[girlandpup]

Originally Posted by christoforest

Hi Girlandpup,

Both Portland and Burlington are snowy and relatively similar on the cold scale. Burlington will get a bit colder in the winter but it gets warmer faster in the spring and is a bit warmer in the summer. This is due to the ocean effect being bigger than the lake effect. Burlington is definitely cloudier for Nov, Dec and Jan than Portland, but not as bad as the NW. (I just moved to new England from Seattle myself) Burlington has a much more beautiful setting and I think is a more interesting city, but I would say overall the weather is probably a bit worse than Portland due to the clouds for those three months. Although it can take forever for spring to come in Portland. Feel free to ask anything more I am a weather freak!

Thank you, again! I knew I liked you - a fellow "weather freak!" Do you love the Weather Channel, too? (Or maybe you don't get it on your TV there - it's part of basic cable for me here). I am very interested in hearing your opinions and thoughts more, including what makes you say that Burlington "has a much more beautiful setting" and how do you feel about it being cloudy/grey/little sun if any for those few winter months? I know that SAD (Seasonal Affect Disorder) is most prominent in the NW b/c of that. I am someone who does like to see the sun. It can be cold, snowy, etc. but having some sunshine makes everything seem so much nicer and "happier feeling," if you know what I mean. I am ESPECIALLY CURIOUS about why you just moved from Seattle - I have very good friends living there, always trying to get me to move there. I have been there a few times to see them (they used to live in NYC) the past few years. I do think it's beautiful, and the hiking/backpacking can't be beat (hiking is my love and what I do as much as I can - always with my dog). There are definite things I thought that made Seattle and the nearby areas probably "not for me," but really would love to hear why you moved from there, if you don't mind sharing of course.

[68vette]

We love to hike as well, but you can't do much hiking in the winter months (it's possible but not always advised). You can however snowshoe in many places.

They call it cabin fever here in Vt (SAD). It's cold and cloudy most of the winter. Some years are better than others, but don't count on a lot of sun for most of the winter (not every day is cloudy but most are). Depending on the year winter can last as long as 6 months. I'm sure there are others who have lived here as long or longer than I who can confirm this. I looked at several weather stats from multiple web sites and they are all over the place. You may want to go to the Maine forum and ask someone there about the weather.

[girlandpup]

Originally Posted by 68vette

We love to hike as well, but you can't do much hiking in the winter months (it's possible but not always advised). You can however snowshoe in many places.

They call it cabin fever here in Vt (SAD). It's cold and cloudy most of the winter. Some years are better than others, but don't count on a lot of sun for most of the winter (not every day is cloudy but most are). Depending on the year winter can last as long as 6 months. I'm sure there are others who have lived here as long or longer than I who can confirm this. I looked at several weather stats from multiple web sites and they are all over the place. You may want to go to the Maine forum and ask someone there about the weather.

Thank you. Do you think it is as grey and cloudy in winter months as Pacific Northwest, such as Portland, Oregon, Seattle, etc., which I am not wanting to move to for that very reason? Also, does that mean you can't do much hiking overall, if you consider over the course of the year? In other words, is your hiking limited to only about half of the year b/c too much snow for several months? I really appreciate your help with this. It is such a big, difficult decision where to move to, and Burlington seems "right" in so many ways for me except the whole winter weather worries me. It's giving me serious second thoughts now.

[vter]

The NWS at Burlington Airport is one of the cloudiest in the country.
Hiking is difficult in the winter due to snow, and the Green Mountain Club routinely closes trails in the spring due to mud - don't want to have the trails be destroyed.

[68vette]

I don't know about the Pacific Northwest weatherwise, but if hiking, cloudy days and long winters are important issues for you there are many places throughout the country that may more suite your needs. vter is is correct about cloudy days and the trails.

Burlington is a great little city, but if it can't meet many of your needs I would hate for you to move here and then six months down the road hate yourself for making the wrong decision.

[girlandpup]

Originally Posted by 68vette

I don't know about the Pacific Northwest weatherwise, but if hiking, cloudy days and long winters are important issues for you there are many places throughout the country that may more suite your needs. vter is is correct about cloudy days and the trails.

Burlington is a great little city, but if it can't meet many of your needs I would hate for you to move here and then six months down the road hate yourself for making the wrong decision.

Thank you. I am trying so hard to "get it right" and find the best place for me. It is very difficult and gets so confusing sometimes! Burlington seems so great, but it will be the wrong place for me if I can't go hiking so much of the year, as I am finding out may be the real truth of it. SO much is involved in making this important decision. I truly appreciate your, and everyone, offering me the facts, opinions, thoughts, and suggestions!

[vter]

You do realize that it is further to the mountains from Portland?

[girlandpup]

Originally Posted by vter

You do realize that it is further to the mountains from Portland?

Yes, thank you. That is the biggest reason why I have been favoring Burlington much more between the two. I'm just trying to keep all possibilities open. It really is such a tough choice. I need to find somewhere where the cost of living is at least "decent," the lifestyle I want now (like Vermont), good hiking nearby and easily accessible, dog-friendly (big reason why I've been looking at Portland, ME - it has several great places for dogs to be off-leash), and I was hoping to stay somewhat close to family (all in NY). Yikes!

[68vette]

Why don't you check out Charlottesville, Virginia. It's like Burlington in many ways and is always ranked as one of the best small cities in the country. They have mountains and the four seasons but much more mild. Just a thought.

Vermont is a great place, but it usually doesn't get very high rankings from magazines like Money or any of the others that rank great places to live. Vt has a great deal going for it but we have many things that don't make living here easy. Cost of living, Taxes, low income and many of the other facts that they use to rank towns and cities throughout the country.

[christoforest]

Hi GirlnPup,

I really identify with your search to find a good place to hang your hat. I have been doing that for 20 years, including travelling to 25 countries in the last 15 years.

I am originally from NJ but lived in Boston from 1988-1991 and then moved to Seattle from 1991-2007 to get out of the busy Northeast corridor. We moved here to Northampton MA 3 months ago for several reasons. To me the good thing about Seattle was the amazing nature (at least in the protected areas) and the ease of the basic necessities of life, job, housing, organic food, plenty of things going on. But the negatives were very big for me:

1. The clouds in the winter (it is usually sunny in the summer). One winter it rained 93 out of 100 days, another it rained 36 days in a row. It is not uncommon to go three weeks without seeing the sun in the winter.

2. The clearcuts. They clearcut the forests with impunity out in the pacific NW. It is really tragic and people accept it. If it is not in a protected area the mountainsides are under constant assault, and it really depressed me, especially that the population accepted it

3. The people. I found them friendly on the surface, but often it was very superficial and phony. People are always "busy" (an American phenomenon but to an extreme it seemed in Seattle). Although it doesnt feel much better here in western Mass on this front but at least people are more real here and you know what they are.

When we moved here we decided to come to Northampton or Burlington because of them being "green" and liberal areas with an educated population. This is a hard thing to find in rural America. In the end we are in Northampton because we got jobs and I was afraid of the weather in Burlington. It is definitely not as gloomy as the PNW in the winter but that is not saying much. Here in Northampton the sunshine is enough.

i am happy to answer any other questions!