[spunky1]

Yes, and the gorgeous summer days in Vermont are longer too.

[Siena23]

It does get dark early up here in winter. On the shortest day, sunset is at 4:15. I have lived in Florida for the past three years and just moved back here last month, and I have to admit, getting used to the early darkness again was tough. But doesn't it get dark before 5:00 in New York, too? If you live in New York now, I don't think you will find it very different.

Having lived in New England most of my life and also having lived in Florida recently, I know I am happier up here even with the winter. BUT--the compromise I made with myself about moving back is that I would work from home and not have to commute in snowstorms or get up at 5:30am to shovel my driveway in the dark and the unbearable cold in order to make it to work on time. What I hated most about living here before was shovelling snow first thing in the morning, commuting in storms, and having to go out to work when it was just frigid (like today and tomorrow with a windchill of -15!!!).

I just offer this bit of personal perspective to make the point that if you are not crazy about winter you will NOT be happy in Brattleboro or anywhere in New England. Personally, if I still had to commute like before, I would probably not have moved back. I would have done like a previous poster did--found somewhere with the rural feel and beauty of New England, but without the weather.

[chaz longue]

I myself must leave Vermont.

...but just long enough to visit my parents in Sonoma County, in Northern California.

I'll be counting the hours and be back at the end of the week... (adore parents, not wild about CA)

[seanpecor]

Aw c'mon there is nothing wrong with Sonoma County. $800,000 for a 1,200 square foot craftsman? What's not to like?

Sean

[sharpeyes]

Yes, the long summer evenings with daylight were a highlight of northern VT living. But so much of one's free time is spent in darkness during the winter if you work indoors during the day. The Naval Observatory has some calculators where you can enter city names or zip codes and get sunrise and sunset info for any date or for the whole year. http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/Dur_OneYear.html (broken link)

[arel]

Can you see the Northern Lights in southern Vermont, or only further north?

By the way, in New York, it gets dark around 4:30 in the winter, around 8:30 or so in the summer. I'm guessing, though. But I know it is dark way before 5.

Also, I dislike having to shovel snow, but, truthfully, I feel a great sense of physical well-being when I am done. Maybe it is all that exercise in the cold air, but I love the feeling.

But I do not like commuting in the snow and ice. I like the idea of being able to walk to work.

[Dwatted Wabbit]

I love shoveling snow too, it's great exercise.
When we moved to NH a few years back, an ancient snowblower came with the house. I looked at it with contempt at first. Then we got about 10" of snow, and an appreciation for the wonders of modern technology were re-awakened in me. What would have been four hours of shoveling was done in 30 minutes.
Gotta know when to hold 'em, and when to fold 'em...

[giselle]

I like to shovel, too, when it's the light, fluffy, powdery stuff. When I am done, I'm on a roll and run over and shovel our neighbors' house. I imagine that will get real tired if I need to get up in the dark over and over again to chip ice off my car, and dig through 1+ feet of snow. People who work from home probably enjoy living in VT the best.

[arel]

It's nice to shovel snow when it is powdery and no ice sticks to the sidewalk. When there is ice, or when the snow hardens it is miserable. Digging out the car is a pain, and if there is ice on the windows it is time consuming.

I just bought a heated ice scraper for the car. Last time I had a real window ice problem, I tried scraping and that did not work. What did work was turning on the heat. When the windows got a little warm, the ice was able to be slid off in pieces.

Today, in Brookyn, it is very cold. Wind chill below zero. I went out this morning to see a client and I felt ok. My car seat was cold for a moment, and I had to change to warmer gloves, which I did. But my long johns under my pants and my down/feather jacket (and mohair sweater) were sufficient. I did wear my old LL Bean "snow sneakers" lined with Gore-Tex and Thinsulate. But I had no snow to shovel in the pre-dawn darkness, and during my time out I was mostly in the car or indoors.

Also, the cold snap here is going to be very short.

Is it usually this cold in southern Vermont in the winter? I guess you get used to it and/or you love it, or take up a winter sport and learn to love it. I don't mind it, and I even enjoy it, especially now that my car has a fuel injector engine and not a carburator.

Who shovels the snow on those long rural driveways? Does the homeowner rent a backhoe or hire someone with a backhoe? Snow is one reason I would be concerned about buying rural property in Vermont. It also seems to be a reason why some people leave, according to some of these posts.

[flu189]

Regarding snow removal. I have a 500 ft + driveway and I use an 11hp Honda track snowblower. Takes me 45 minutes and I get a nice wide swath without side berms. Several of my neighbors pay for plowing which is done simply with pickup trucks. I don't miss the NYC winters of thirty years ago with trash and amazing quantities of frozen dog waste among an assortment of other trash. Very cold and windy here today. The only downfall is the knowledge on how much oil I'm burning on days like these.