. That makes a bg difference in my opinion.

[fishnfool]

I think it's a matter of perspective.....coming from Ohio, I think NH winters are very sunny. Those coming from other sunnier states will probably find them much more gray than they are used to. It's definitely not Seattle out here...but it's not southern california either.