What is winter like in D.C. metro area (Washington: college, living)

[davistt]

My wife and I are getting out of upstate NY and away from the 90+ inches of snow per year.

Washington is one of our choices for various reasons, although we realize that the winter isn't as mild as it is further south.

But how bad is it?

Where we are now it's just plain cold from the middle of November until the middle of March.

I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts - especially from anyone that used to live further up north.

[juniperbleu]

It's not as mild as, say, South Carolina, but far milder than upstate NY. A "big" (and rare) snowstorm here will dump a whopping 5-6 inches of snow, but you're more likely to see an inch or less per-"storm". Temperature-wise, I only find it to be miserably cold in January and February. This past winter was colder than usual, with several days in the teens, but normally I think it's closer to the low-30s. For comparison, I grew up in Philadelphia (not a big difference, only a few degrees) but have spent time in Lake Placid, NY during the winter. The cold here is nothing like the cold there.

[CaseyMac]

To start, I have never lived anywhere else but Northern VA and hate the cold weather.

So what's my take? I think the difference between DC and places like Upstate NY and Michigan is the snow levels. Yes, I guess you all get a bit colder temperatures than we do, but it feels just downright cold to me here. 38 degrees for daytime highs are popular here in January and February and all I do is stare at the calendar waiting for Easter...lol.

So in short, if you really want to escape the cold, go further south to Raleigh or Atlanta. I even hear that people in the Norfolk area find the winters warmer than here in DC. I think the best way to put winter here is that you "feel the season." The trees are bare, the skies are gray, you know the drill...lol.

Good luck with your move!

[LasVegan2008]

Originally Posted by davistt

My wife and I are getting out of upstate NY and away from the 90+ inches of snow per year.

Washington is one of our choices for various reasons, although we realize that the winter isn't as mild as it is further south.

But how bad is it?

Where we are now it's just plain cold from the middle of November until the middle of March.

I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts - especially from anyone that used to live further up north.

The winters can be very cold, but overall there's a lot less snow than you're used to in upstate NY.

I was in DC for the inauguration in Jan. (after being spoiled living on the west coast for about 8 years)... it was the coldest I've ever experienced it in DC. About 19 degrees with a wind chill that felt like below zero.

But there was no snow and the sky was clear.

That doesn't mean that DC gets no snow. On average I'd say they have about 4-5 snowstorms per winter, and most of the time the snow sticks. But the snow doesn't build up very high... average accumulation might be around 4 inches.

I remember the winter of '95 -- sheets of solid ice about 8 inches thick covered every flat surface in the entire DC Metro area for almost 2 months straight. And all federal offices had to be closed down for 2 days because of cold temperatures and frozen pipes.

Generally the really cold weather begins in late November and lasts until late February. The weather in March is generally pretty bad, but not that cold.

[jenniferprestia]

I don't live in the DC area (I'm in PA) but my daughter does and went to college in Fredonia NY and having just gone through her first winter she found it very pleasant. A bit bemused by people wearing hats and gloves when it's in the 40's but that's about it. Also the one day last winter when it dumped a moderate (4-5") amount snow it took her less times to drive to work, because there was no one on the roads.

Compared to upstate NY you'll think it's positively balmy, at least for the first winter (it might wear off after that).

[EastBay-NowDCarea]

90+ inches? Holy cow! I spent my first winter in DC and it was cold. I was told that this winter was one of the coldest in a while. But there wasn't much snow. If my memory serves me right, we probably got less than a foot of snow for the entire winter. The few years before this year I've been told it was less than that.

I've heard people tell me that they used to get some big snow storms in the 80's. But noting big so far.

[RaisedWell]

I've lived here all of my life. It DOES snow here. We've just been very fortunate the last few years. I remember the big snow storms of 1979, 1987, 1996, 2003 where there was a foot or more in some areas. In some winters when there wasn't a lot of snow, there were big ice storms like the one in 1998 or 1999 (can't remember) when we had major power outages.

[ffknight918]

At least it can't be TOO bad. Coming from Milwaukee, WI, I'm sure it will be nothing.

It's funny seeing people complain about how it can get to the low 30's, when I've had days last winter get to -30 with windchill. Then on the other side you have me complaining about the high humidity here, and you guys think it's nothing. haha

[juniperbleu]

Originally Posted by ffknight918

It's funny seeing people complain about how it can get to the low 30's, when I've had days last winter get to -30 with windchill. Then on the other side you have me complaining about the high humidity here, and you guys think it's nothing. haha

Haha, that's why I try to put numbers down instead of just "it's so cold!" To me, the winter is cold and I could stand it to be a bit shorter, but then I go up north and realize that I don't know what I'm talking about. It's all relative, but coming from 90+ inches of snow, it'll definitely be mild here.

[smithy77]

Originally Posted by davistt

My wife and I are getting out of upstate NY and away from the 90+ inches of snow per year.

Washington is one of our choices for various reasons, although we realize that the winter isn't as mild as it is further south.

But how bad is it?

Where we are now it's just plain cold from the middle of November until the middle of March.

I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts - especially from anyone that used to live further up north.

Winters here are pretty wimpy compared to other northern cities I've lived in (Chicago/Omaha). The average January temperature in the DC metro area is 34 degrees, and the last big snow was in the winter of 2002/3. I like the climate here because you still get the four seasons, but you don't get the extreme bitter winters. This past winter was unusually cold, but very little snow fell. The growing season here is one to two months longer than it is in Chicago. I've actually seen mosquitoes outdoors in January during one particularly warm winter.