Questions about Bellevue - Belvedere (Seattle, Roslyn: pros and cons, live, cabins)

[ilikeoc]

We are looking at relocating to Seattle from Orange County, CA (I know, interlopers). We looked at, and fell in love with a lot in the Belvedere development in Bellevue. We are nearing retirement, and can afford it, but I am more than a bit concerned about cabin fever during the 'dark ages' Oct.- March . Can any of you give me a real feel for how the winter is, and what people do during these months? My wife and I both love the outdoors, and I am an avid cyclist. I am not trying to be flip about all this; I really need a clear idea of the pros and cons. By the way, we just returned from four days there and loved it- but it was two days sunny and two rainy...
Any helpful info would be immensely appreciated.

[amaiunmei]

It's hard to know how to answer your question.

One thing I can tell you: even if you like the cloudiness, it would behoove you to put aside money to take a sunny vacation at least once a year (hence all of those flights out to Hawaii, California, and Vegas from Seatac). It's pretty much impossible to know how you will be affected by the weather until you live here. It is entirely possible that the cloudiness may not agree with you; I think it should be standard to warn people to wait until they live here for 2 years before making any solid decisions about whether or not they want to stay.

It's also possible that you will love the weather and want to stay. I grew up in a four-season environment; Seattle weather was a foreign concept to me before I moved here. That was 13 years ago. Clearly, something's working.

With climate change, also, it is possible that the weather could change into something else entirely. This winter was brighter and warmer than usual. We won't know until later if that is a blip in the weather patterns or the new normal.

[Hemlock140]

We have been here from CA 22 years now, and the weather has made little difference in our outdoor activity. Much of the rain is a very light drizzle that barely gets you wet when outdoors. In fact, I would rather be outside in a light rain than the 90-105 degree blazing sun we used to get down there. We will even go for walks on those rare days when it snows.

[homesinseattle]

I'm from Miami originally, have been here 26 years and love it. I agree with the idea of taking a sun vacation each year, I also truly believe that we are getting more sun and less rain each year (perhaps a result of climate shift). The rain here is gentle, think Scotland. Outdoor activities are everywhere, hikes galore. I always tell my friends: "if you are bored around here, it's because you are a boring person". Once in awhile, we get socked in for awhile, maybe a week in a row with drizzle. That's a good time to read a book. From Bellevue, if you absolutely need a sun dose, just drive an hour over the mountains (a number of my clients have little cabins in places like Roslyn).

[bellevue123]

One thing to note is that the rain can provide a chilling effect. Rainy winter days feel a lot colder than the temperature reported in my experience. On the plus side it appears that each year is getting warmer and less rainy than the last.

[homesinseattle]

Lived in California for a year. What I don't miss about it: sometimes I just wanted it to rain. Except for landscaped area, the hills often seemed brown. It didn't seem natural. Rain makes things grow, green, I like that.