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I think dry heat really isn't that bad. Salt Lake City has dry heat and I've hiked in it numerous times with no issues. As soon as you go under a tree and get some shade, it doesn't feel that hot anymore. I think the combination of heat and humidity in NYC, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and D.C. is what's really unpleasant.
Let me just preemptively quote future WizardOfRadical:
"Minneapolis, for sure, dude. It's -95ºF for ten months of the year there and and 105ºF with 100% humidity for the other two. Worst place on Earth, brah! Seriously fake and lame people. So white and bland but crime-infested and ghetto at the same time. It's a pressure-cooked, ice-blasted rotisserie of despair. Truth hurts, sorry."
He'll then quote my post with a wink by saying something like "pretty much", or, "hey, you said it". Most predictable guy on City-Data.
It's not the mid-Atlantic. Coastal areas generally have more moderate temperatures because of the oceans nearby. The widest fluctuations -- hot, muggy summers and really cold, snowy winters -- are found in the interior of the country. I'd guess the worst of both worlds would be in parts of the Great Plains and the Upper Midwest.
i agree. i've never lived there, but having read about the weather on c-d for years, i'm glad that i don't.
NYC, Baltimore and Philly can be quite muggy but aren't persistently hot in the way that Houston or NOLA is. Muggy in NYC when it's 80 is a lot different than the same humidity when it's 98 degrees.
Worst weather is definitely in the interior of the country...where it can be unbearably hot in summer and extremely cold in winter without the moderating influence of an ocean.
What city or general region of the USA has the worst of both worlds when it comes to winter and summer? In other words, what city has terribly hot/muggy summers followed by bone chilling winters?
I think the mid-atlantic states have the worst of both worlds because the winters can get really windy and cold and the summers are hot and humid.
In particular, Philadelphia's weather seems pretty bad and so does the Baltimore/D.C. area.
I'm from the Philadelphia area and my fondest teenage memories are feeling the humidity on my steering wheel whenever I went for a summer drive and having my bangs stick onto my forehead. Lol
Thoughts?
With that logic, I'd say Boston is even worse. The Winters are colder/snowier and the Summers are comparable but in Philly/Baltimore Spring comes sooner and Fall lasts longer-two of many people's favorite seasons around here.
But "worst of both worlds" I'd think would be places like OKC, Chicago, KC, etc.
Admittedly the Upper Midwest is probably guilty of being victim to both high heat (high heat indices) and ice cold (temp and wind chills.....I wish they made a "cold index"). Obviously places further South/SE are going to be more miserably hot/humid, and places further North/NW are going to be much colder, but some cities seem to get the worst of both worlds. They'd include:
Chicago
Minneapolis
Detroit
Cleveland
Columbus
Denver
Des Moines/Omaha
KC/STL
Cities along the East Coast also have this phenomenon, but to a slightly lesser degree, especially with winter cold. There is, however, something to be said about a wet cold, which I feel can be just as bad or even worse than a dry cold like you get in the Plains/Midwest. In my very personal and independent opinion, I hate when winters are cold but not cold enough to enjoy outdoor winter recreation, so cities with cold rainy winters and hot humid summers (like Columbus, the Northeast, etc.) I find to truly be the worst of both worlds. Simiarly, cities like Seattle, Portland and SF are not cold enough in winter for outdoor recreation (snow/ice sports) and not hot enough during summer for some outdoor recreation (water sports, beach), which is one of the negatives of having very constant mild weather if you're used to 4 distinct/extreme seasons, like I am.
Personally I look forward to the extreme climates....just not the extreme temps (i.e. I like summers in the mid-80's and winters in the upper 20's/low 30's, but don't like 100 or -20).
NYC comes to mind. Hot summers, especially since you have to walk everywhere and also wait for trains in stations that don't have A/C.
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