Seattle tops list of cities with cool, comfortable summer weather (places to live, beach)

[Shikadance]

I have lived in Oxford, England and Tacoma..Both have very similar climates and summers
are mild but on occasion when a heat wave hits it can be down right uncomfortable because
there is humidity involved..Not humid like the south but still noticeable..

I now live in Denver which I see is ranked 4th in coolest summer cities..I would have to agree..

Denver's summers are kinda strange..It can be 85 degrees but because of the low humidity and thinner air it does not feel hot and at night it is very comfortable.

[Mezter]

The fact that Denver & SLC are in the top 10 for "Cool summer weather" completely invalidates this list. Not to say Seattle shouldn't be #1.

[Shikadance]

Originally Posted by Mezter

The fact that Denver & SLC are in the top 10 for "Cool summer weather" completely invalidates this list. Not to say Seattle shouldn't be #1.

Because it is all about comfort level and Denver does have one of the more comfortable summer
climates out of the 50 largest metro areas...

When you factor in the daily average temperatures, low humidity, thinner air and low temps in the 50's and 60's it is deserving of its ranking.

Keep in mind we are talking about top 50 metro areas which means the majority of the cities will be back east, the south and midwest which means high humidity combined with temps in the high 80's and 90's which equates to a very high heat index on the human body.

Denver's heat index is erased because of its low humidity.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

no, why? I'm told it's been nice and cool.

Right near the Bay in most areas, most of the time. There have been heat waves though. One lasted a week which, as you know, is long for the Bay Area.

[texastrigirl]

Seattle has an avg high of 76 degrees for both July and Aug and avg low of 56 and 57, respectively.

Average Weather for Seattle, WA - Temperature and Precipitation

San Francisco has an avg high of 67 and 68 and an avg low of 54 and 55 for July and August.

Average Weather for San Francisco, CA - Temperature and Precipitation

Seattle is still a beautiful emerald green too in July and August which adds to it's loveliness in the summer. The SF area is pretty darn brown and crispy come late July and August. We used to love visiting my in-laws there in the summer when we were coming from Austin TX. But once we moved here we made them visit us in the summer months!

I was out on Lake WA today and on the Sound last weekend and I have to tell you...there is no place I'd rather live in the summer...as much as I love cities like SF, Denver, etc. This is one beautiful place to spend the summer months!!

[MamaRed]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

of course it has. I'm about to move there and the freaking heat follows me even when I go on vacation. Be prepared for the summers never to be as cool again due to my stupid luck.

My family just moved up this spring from Palm Springs. We're about 45 NE of Seattle, but from what I've seen the temps aren't too different. We've had ONE day that reached 91, and that got a little uncomfortable since there's no AC here. Shade counts here, though, and a good tree can get you through.
Several days have reached mid-80s, but that was still comfortable. Looks like most of next week will be 70s, with 2 days of low 80s. Weather definitions are different up here. The other day on the radio they were reporting "severe drought conditions" when there had been quite a bit (by my book) of rain just 2 weeks prior.
We LOVE the summer weather here (this is where a local will feel obliged to comment that we will probably HATE the winter and need to move to sunshine).

[Inkpoe]

LOL MamaRed... You have to realize here, they're weird about "drought" conditions. I can still remember my dad remarked how odd that we can still have moss thriving without issue during "severe drought conditions". He suspects it's to "discourage" people from using so much water.

[Tall Traveler]

I love the summers in Seattle and Portland and wouldn't mind it a bit warmer actually. Yeah, if you don't have an ac it's a bit warm for about a month. San Fran also pleasant but as Mark Twain famously said..."the coldest winter I've ever experienced was summer in San Francisco." It's refreshing but I like to have a bit of heat mixed in say like San Jose...swimming weather.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by orzo

I'd say this summer is actually more typical. The last 3 years have been particularly bad summers. 2009 was hotter than this year (it reached 103) and most previous years that I lived here were closer to this than the last couple of years.

I was there in '09, I remember how hot it was.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

When I lived in Seattle, I timed my vacations precisely for that July/Aug. heat wave, and spend a month in the Bay. It was always 10-15 degrees cooler in Berkeley. It hasn't changed much.

Berkeley is certainly cooler than Seattle, within the east bay, only Richmond is cooler.