How Cold are Winters in VA (Alexandria) (Manassas, Front Royal: living, storage)

[Petezz]

I am going to be moving to Alexandria in the beginning of September from Connecticut. I was wondering what winters are like there, and how long they last. Coming from Connecticut (the northwest corner), I can handle the cold and snow, but I would prefer it to be pretty mild. To be specific, an average day time temperature of 40 degrees or higher in January would be nice. In my town, it averages less than 30 degrees in January and we get 60 inches of snow a year. The winter also drags on for too long. I don't mind if it gets into the 20s a couple times, I just hate when it lasts for weeks. I also don't mind if it snows, as long as it melts quickly. Does it ever get into the 70s or 60s and if it does, how often?


Thank you in advance for the answers

[Carlingtonian]

We never get snow before mid-December and often not till later than that. February and March are our snowiest months. We don't get the negative temps you get in Southern New England (with rare exceptions); the coldest it routinely gets is the low single digits. As to warmups into the 60s, it's hard to remember, but I think we get those every so often in the winter--certainly into the 40s and 50s every so often. Winter here definitely isn't a solid, consistent 20-something for 4 months. By mid-April, you won't need a jacket.

All that said: We DO get some major dumpings of snow. It's not continuous all winter, but we will usually get at least a few. We do have to shovel/salt the sidewalks. If you can handle that, you'll be fine here.

The best thing is that on days that it snows more than a couple of inches, most things here close, and those who have to work generally work from home--except for first responders, hospital workers, etc.

[Petezz]

Originally Posted by Carlingtonian

We never get snow before mid-December and often not till later than that. February and March are our snowiest months. We don't get the negative temps you get in Southern New England (with rare exceptions); the coldest it routinely gets is the low single digits. As to warmups into the 60s, it's hard to remember, but I think we get those every so often in the winter--certainly into the 40s and 50s every so often. Winter here definitely isn't a solid, consistent 20-something for 4 months. By mid-April, you won't need a jacket.

All that said: We DO get some major dumpings of snow. It's not continuous all winter, but we will usually get at least a few. We do have to shovel/salt the sidewalks. If you can handle that, you'll be fine here.

The best thing is that on days that it snows more than a couple of inches, most things here close, and those who have to work generally work from home--except for first responders, hospital workers, etc.

Thank you for the quick reply!

By major dumpings of snow, what do you mean? 6 inches or more?

[goldenage1]

Originally Posted by Petezz

By major dumpings of snow, what do you mean? 6 inches or more?

Yes. In 2010 (I believe) we had 24-30 inches of snow. Everything shut down for a couple of days. Howeevr, that is a very rare occurrence.

[patriot201]

The past few winters, we've had a decent amount of snow (for here), with several storms of 10+ inches.

Some days over the past few winters have been brutally cold, with windchills below 0. That is not typically the weather we get here, though.

This has some good stats for you: DC - Winters

[patriot201]

Originally Posted by goldenage1

Yes. In 2010 (I believe) we had 24-30 inches of snow. Everything shut down for a couple of days. Howeevr, that is a very rare occurrence.

I think it was closer to 50-60 inches (total), with just one storm (that went on for a few days) being 24-30 inches. I remember the drifts being 5+ feet in places. It was crazy!

[Carlingtonian]

Originally Posted by Petezz

Thank you for the quick reply!

By major dumpings of snow, what do you mean? 6 inches or more?

You bet! Correct, 6" or more. We'll get usually at least one such storm each winter--sometimes two or three. As others referred to above, a few years ago we had the big one the president sarcastically labeled "Snowmageddon," but last year I think we had just a one or two big storms (around a foot of snow), with a few minor snowfalls in between. So the roads will be kept clear for most of the winter, but there will still be snow piled up in yards, etc. Coming from CT, I suspect you'll find it much milder here.

[Flamingo13]

Originally Posted by patriot201

I think it was closer to 50-60 inches (total), with just one storm (that went on for a few days) being 24-30 inches. I remember the drifts being 5+ feet in places. It was crazy!

We did NOT get that much snow from one storm!

[patriot201]

Originally Posted by Flamingo13

We did NOT get that much snow from one storm!

In December 2009, it was 23 inches in some areas (according to this article Massive storm sets December record, cripples transit) or up to 24 inches (according to this site December 18-19, 2009 Winter Storm). I was remembering it being more like 24+. I don't think that is that far off, though.

I am 100% sure there were drifts that were 5 feet tall, though. My living room windows were about half covered, and they sit a few feet off the ground.



The February storm was even worse!

The Blow-by-Blow: Snowmageddon vs. Christmas Blizzard of 2010
Five year anniversary of "Snowmageddon" blizzard | News, Weather, Sports, Breaking News | WJLA News

At Dulles airport (which is farther out than Alexandria, but not THAT far), they got 32.4 inches in just two days (February 5-6, 2010). THEN, just a few days later, on February 9-10, an additional 12-24 inches was dumped across the region, which brought Dulles's total snowfall for the first ten days of February to 46.1 inches. DCA didn't get quite as much snow, but it wasn't that far off.

There were, as there are in most storms, many bands of snow, so not all areas got the same amount. The same thing happens with rain. On Tuesday, a park that is only three miles away from me got hammered with rain, but we didn't have a single drop of rain in my yard.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by Flamingo13

We did NOT get that much snow from one storm!

You were addressing this poster: Originally Posted by patriot201
I think it was closer to 50-60 inches (total), with just one storm (that went on for a few days) being 24-30 inches. I remember the drifts being 5+ feet in places. It was crazy!


We most certainly did get that much snow. We had over 24 inches in our yard in Manassas for the one storm and the 2nd one we had close to 3 feet in Front Royal. That was an unusual winter but we had them big snows.