- Last year I moved
out of New Jersey (north jersey, border with NY), which has basically unbearably tropical winters for me. Even the heavily advertised local blizzards (the "snowmageddons" in media) are just merely
Hot Blizzards (e.g. above 0'F)
- I moved
to Montana (north, just few hrs from Canadian border) and this place has much more acceptable winters (though, far from ideal - hence this thread to find out):
- We got down to -40'F one night
- Lots of sub -20'F nights
- Every few weeks we got below -30'F, and it stays few nights like that, which is awesome
- I noticed that walking by river clearly increases the windchill (compared to walking just between the houses), so that helps
- looks like the deep valley, where my village is located, helps a lot, as other nearby small villages are usually 10-15 degrees hotter
Please note, that those low night temperatures aren't just hypothetical for me, because:
- I work remotely and have the option to flip day with night, so I tend to be up between 6pm - 8am (e.g. when it's coldest)
- I walk my Husky 4-6 times a day (well, night, really), so there's no such thing as "inclement weather". If I feel lazy some day, 4 walks is still a bare minimum (get up (1x), go to sleep (1x), and twice in between).
- I tend to close my window at home only when it's below -20 out there, as my Husky just loves to just chill by the open window (not that I blame her), but -20F outside is where I draw the line (it becomes very hard for me to precisely type on keyboard!)
So, no "hibernating" during winter. Also, I can safely leave here in car when I go for day hikes in Glacier National park, since she won't overheat in a car, if it's -20. Can't do it for well over half a year, though, when it's above +40F - looks like threshold is around 35F (though, that's usually very hot for me to hike up the snowy mountain anyway, I find -17F (ideally with a soft breeze) a sweet hiking temperature for a full-day snow hike)
I figured, since the cold benefits us both, we love it, and spend so much time in it,
why not find us a nicer, colder place ?
Well, turns out it's actually not so easy. Every time a cold wave hit, I spent lots of time searching for those nice, isolated colder spots. I hit pages like usclimatedata.com and intellicast.com, comparing data for
February 2018
I started with the obvious ones, first:
-
Chicago: having spent couple winters in Chicago, those winters are definitely very mild compared to here
-
North Dakota: Fargo. Been there only once in winter, but combing through historical data usclimatedata.com proves that its winters are absolutely overrated and it's just a myth that Fargo's cold, as this February, only few nights were below -10F. Forget -30 or less...
-
Alaska: Anchorage. Few nights of -2F, and the majority around +20. Daytime range <+27, +41> which is literally like New jersey. WTF ?!?
-
Alaska: Fairbanks fares slightly better, but dips below -30 only once, so it's
meh
-
Minnesota Duluth was a major disappointment (though better than most of road-accessible Alaska), given how much bitc*ing I heard about its climate; I checked Duluth (as it was in media), but only 2 nights below -10F ? That's what gets you national fame ?
-
Minnesota: Minneapolis didn't even go once below -10, yet during day hovered within <+20, +47>. BTW, I walk my dog in T-shirt when it's +40, as it's
just right temperature for walking in T-shirt. That's how cold Minneapolis is ! +47 ? I wouldn't even go out that day, it'd be hot ...
Now, a
Prudhoe Bay, AK (gets well into <-50F, -60F> range: which must be awesome), would be great - but I can't expect to be able to drive my belongings there with a U-Haul trailer, now can I ? So, Prudhoe Bay is out.
Rogers Pass in Montana seems to get below -50F each winter, though I missed that last winter - I'm definitely getting winter tires this season. All-year ones are, uhm, suboptimal here (very fun driving (especially in blizzards), nonetheless!)
Can anybody recommend some places in U.S. that get at least below -40F, and ideally below -50F each winter ? I'm currently 50 miles from nearest bigger city, but would be willing to compromise to further distances (though, probably, still want to be at most 200 miles far).
The happiness my Husky was experiencing at -40F is, well - beyond words - she was like turbocharged - she even turned around and gave me this "WTF Look" when we stepped out. We spent only an hour out there, as I had a lot of work that night, and I regret it deeply, as I haven't seen her so over-excited ( I swear she spent more time in the air, than on the ground - that's how much she just kept jumping like on a trampoline) out there before or after.
The real winter magic simply starts below -40 F...
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