The truth about the Islands weather??

[ukiyo-e]

I live in Port Townsend. We get only 19" of rain a year, 1" more on average than Sequim. But it can be very damp and cloudy in the winter, which I personally don't mind, as I grew up in a snowy climate. The overcast doesn't bother me as much as a lot of rain or regular snow would. My first two winters here we had a couple inches of snow two or three times by the end of December, but this year we've only had frost twice.

It takes about 45 minutes from my house near the Straight to get to Sequim or Silverdale if I need a mall or big box store, but at least I don't have to deal with a ferry to get to either place. I love the San Juans, but being dependent on the (expensive) ferry to get to the mainland would be a deal breaker for me.

[HonuMan]

Some things you weren't clear about are whether you mind wet, gray weather, whether Chicago's cold, snowy winters are the bigger turn-off, and how you feel about hot weather. On the western side of the PNW, you'll rarely encounter extreme cold or heat, and there's very little snow at the lower elevations. Even with all the microclimates and the rain-shadow effect, though, no place will make you think that you're living in Southern California, except for the two or three glorious summer months. There were a couple of threads late last fall about the weather in Sequim and the San Juan Islands that you should search for. The bottom line is that if you crave lots of warmth and sunshine, then the PNW probably isn't the best place for you. Of course, sunnier climates in the US usually come with hot, brutal summers (the SE and SW), greater temperature extremes in summer and winter (the interior), or high cost of living (Southern California and Hawaii). I love the PNW, having moved to Seattle and, later, to Portland from Atlanta, but it took me a while first to tolerate and then to actively enjoy the rain and the gray.

The area you're considering is gorgeous. I've been there several times, most recently last September. The San Juan Islands area is one of my favorite places in the world, and my wife and I toyed with the idea of retiring on Orcas Island, which is magical. As the residents we talked with, though, told us that it takes a willingness to deal with the lack of amenities and the expense and inconvenience of having to take a ferry to get to the mainland. Living on the mainland is more practical for most people. I like Bellingham but have only visited. Seattle, of course, is a major city, and it has the pluses and minuses of a major city, and I love it, but I settled in Portland because it's a small city that has all the cosmopolitan amenities I need but without the drawbacks of a really big city. Day-to-day life is easier and less stressful in Portland, but people who need big-city energy find it boring compared to Seattle.