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The snowiest cities and their people generally handle cold and snow management better than cities that do not regularly get much snow. The snow cities also rarely get ice storms, rarely have power failures, etc. Roads are kept clear and salted, tire chains are also illegal for use in the city. Airports stay open. Schools stay open.
In my city a foot of snow is an annoyance, but generally it is business as usual. The areas south of my city normally receive twice as much snow as the city itself, and again it is usually business as usual. I would call places that deal with it well "the best."
Pretty much what this poster said. Generally, the more snow an area receives, the better at snow removal it is. Obviously there are exceptions to this but with more snowfall means more resources usually such as plows, drivers, etc.
Salt Lake City might be an option. We get a fair amount of snow -- about 5 feet over an entire winter. That sounds like a lot, but averaged out over five months, it's not all that bad. We have superb snow-removal crews so driving generally isn't super problematic. (The mountain resorts just a half an hour east of the city, on the other hand, get 43 feet a year.) The one plus to our winters is that our humidity is so low that the temperatures don't feel quite as cold as in some midwestern or northeastern cities.
If we're going by million plus metros and average snowfall I'd also add Rochester, Grand Rapids and Denver. Both average at least 60 inches which would be more than all but the first two cities you listed. Also both seem to have plenty of winter events.
Cleveland's snowfall is measured at it's west side airport. Go to the east side and you're over 100 inches average in some places - like Chardon. In 1996, one storm dumped over 60 inches. I remember, power was out for 5 days.
Cleveland's snowfall is measured at it's west side airport. Go to the east side and you're over 100 inches average in some places - like Chardon. In 1996, one storm dumped over 60 inches. I remember, power was out for 5 days.
Yes lake effect snow can be crazy. Rochester and Grand Rapids would be similar to Cleveland in this regard. I know Grand Rapids' snowfall is measured at the airport which is east of the city. Cities closer to the Lake Michigan shore can average close to 100 inches (Muskegon averages around 95 if i recall correctly). All these cities do a great job of removing snowfall.
The twin cities aren't overly snowy, they are actually too cold that the air lacks the moisture necessary to make big snowfalls.
That said, the snow stays around until April. But the winter there is generally gray, super cold, and dark at 4:30pm in January. Winter is celebrated there, insomuch as one can embrace a necessary downer. The cities has great plows, skyways downtown, a giant mall, and plenty of ways to make the most of it
Winter carnival
Hollidazzle
Eel pout festival
Curling
Pond hockey tournament on lake nakomis
Ice bars
Ice fishing
Thank you for the replies! Yes it does make sense that the more snow a city gets the faster its cleaned up. They're expecting it therefore prepared with equipment and crews.
I agree with Massachoicetts in that Syracuse and Buffalo are really tough, because they get a ton of lake effect snow and it is usually the wet, heavy and icey stuff. The cities up there are prepared for the snow, however.
For people that love snow and want to best enjoy it, Denver is one of the "easiest," or just best places for that. It will dump a bunch of snow that is powdery and easy to clear off the car, there is very little ice, and the next day it will be 60 degrees and sunny. On those days, head up to the ski slopes (where it is admittedly colder, but still nice and sunny) and enjoy the perfect skiing conditions: sunny with powdery snow!
This, especially the last sentence. The infrastructure is in place to remove the snow and life generally goes on as usual. Yes, there are festivals and just within minutes of Syracuse, there are several ski areas. There is outdoor and indoor ice skating, as well as other activities that people can do as well.
Also, what people may not know is that winters can also have temperature variation. For instance, it was 70 degrees literally a week ago in Syracuse and there are period with no snow on the ground during the winter.
Best/Worst in what way? I'm going to assume you mean snow cover that's consistent throughout the winter, in which case here's ten with winter snowpack vs. ten with mostly snowless winters...
10 best:
--Anchorage. This one is a no brainer.
--Minneapolis/St. Paul. Another no brainer.
--Fargo. No brainer once again.
--Buffalo. Lake-effect snow haven.
--Chicago. Noted among us Southerners for its cold winters.
--Burlington. Good if you want a non-major city that's still not small; also good if you prefer humid cold over dry cold.
--Missoula. Same as Burlington but for those who prefer a dr(y/ier) cold.
--Boise. Good if you want heavy snow but the snow cover gets interrupted off and on. Dr(y/ier) cold. Needle Palm can still grow here with some effort, for those of you who want palms and snow to mix.
--Charleston, WV. Same as Boise but not a major city. Humid cold. Needle Palm can still grow here with some effort, for those of you who want palms and snow to mix.
--Milwaukee. By far the second-largest city on this list (behind Chicago).
--Very close call: Detroit. I nearly put this on the list instead of Boise, but I refrained because it's outside the bands of lake-effect snow the area is known for and not as deep into the continental climate zone as Chicago and Milwaukee. The snowpack here is generally thin.
10 worst (excluding those that don't get snow in most years):
--Seattle/Tacoma. Don't let its northern location fool you; the winters are mostly snowless despite some falling/sticking at some point in most winters. Chinese Windmill and Chilean Wine Palms won't grow and thrive for no reason.
--Portland, OR. Don't let its northern location fool you; the winters are mostly snowless despite some falling/sticking at some point in most winters. Chinese Windmill and Chilean Wine Palms won't grow and thrive for no reason.
--Dallas/Fort Worth. Not only are its winters mostly snowless, 30% of winters don't even have any snow!
--Atlanta. Its winters are about as warm as Dallas but less volatile.
--Memphis. Like every city already mentioned, it has average lows above freezing in all months.
--Oklahoma City/Norman. Not only are its winters very mild, there are also still native Live Oak (two species) and Dwarf Palmettos in some parts of this state. One of those two Live Oak species and some hardy palms thrive in OKC itself too. At the northern periphery of Trewartha's Cf subtropical definition (which corresponds better with North American ecology than Koppen's Cfa).
--Nashville/Murfreesboro. Subtropical plants don't thrive here for no reason! Although snow occurs almost every year, only a single winter on record has had a sub-32F mean (and even that was still over 31F), and the snow is never deep, amounts to less than an inch worth of liquid precipitation and doesn't happen often enough to not be disruptive when it does. At the northern periphery of Trewartha's Cf subtropical definition (which corresponds better with North American ecology than Koppen's Cfa).
--Charlotte. Once again not a good snow city despite getting slightly subfreezing winter lows and snow at some point in most years.
--Columbia. Once again not a good snow city despite getting slightly subfreezing winter lows and snow at some point in most years.
--Hampton Roads region (especially Virginia Beach). Basically the coastal, blue-state, hurricane-prone equivalent of Memphis or Atlanta. At the northern periphery of Trewartha's Cf subtropical definition (which corresponds better with North American ecology than Koppen's Cfa).
--Very close call: St. George. Known among Utah for its warmer weather. I was going to put this instead of Virginia Beach until I remembered St. George is close to snowy mountains, while Virginia Beach snow vacations wouldn't be easy with the Appalachia some distance away and Northeast Megalopolis probably horridly traffic-congested.
Last edited by Sun Belt-lover L.A.M.; 01-20-2020 at 06:41 PM..
Best/Worst in what way? I'm going to assume you mean snow cover that's consistent throughout the winter, in which case here's ten with winter snowpack vs. ten with mostly snowless winters...
10 best:
--Anchorage. This one is a no brainer.
--Minneapolis/St. Paul. Another no brainer.
--Fargo. No brainer once again.
--Buffalo. Lake-effect snow haven.
--Chicago. Noted among us Southerners for its cold winters.
--Burlington. Good if you want a non-major city that's still not small; also good if you prefer humid cold over dry cold.
--Missoula. Same as Burlington but for those who prefer a dr(y/ier) cold.
--Boise. Good if you want heavy snow but the snow cover gets interrupted off and on. Dr(y/ier) cold. Needle Palm can still grow here with some effort, for those of you who want palms and snow to mix.
--Charleston, WV. Same as Boise but not a major city. Humid cold. Needle Palm can still grow here with some effort, for those of you who want palms and snow to mix.
--Milwaukee. By far the second-largest city on this list (behind Chicago).
--Very close call: Detroit. I nearly put this on the list instead of Boise, but I refrained because it's outside the bands of lake-effect snow the area is known for and not as deep into the continental climate zone as Chicago and Milwaukee. The snowpack here is generally thin.
10 worst (excluding those that don't get snow in most years):
--Seattle/Tacoma. Don't let its northern location fool you; the winters are mostly snowless despite some falling/sticking at some point in most winters. Chinese Windmill and Chilean Wine Palms won't grow and thrive for no reason.
--Portland, OR. Don't let its northern location fool you; the winters are mostly snowless despite some falling/sticking at some point in most winters. Chinese Windmill and Chilean Wine Palms won't grow and thrive for no reason.
--Dallas/Fort Worth. Not only are its winters mostly snowless, 30% of winters don't even have any snow!
--Atlanta. Its winters are about as warm as Dallas but less volatile.
--Memphis. Like every city already mentioned, it has average lows above freezing in all months.
--Oklahoma City/Norman. Not only are its winters very mild, there are also still native Live Oak (two species) and Dwarf Palmettos in some parts of this state. One of those two Live Oak species and some hardy palms thrive in OKC itself too. At the northern periphery of Trewartha's Cf subtropical definition (which corresponds better with North American ecology than Koppen's Cfa).
--Nashville/Murfreesboro. Subtropical plants don't thrive here for no reason! Although snow occurs almost every year, only a single winter on record has had a sub-32F mean (and even that was still over 31F), and the snow is never deep, amounts to less than an inch worth of liquid precipitation and doesn't happen often enough to not be disruptive when it does. At the northern periphery of Trewartha's Cf subtropical definition (which corresponds better with North American ecology than Koppen's Cfa).
--Charlotte. Once again not a good snow city despite getting slightly subfreezing winter lows and snow at some point in most years.
--Columbia. Once again not a good snow city despite getting slightly subfreezing winter lows and snow at some point in most years.
--Hampton Roads region (especially Virginia Beach). Basically the coastal, blue-state, hurricane-prone equivalent of Memphis or Atlanta. At the northern periphery of Trewartha's Cf subtropical definition (which corresponds better with North American ecology than Koppen's Cfa).
--Very close call: St. George. Known among Utah for its warmer weather. I was going to put this instead of Virginia Beach until I remembered St. George is close to snowy mountains, while Virginia Beach snow vacations wouldn't be easy with the Appalachia some distance away and Northeast Megalopolis probably horridly traffic-congested.
Oswego NY (Or Syracuse) with continuous snow from Oct - May, sith 150-inch accumulations.
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