Cooler Towns Around Phoenix? (Mesa, Tempe: houses, living in, statistics)

[dreamboatannie953]

What are the towns close to Phoenix that are higher elevation and cooler that are close to Phoenix? Globe? White River?

[wuds]

i wonder about this also, only concerning the "heat island" effect.
assuming the predominate wind direction in the summer to be from the south, would you expect higher temps on the north side of town than the south? what about the layout of the mountains, does this "trap" the heat in certain areas? or funnel it to others?

[observer53]

The temperatures don't vary in any significant way from one side of the Valley to another, due to mountains or wind direction or anything else.

As far as other towns "close" to Phoenix at a higher elevation, it depends on what you mean by "close". Globe is relatively close (Mapquest can give you the mileage), but it's still not a drive I'd want to make daily or frequently. I don't consider Whiteriver, which is on the San Carlos Apache Reservation, to be "close" to Phoenix. Prescott is cooler but not "close", Black Canyon City is relatively "close", but not a great deal cooler. What are you actually looking for in terms of a town to live in?

[musicforme]

I live near I-17 and Carefree Highway.

According to the weather report on the nightly tv news, we're typically around 5 degrees cooler than central Phoenix. Cave Creek and Carefree are usually cooler too.

[Ponderosa]

It would be cooler north and northeast and warmer to the west and southwest. It has to do with elevation, not wind patterns. At night, any outlying area is cooler than the downtown/airport area by several degrees. The fewer houses and more farms, the cooler it is. So even though places like Goodyear and Luke AFB area are hotter in the day, they cool down more at night. Now, be warned, we are not talking about a big difference here - just a couple of degrees on the misery index. It's still miserable.

[wuds]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

It would be cooler north and northeast and warmer to the west and southwest. It has to do with elevation, not wind patterns. At night, any outlying area is cooler than the downtown/airport area by several degrees. The fewer houses and more farms, the cooler it is. So even though places like Goodyear and Luke AFB area are hotter in the day, they cool down more at night. Now, be warned, we are not talking about a big difference here - just a couple of degrees on the misery index. It's still miserable.

Understood, I was just curious about this. It's not like I've ever been accused of "overthinking" anything before!

[DewDropInn]

Originally Posted by musicforme

Cave Creek and Carefree are usually cooler too.

Very true. Four to six degrees cooler in the summer but also a bit colder in winter. As you drive north on either Tatum or Cave Creek you will notice you are going up a long grade (leading up to the national forest). CC and CF are higher than central Phoenix. The cooler temps are noticeable.

[cacto]

It's all elevation. Cave Creek, Carefree, and Apache Junction are the highest/coolest suburbs but not by much. I have seen some statistics saying Apache Junction gets 5 inches more rain than PHX annually, which, living in Tempe, I kind of believe because it seems like the monsoons always hit AJ and East Mesa hard and then fizzle by the time they get to Tempe.

[vaio71]

honestly when you are in Metro Phoenix and its surrounding cities, everything is on the heat index but not until the start of fall or right after thanksgiving that the cool weather starts to show up. Then its good to go to Globe, Alpine, Flagstaff and the San Carlos areas.

[Howard Roark]

Good topic! But I suggest in four months you take a look at this thread. Actually you won't care to do so because you will be enjoying the awesome winter of Phoenix, along with three or four million other people!

Hawaii has perfect weather (but hurricanes have occurred). Los Angeles has near perfect weather (but the quake danger). So I'll tolerate the summer lows creeping up above 90 degrees in Phoenix for a few more summers. I work mostly outside of Arizona but when I return to work permanently, I swear I will insist on taking a three month break every year starting early June or to allow me to work from Flagstaff those three months. Otherwise I won't do it. Sorry!