Just how rainy is Hilo? (2015, neighborhood, schools)

[hotzcatz]

Hilo is more expensive than nearby Puna, so more folks end up there than in Hilo itself.

Generally, folks go to the Big Island because they can't afford Oahu or Maui. They'd go to Kauai as well, although it's more expensive and is much smaller than Hawaii island.

So, by reason of available economic choices, folks end up on Hawaii island. Once they've chosen the island, there is then the choice between the more expensive Kona district to the less expensive Hilo side of the island. So, they end up in Hilo and given the even more inexpensive Puna next door, a lot of them end up there.

[Irish Eyes_Mrs. Z]

I love the BI because of its variety and size (I suspect I might get a bit of Island Fever on the smaller islands). I prefer the Puna area because that's where the jungle is (my husband feels the same way), and I love wildness of it. I prefer the windward/jungle side because of its more moderate climate compared to the dry side. Being able to find a decent place in the Puna district is definitely a bonus, along with the fact that the area neighborhoods often don't seem to have as restrictive, or any, CC&Rs/HOAs--something both of us hate. I want to be able to keep our dogs and parrots w/out being hassled about it. We can get more house/property for the money than we can on the west side, even though we could probably find a fairly decent house on the leeward side if that's where we wanted to be.

[HPP_Since_79]

Originally Posted by Blind Cleric

Maybe Hilo's growth is confined by its boundaries, I don't know.

This is accurate, there is effectively no parts of 'Hilo' left to accommodate expanding population, since the 90's really, the massive growth in Puna IS essentially the expansion of Hilo as its 'bedroom community'.

[terracore]

It depends on what you are used to. Wiki says:

Hilo features a tropical rainforest climate (Koppen Af), with substantial rainfall throughout the course of the year. Hilo's location on the eastern side of the island of Hawaiʻi, (windward relative to the trade winds), makes it the third wettest designated city in the United States behind the southeast Alaskan cities of Ketchikan and Yakutat and one of the wettest in the world.

The stats say that Hilo gets 130 inches of precipitation per year, Ketchikan Alaska can get over 200 inches. That being said, "it depends on what you are used to". I lived through 14 years of the SE Alaska rain, Hilo is much preferable. For one, in Hawaii when it rains, its like the heavens open up and a flood falls from the sky. Some people say thats the worst part of the rain, but it isn't. Would you rather get 7 inches of rain over a 24 hour period and be more or less done with it until the next dump, or have the 7 inches start on April 7th and end on May 1st, with absolutely no break in between? (and then start again on May 3rd and continue for another 30-60 days, non-stop, without ever getting a break? Would you rather get your rain at tropical temperatures, or just above freezing? And of course, you don't have to shovel rain. For at least 4 months out of the year the SE Alaska precipitation falls as snow, which has to be moved around, is dangerous to drive in, and causes lots of injuries, can collapse roofs, etc. After experiencing both, Hilo rain is a walk in the park. Wet walk in the park. But yes, there are plenty of sun breaks to enjoy. And besides, if you get sick of it, you can drive for 2 hours and be in the hot dry sun again.

Here's some info for comparison. You might know some place near one of these locations:

Mobile, Ala.: 67 inches average annual rainfall; 59 average annual rainy days
Pensacola, Fla.: 65 inches average annual rainfall; 56 average annual rainy days
New Orleans, La.: 64 inches average annual rainfall; 59 average annual rainy days
West Palm Beach, Fla.: 63 inches average annual rainfall; 58 average annual rainy days
Lafayette, La.: 62 inches average annual rainfall; 55 average annual rainy days
Baton Rouge, La.: 62 inches average annual rainfall; 56 average annual rainy days
Miami, Fla.: 62 inches average annual rainfall; 57 average annual rainy days
Port Arthur, Texas: 61 inches average annual rainfall; 51 average annual rainy days
Tallahassee, Fla.: 61 inches average annual rainfall; 56 average annual rainy days
Lake Charles, La.: 58 inches average annual rainfall; 50 average annual rainy days

If that wasn't too much information, Hilo isn't the wettest part of the Big Island. As you go up in elevation you can go up in rainfall. More info:

RAINFALL – If the islands of the State of Hawaii did not exist, the average annual rainfall upon the water where the islands actually lie would be about 25 inches. Instead, the actual average is about 70 inches. Thus the islands extract from the air that passes across them about 45 inches of rainfall that otherwise would not fall. That the mountains are dominantly responsible for this added water bonus is evident from annual rainfall maps, which show the tremendous amounts of rainfall deposited in mountainous areas in the average year. In many mountainous areas of the State these depths exceed 240 inches, or 20 feet. At Mt. Waialeale, on Kauai, the annual average reaches the extraordinary total of 486 inches – over 40 feet. This is the highest recorded annual average in the world.

Here's a rainfall map that may help:



What's that you say? Still not enough information? Well I'm here to help:

Number of Sunny Days

In the table below, the average number of Sunny Days for a city in Hawaii is the total days in a year when the sky is mostly clear. This includes the days when cloud covers up to 30% of the sky during daylight hours. Partly Sunny Days have cloud covering from 40% to 70% of the sky during the daytime. The rest of the days are mainly overcast, with at least 80% cloud cover. Total Days With Sun is a sum of the Sunny plus Partly Sunny days. All the numbers are annual averages, made from years of weather watching.

City............... Sunny Days.......Partly Sunny Days....Total Days With Sun
Hilo...................36......................... 132............................168................ .(168 by comparison to 86 with Yakutat, Alaska)
Honolulu............90.........................181 ............................271
Kahului, Maui......131.......................145........... .................276
Lihue, Kauai........56........................184........ ....................240

Enough info... No?

Amount of Sun
Here's another way to look at how much sunshine a city gets. The % Sun number measures the percentage of time between sunrise and sunset that sunshine reaches the ground. Again, these amounts are yearly averages based on many years of weather observations.

Percent sunshine yearly

Hilo...............41%
Honolulu........71%
Kahului......... 67%
Lihue.............59%

So to summarize, it depends on what you are used to. If you are used to Arizona, Hilo will be wet as heck. If you are used to SE Alaska, you'll get almost 100 more days of sun, 30 less inches of rain, and 200 less inches of snow in Hilo.

[hi207408]

And take notice that upper Hilo will get more rain than lower Hilo.

Often it is Sunny on the coast and raining at the college.

[Ofthesea123]

Thank you again, we live in Buffalo NY so rain isn't an issue here...it's the snow! I don't mind passing rain showers, just prefer not to have daily soakers that would prevent us from getting out.

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

I don't live in Hilo, but I do visit at least once a month and spend several hours shopping and running errands. 90% of the time it is not raining there, although it seems like it is always raining in Volcano Village and the town of Mountain View.

[hotzcatz]

Today it was raining in Honokaa and Waimea but as soon as we got past Waimea, no more rain. Not much vog today, either. It's kinda amazing how many different climates you can drive through in an hour.

[smarino]

Last time I looked, it was still the rainiest town in America. It varies from year to year (from a whole lot, to more), and when the VOG sets in you'll be grateful for the rain. It's one of the reasons why some people have a hard time living there. I got used to it, and for sure there's places on the B.I. where it rains even more, but it will be an adjustment if we move back from Florida. One year it rained for 3 weeks straight in Hilo, that I do remember. Night and day too. There's a reason why there's so much greenery on the Hilo side of the island.

Mold can be an issue if you have health issues, and mildew will get on things unless you stay on top of it. People will say that it mostly rains at night, but don't count on that. When Hilo would get a front move in and the clouds couldn't get over the mountains, it would stay locked in for quite a while.

My problem w/ the rain is that it hindered a lot of what I would do. Biking meant always carrying a small bag w/ a towel and dry clothes because you can't really get around in a rain coat in the humidity. Better to just get wet, then change when you got to your destination. As I said, the rain bothers some people more than others, so the only way to find out is to go. Sunny or not, I could never live on the Kona side for a lot of reasons.

[Arktikos]

Originally Posted by smarino

Last time I looked, it was still the rainiest town in America..

Nope, that would be Ketchikan, AK. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketchikan,_Alaska

Though not very large, it's a prominent location and Alaska fifth biggest town.

There are a few small communities in coastal Alaska locales that are also wetter, but the same can be said for a few communities in Hawaii.