I NEED cool summer and flat streets small town (Milwaukee: neighborhoods, live)

[lolliedotcom]

Hello, I'm an avid single-speed bicycle rider and I can't stand heat. So I'm planning on spending all my future summers in Wisconsin and I need to find a small town with mostly flat ground, quiet streets, and the mildest summers in the state.

What communities do you suggest?

Thank you so much for your help.

Lollie

[lolliedotcom]

Wow, looks like I've asked a really tough question! I also wrote and asked this of a friend of mine who lives in Wisconsin. He didn't have much of an answer either. He said I need a topographical map. Are there topographical maps of each individual community in Wisconsin? And if so, where would I find them?

[escapetacoma]

Originally Posted by lolliedotcom

Wow, looks like I've asked a really tough question! I also wrote and asked this of a friend of mine who lives in Wisconsin. He didn't have much of an answer either. He said I need a topographical map. Are there topographical maps of each individual community in Wisconsin? And if so, where would I find them?

Actually the flat side is fairly easy - most of eastern Wisconsin is pretty flat (less Door County). How flat it is relative to your expectations is another issue but I wouldn't hesitate to use a single speed (or fixed gear) around here.

Cool? What do you mean by cool? Not trying to be sarcastic here - our summer was pretty cool compared to what my SoCal coworkers expect but pretty toasty compared to what I was used to in western Washington.

If you take a look at:
Historical Climate Summaries
you can get a feel for the topography of the state. It's also a source for climate data.

[BacktoNE]

You won't have any problems finding flat streets almost anywhere in eastern WI. As for cool summers, unless you are directly on the water, it gets stifling hot here. Not as bad as the southeastern US of course, but still far worse than what I'm used to being from the northeast.

[ekg56]

I don't know if any part of the state is considered cool in summer. I know anything along Lake Superior stays cooler. Lots of small towns up that way too.

[GraniteStater]

The counties that would have the coolest summer temperatures would be those near Lake Superior and the northwoods areas. Some counties that would likely have the coldest climate would be Superior, Ashland, Bayfield, Vilas, Oneida, Forest, Sawyer, etc.
Lows in the summer in those areas are commonly in the 40s and 50s. Most of these counties have relatively flat terrain with a lot of woods and lakes.

[Milwaukee Ronnie]

If you stay right next to Lake Michigan in the summer it can remain pretty cool even while the rest of the State gets hot. And I'm talking right next to Lake Michigan. Sometimes there will can be 10-15 degree difference between Milwaukee's west side and and the lakeshore neighborhoods. There have been times the difference is so stark you can actually feel the air cool when you cross a particular block.

So, you could think about a small lakeside town like Cleveland (a small town right on Lake Michigan north of Sheboygan), Kaukauna or someplace in Door County. Sheboygan and Manitowoc are two larger towns (50,000+) along the Lake Michigan shoreline north of Milwaukee.

[golfgal]

A majority of the summer it is in the upper 80-s and low 90's in the upper Midwest and usually very humid. The VERY northern parts of Wisconsin and MN are going to be closer to the lower 80's on average in the summer.