Whats the Lowdown on the Weather in Eugene? (Riverside: house, living in)

[chn21]

My husband and I are thinking about moving to the Eugene area-can anybody give us an idea of what the weather is like-honestly. We've heard its dark and gloomy for months straight-is this true???

[mamh]

Hi
Just read our oregon weather thread, we have a poster from Eugene and we are telling it like we see it on a daily basis.
NO it is not dark and gloomy for months on end ..We have wonderfulsummer weather and even today it was cold but the sun was out.
Don't believe everything you hear..

[Steve97415]

I think the degree of winter penalty depends on where you're coming from and what your expectations are. My nephew from the midwest thinks that winters in Eugene are pretty good. Coming from the southwest, I definitely experienced sunlight starvation from about mid-Nov. to around mid-April. Even after twelve years in the Willamette Valley, I would slide into a weather-induced depression for several months in winter. It is very sunny in summer, but it's a feast-and-famine scenario: wet, cloudy winters, dry sunny summers.

Some people are much more sensitive to light privation than others. Don't let other people tell you that "it's not a big deal" or "you'll get used to it" if you know that gloom gets you down. Really, if you suffer from SAD or sky-cover dysphoria, you shouldn't live north of the 35th parallel.

[haggardhouseelf]

It's been beautiful the past few days. Big bright blue skies and hardly any clouds and chilly - feels like Christmas.

You just never know with Oregon weather. And half the time the weatherman is wrong.

[chn21]

Thank you all for your replies-we currently live in a coastal town in Central/Northern California (~70 miles south of San Francisco) so we have our fair share of fog and drizzle but we also have plenty of sunny days through the fall and winter. We're planning a trip up the week of Christmas-hopefully we'll get a better feel for the weather at that time. Happy Holidays!

[sarahkate_m]

Eugene is in a valley. Hence, the skyscape changes by the minute/hour throughout the day. I love living in a valley!

The skies are heavenly blue here, most of the time - it peeks through the clouds almost every day. The downside to the weather is... IMO... low UV most of the year & pretty much on the cool to cold side most of the months - 75%?

I've been here since 2004. I'm a humble CA transplant who does have days where I miss the UV/warmth but not the heat of LA/SB/Riverside counties.

This is a WONDERFUL place to live if you have a job. The people are wonderful - only comparable to CA if you remember the '70's - which are LONG gone from CA. Anything you want is available, although not always right near by. Any terrain you want to enjoy is within 2 hours drive. I LOVE Oregon. I wish I'd grown up here instead of some LA inner city.

We have a thread where we check in & describe the weather for our Oregonian location here, if you want to see our "input" on a personal level: Today's Oregon Weather

[caitlinxrose]

I am also from the southern bay area (Santa Cruz County) and my husband and I moved here in the fall. So far I can say it has been cold (in comparison) but definitely not dark and dreary. There have been some gray days but the weather is quite changeable and on most cloudy days I have seen the sun come and go. I can't speak for the rest of the winter yet, but we are loving it here! If possible try to do a road trip up here (or fly, OR if you have the time the train is awesome and there is a station right downtown!) so you can see for yourself. Also you can check weather.com or other sites for the local weather here, area codes 97401 and 97402. Good luck!

[haggardhouseelf]

Broke out my flip-flops to run to the grocery store today - it's been so warm and nice yesterday and today! Whooo - boy do I need a pedicure!

[gmattie]

Tis true. I came from the northern midwest, hoping to escape the long winters. While it is much milder in Eugene, the rain can be difficult. Here's the deal. We are near the northern Pacific Ocean. Rain storms come rolling in at about Halloween. November and December are very rainy and very dark. It varies, but there are many rainy dark days. And I do mean dark! We are pretty far north on the map and our days are short in winter anyway. Add to that the fact that Pacific ocean rain clouds are almost black and thick and don't come with sun breaks. The rain is light and doesn't come in torrents with thunder like it does back east, but there can be almost constant rain. It is the darkness that is hard. The temperature is mild, highs in the forties on a bad day, and you usually don't need an umbrella because the rain is so light. However, there are days when I need to have the lights on in the house at noon. After weeks on end of it, well, it can be depressing.

That is the bad news. The good news is that by early February, breaks begin to occur. Two or three days with some sun in a week maybe, and in March a few more sunny days, and a few more in April. All the way through June, the number of sunny days increase and the number of rainy days decrease until by July the rain stops until October again. It doesn't really get hot here until July. The summer is beautiful and perfect almost every day.

Sometimes we get three days of real upper 90's heat, but not often. If you like springtime as a season, you will love it. Spring lasts from February until the end of June.

[Fiddlehead]

Originally Posted by gmattie

Tis true. I came from the northern midwest, hoping to escape the long winters. While it is much milder in Eugene, the rain can be difficult. Here's the deal. We are near the northern Pacific Ocean. Rain storms come rolling in at about Halloween. November and December are very rainy and very dark. It varies, but there are many rainy dark days. And I do mean dark! We are pretty far north on the map and our days are short in winter anyway. Add to that the fact that Pacific ocean rain clouds are almost black and thick and don't come with sun breaks. The rain is light and doesn't come in torrents with thunder like it does back east, but there can be almost constant rain. It is the darkness that is hard. The temperature is mild, highs in the forties on a bad day, and you usually don't need an umbrella because the rain is so light. However, there are days when I need to have the lights on in the house at noon. After weeks on end of it, well, it can be depressing.

That is the bad news. The good news is that by early February, breaks begin to occur. Two or three days with some sun in a week maybe, and in March a few more sunny days, and a few more in April. All the way through June, the number of sunny days increase and the number of rainy days decrease until by July the rain stops until October again. It doesn't really get hot here until July. The summer is beautiful and perfect almost every day.

Sometimes we get three days of real upper 90's heat, but not often. If you like springtime as a season, you will love it. Spring lasts from February until the end of June.

Great description gmattie!

I agree that winter arrives qearly here (late October) and peaks in December if you go by rain and darkness. Darkness, which is governed by latitude and cloudiness, is by far the worst part of winter here. Also Nov.-early January is the valley fog season in the valleys, and Eugene is pretty bad for that. Meaning even if it is not raining there is a good chance of being socked in all day with fog. There is very little sun except when a blue frost blows in from the east, like happened this year. Often it will stay below freezing for several days to a week with sunny days and cold, starry nights, which I love, but many Oregonians hate, and we might even get a good snow.

It is still plenty wet in spring, but after the first of the year the lengthening days, and gradual a shift to more showery weather make spring much more bearable for me. Also, plants start growing in February and spring just keeps gathering force. I know many people who complain that summer comes so late (late June/July), but I love our long, mild, and varied springs in W. Oregon.

I will agree with Steve97415 though, the climate of western Oregon is not for everyone.