Is there any part of NM that isn't blazing hot in summer? (Albuquerque: how much, school)

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by malamute

You have to remember that in the SW, 85 is sweater weather.

Wow, I don't know malamute, you have a tolerance for warmth / heat like not many do. 85 with that strong desert sun beating down "sweater weather"?? Sure, if you are used to summering in Death Valley!!

85 with a strong sun in the Southwest isn't terrible by any means at all, but I would say most would qualify it as from warm-to-toasty. Not blazing hot, but I think to put a sweater on there, one would first need to douse themselves with a jug of Arid Extra Dry (even with the low humidities)!

Originally Posted by malamute

It's very pleasant when the temperatures reach 95-100.

I know from the EP forums your love for the heat / warmth, but wow, I would say 95 - 100 - at least to myself - in say El Paso, or Cruces, or ABQ, is still a pretty sizzling day. Again, not the soupy uncomfortable mess that say 94 with super-high humidity in New Orleans is, but I tell you what, when you are walking along under a cloudless sun-baking-down 98 degree desert sky (and you feel like you are in an oven), most wouldn't consider it ideal or necessarily comfortable; (I guess though if you did it coming from 116 degree Phoenix that day, you might say it is comfortable! ).

I guess it is somewhat all relative. With the strong sun in a Las Cruces, Carlsbad, Deming, El Paso, T or C, Albuquerque, etc, my ideal temp would be 65 to 81, 82, etc. If the sun isn't out in those cities, then I would say ideal would be more 70 to 84ish.

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by Devin Bent

And it's cooler than Arizona.

Ah, but Devin, while overall I agree with your post, this portion I think is thrown out there a lot and gives off a similar mis-perception to folks as they get when they think of all of New Mexico has being a big, hot, boiling desert. Just like much of NM is a higher altitude, cooler type of climate, similarly when folks throw out Arizona as lumping it all into a joint climate, I shudder the same.

Arizona is as diverse as New Mexico as it comes to climates. Now sure, their low desert areas such as Phoenix, Tucson, Yuma, etc., are very hot desert climates in the summertime months (which are many months there).

However, so much of Arizona is similar to New Mexico - varying, and higher, altitudes. Flagstaff has a climate nearly like Santa Fe's, but actually garners quite a bit more snow typically than even Santa Fe does. Prescott actually has a climate very similar to Albuquerque's...both cities are overall temperate/warm climates, but probably kind of in the middle of a Santa Fe / Flagstaff and a Phoenix. The Grand Canyon region shares many things with say a Grants, etc.

People overall think of Arizona / New Mexico - the Southwest - as hot, boiling climates, but they are folks that typically just aren't used to the concept of altitude. So many portions of both of these states are just high / mountainous areas and just don't have the summers that the Phoenix's, Tucsons, Yumas, etc., and to a lesser degree Las Cruces, Carlsbad, Albuquerque, Prescott, etc. have.

[HoneysuckleHobo]

I found Santa Fe to be difficult in terms of heat in the summer, due to its elevation. The rays are truly beaming down on you there. I felt that above Pecos was a bit more gentle in terms of summer heat. It is a lovely area.

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by mortimer

Everywhere in New Mexico is more comfortable in summer than Nebraska.

I actually strongly disagree with this mortimer...(and you know I am usually in full agreement with your curmudgeon-esque-self!!).

I know that you are especially anti-the Midwest's strong humidity in the summertime, and indeed, Nebraska specifically, I have spent way, way too many summertime days over the years in portions of NE (Omaha, Grand Island, Kearney, even little Waco).

Yes, places like Nebraska, (and lower / hotter places) like Kansas, Oklahoma, etc., are quite hot and humid many days in the summertime which is not necessarily enjoyable.

However, anywhere west of Tramway in Albuquerque is consistently 90+ degrees with a very hot sun (for highs) in the summertime. I LOVE Albuquerque's year-round climate and don't mind the strong, hot sun in the summer, however, I would say consistently Albuquerque's summer is longer and hotter than anywhere in Nebraska.

Now, day-by-day, you'll find a whole lotta days in Nebraksa that are less pleasant in the summertime than they are in the warmer parts of New Mexico (Albuquerque, TorC, Las Cruces, Carlsbad, etc.) - I will fully cede that anywhere in Nebraska when it hits 90+ with the opressively high humidity levels it has is less comfortable than 90+ in the aforementioned portions of NM with the low humidity levels.

HOWEVER, the thing that is nice about the Midwest in the summer (or Northeast / far upper plains, etc.) is that the heat is usually much more cyclical or in waves than it is in the Southwest. Whereas in Albuquerque - unless it is a good monsoon year (which lately there have been some of) - you can count on a pretty steady, regular dose of 95ish-degree high days for 8 or 10 straight weeks, in Nebraska, you'll have a week of very hot / humid temps (uncomfortable), but then - bam! - a cold front will roll through, cooling things off nicely for a week or so. Then back to the hot / humid uncomfortable and bam! - back to pleasant. It rolls back and forth. 81 degrees in Nebraska (which can happen quite a bit in the summer after those frontal changes) isn't terribly humid and due to the less strong sun, actually feels quite pleasant.

To me, humidity isn't the scourge that many make it out to be. Here in the Milwaukee, WI area, you can get some real hot/humid days in the summer (not terribly many, but they can happen similar to NE or Iowa)...I actually don't mind the 93 degree day with a huge 60% humdity level. It actually somewhat feels comforting to me...like "summer" should feel. While humidity is there, you have the tradeoff of a lack of a filter to the hot, burning sun of the Southwest - not having the clouds/humidity/filter, etc,. that the Midwest does.

Now, there are a few conditions where I would fully agree with mortimer's premise:

1. Anywhere cooler than Albuquerque (say, Santa Fe, Taos, Ruidoso, Silver City, etc.) in the summer...most of these places will typically be ideal summertime weather outside of a handful of hot daytimes...they are dry, rarely do they get much above the low-90s, and they cool off brilliantly at night.

2. If the monsoon season is cooking strong in the Southwest, even the warmer cities I have mentioned (Albuquerque, TorC, Las Cruces, Carlsbad, etc.) will indeed be very comfortable nearly every day. It is like a Nebraska-equivalent of a cold front moving through the area...almost every day.

3. The late nights / early mornings in even the warmer cities I have mentioned in NM will amost always be very pleasant. Due to the low humidities / lack of clouds, you get a pronounced cooldown-effect in the evenigns that you do not get in the hotter-portions of a Nebraska summer.

Overall I don't necessarily disagree with the gist of mort's premise here, however, having spent many a year in so many portions of the Midwest, I always am compelled to vigorously point out that the Midwest's summers aren't nearly as hot / uncomfortable as they are painted at times to be. PORTIONS of them are, however, due to the northern latitude and the constant changes of cold fronts-to-warm fronts / high pressure to low, etc. portions often get extremely pleasant (70s to 80s for highs, respectable humidity levels, etc.). You get a nice mix from hot - to - nice, and that helps get through the 101 degree 62% humidity days.

I also think that the warmer summer portions of New Mexico (again, ABQ, TorC, Socorro, Las Cruces, Carlsbad, etc.) are warmer/hotter when the monsoon isn't a brewin' than many long-time locals realize to outsiders. The humidity level tradeoff is indeed very nice, but that sun often feels like a baking, broiling oven.

*Overall though, to me, spring/fall/daytime winter/nightime summer are so nice in these portions of New Mexico, that they are nearly ideal climates.

Originally Posted by mortimer

Everywhere in New Mexico is more comfortable in winter than Nebraska.

While overall I agree much more strongly with this than the summer thing, I would actually still kind of semi-disagree.

Cities like Omaha or Lincoln actually can get some decent stretches of low-50s in the winter (or the low-population western portions near Denver that can get even into the 60s, low-70s, etc.) (that typically don't make the Milwaukee/Twin Cities/Chicago region as far north and near the water), whereas, places like Chama/Red River/Gallup/Raton, etc., can have some really harsh temps with way too much snow (for me, too much snow in a winter is more than 20 inches).

There will be some days where in Red River that don't barely reach 20 degrees (which even with sun will feel very cold) and a lot of snow, where in Omaha it'll be 47 with little snow if any - I would take that day in Omaha.

Honestly, some winter days I would take in portions of Nebraska over anywhere above 6000 feet in New Mexico. Don't get me wrong...it isn't frequent, but it does happen.

Now, I do almost 100% agree with mort as long as you'd be talking 6000 feet or lower. So Devin Bent's valley, the East Mountains of Albuquerque, etc., classify, as well of course as Albuquerque metro, and the lower alitutde cities. For those, they are almost always going to be nicer than most anywhere in Nebraska (often startlingly so) in the winter.

Originally Posted by mortimer

You can probably count on one hand the number of days in a year when the weather is better anywhere in Nebraska than anywhere in New Mexico.

I would say this is true for areas 6000-feet and lower in NM largely. Areas over 6000 feet, sometimes - more than not - but sometimes a nice climate like Omaha would have some of the higher NM altitudes beat (in winter) and lower ones beat (in summer).

[EnjoyEP]

Originally Posted by HoneysuckleHobo

I found Santa Fe to be difficult in terms of heat in the summer, due to its elevation. The rays are truly beaming down on you there.

This is the aspect of NM summers that often-times long-time locals / natives don't factor in.

Yes, there is no humidity (or little) which is a BIG PLUS and very nice, but that sun can really bake down hard. If you are in shade, that is a big plus, but if you are in the sun, it can get hot, baking, and with the inability to sweat (due to the low humidity), it can feel very, very hot.

Summer is nearly my least favorite season in the glorious weather that is the mid-section of New Mexico; beautiful in the evenings/early AMs, but the hearts of the day are hotter-than ideal (as a runner, sometimes humidity and some filtering clouds/humidity aren't the worst things in the world).

[Devin Bent]

Originally Posted by EnjoyEP

This is the aspect of NM summers that often-times long-time locals / natives don't factor in.

Yes, there is no humidity (or little) which is a BIG PLUS and very nice, but that sun can really bake down hard. If you are in shade, that is a big plus, but if you are in the sun, it can get hot, baking, and with the inability to sweat (due to the low humidity), it can feel very, very hot.

Summer is nearly my least favorite season in the glorious weather that is the mid-section of New Mexico; beautiful in the evenings/early AMs, but the hearts of the day are hotter-than ideal (as a runner, sometimes humidity and some filtering clouds/humidity aren't the worst things in the world).

But you are sweating and you are doing it very efficiently in a way to maximize cooling. The sweat is evaporating so quickly that it doesn't collect on you. When it collects on you, then it is not working so well.

But I will agree in that the summer is my least favorite period -- Santa Fe does well to attract all the tourists for the worst weather.

And if you go out in the sun, definitely wear a hat or sun screen.

[mrgoodwx]

Originally Posted by EnjoyEP

People overall think of Arizona / New Mexico - the Southwest - as hot, boiling climates, but they are folks that typically just aren't used to the concept of altitude. So many portions of both of these states are just high / mountainous areas and just don't have the summers that the Phoenix's, Tucsons, Yumas, etc., and to a lesser degree Las Cruces, Carlsbad, Albuquerque, Prescott, etc. have.

Very good post, EnjoyEP. It reminds me of the times I've gone back to Mississippi (where I grew up) to high school reunions and had people ask me (while we're soaking in sweat on a deep-south, sultry July day) how I could stand the heat in New Mexico! They only know the reputation of Phoenix, and assume the entire Southwest is hot. Little do they realize how pleasant the summer can be where I live...6100 feet above sea level.

[desert sun]

I grew up in Portales and it gets really hot there in the summertime,this is a place that is never brought up but should be.Many times it gets over 100 degrees in the summer even up to 105 a few times,Portales gets big thunderstorms and a few small tornadoes out in the country usually every year,but those thunderstorms are nice,it defintely rains alot harder and longer than in Albq, but the bad thing is the wind.

In the winter the wind makes you shiver and feels really really cold especially at night, but the weather is odd, one day it will be in the 70's in January then in the 30's and freezing a couple days later.

I just wanted to mention Portales on here-----there you have it-

I

[mrgoodwx]

You get it all in Portales. Hail, occasional tornados, flash floods, and extreme temperature swings. At the cooperative weather station, it's been down to 17 below zero, and as hot as 109. My wife has some kind of aversion to wind, so we could never live out in the eastern plains.

Since the original question posed by rbmomof3 was whether or not there are any places in New Mexico that aren't blazing hot in the summer, I'll toss these numbers into the mix. Although there are big differences in winter weather at these sites, here are some of the cool spots during the summer:

Average July max/min temperatures
Cloudcroft 71 and 47
Ruidoso 81 and 49
Chama 81 and 46
Red River 76 and 41

It's no wonder these areas attract a lot of "hot Texans" (and others) in the summer.

[Six Foot Three]

Originally Posted by mrgoodwx

Average July max/min temperatures
Cloudcroft 71 and 47
Ruidoso 81 and 49
Chama 81 and 46
Red River 76 and 41

It's no wonder these areas attract a lot of "hot Texans" (and others) in the summer.

So true mrgoodwx about those Texan$$$ ( Cathy... you spending you money here...lol...). Looking at those 4 places you listed and low temps grabbed my eye as again that's july in a state that borders Mexico and not Canada.

6/3