Anyone relocate from the Midwest to OR? (Portland, Eugene: tornadoes, live)

[sillygal]

Hi,
Anyone on these boards relocate from WI? Just trying to get a comparison for the winters. We get below zero cold, snow and gloomy days........Is it like our winters/minus the snow? Lasting sometimes 9 mos of the year?

Or is it more like the winters in CA........where it rains everyday for a few months, but still gets sunny thru the day.

[Brewer]

I didn't relocate from the midwest, but have lived there many moons ago. It rarely snows in the Willamette Valley [Eugene & Salem]. It is cloudy for 6+ months of the year. Rains all winter. Sometimes a few cold days, but nothing like the midwest. Less wind too. Much milder climate, generally.

[Oregonians]

We just moved back to Oregon (previously in Portland, now on the coast) after 25 years in the midwest. The climate here is much more temperate than the MW with warmer winters, cooler summers, and very few thunderstorms and tornadoes. The coast is most temperate, followed by the valley. If you go east of the Cascades, then the temperatures become more extreme.

However, the more temperate the climate, in general, the more clouds and rain you have. But there is nothing like a clear day, and you appreciate them that much more.

[sillygal]

Thank you for your advice, I am concerned about employment, and if the grayness would get to me over time, I am looking for a place I can retire in eventually. Also, I can't make up my mind if I want to choose a much similar climate like CO, or I want to go for the rain, and cloudiness over the cold. One thing I do love about OR, over CO ......is the green! I am not that much of a desert person, and thinking I would miss that.......Now, do I take the rain over the desert? LOL. seems like that is much more of my choice....LOL

[Brewer]

Well we still have some trees left, although there are probably some people who would be happy to cut all of them too!

[Steve97415]

One thing to realize is that West Coast states are not like the midwest in that there is basically one climate for the entire state. Two-thirds of Oregon is high desert and well above the national average for winter sunshine. A lot of people have a stereotypical view of the whole state based on the western fourth that is west of the Cascades.
In one sense western Oregon can be compared to the midwest: there are four to five months that you just have to get through and your reward is a perfect climate for the rest of the year. Many people from areas of summer rain are surprised by how dry it is here in the summer. Seasonal affect (gloom tolerance) is something to consider, however. There is some book, I think maybe "Retirement Places Rated" that lists a seasonal affect score (1-100) for many American cities. If you need bright light, you should look for a minimum score of 80.