AZ to Leesburg area...what are winters like??? (Alexandria: 2015, house)

[Dolce_Vita]

My husband and I are hoping to move from the blazing inferno of AZ to the Leesburg area. We are originally from the Midwest but haven't experienced a real winter in over 15 years! What is a typical winter like in the area as far as snowfall and temps.

[gemstone1]

Leesburg weather

Having moved from Yuma to SOVA last fall, I did not enjoy manning the snow shovel again, nor did I enjoy the 7 degree weather that we had, however, the spring and the fall tend to make up for the winter discomfort. And I must say, I am enjoying the 53 degree weather this morning....we can grow Mums again, go to up-pick farms again, enjoy a multitude of outdoor activity again !

Not sure yet what displaces the discomfort with the humidity....

Regards
Gemstone1

[mdcrim]

It can get very cold and it may or may not snow a lot, depending on the winter. That being said, just when you really begin to hate winter, spring comes.

[gomason]

Median snowfall for Dulles Airport (pretty much the same for Leesburg) is 16". Our average high in winter time is usually about 42-43.

I'm not sure if you heard, but there is a very strong El Nino this year. Luckily for you, that usually means temperatures are pretty mild on the east coast. Doubtful there will be many days like the last two years where we had -10 degree wind chills in the morning.

However, El Ninos also usually mean it's very stormy on the east coast. Some of our biggest blizzards happened in El Nino years. Of the five other winters where we had an El Nino as strong as this, we had three seasons with 30"+ of snow (1958, 1966, and 1983) and two seasons with almost no snow (1973 and 1998): https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...l-nino-events/.

[Fallout Zone]

Winters are hit and miss around here. I've been in my house for 6 winters and have received 69", 45", 28", 12", 12", and 3" of snow. Leesburg is generally a little bit snowier than where I am, but not hugely so. There will be cold stretches, but unless you have an oddball winter like the last two, they are generally quite short. It really isn't anything to be worried about.

[gomason]

Originally Posted by Fallout Zone

There will be cold stretches, but unless you have an oddball winter like the last two, they are generally quite short. It really isn't anything to be worried about.

Yeah, I should have added that February is by far the snowiest part of the winter around here. It's pretty cold in January but usually we don't get a lot of snow. December usually isn't bad at all.

[FCNova]

Winters here are pretty mild. As previously noted Jan-Feb are when it's the coldest, so only 2 months really. December and March tend to be very mild and often have the random 50-60 degree day thrown in. Spring and Fall are wonderful around here. Summers can be hot & humid.

[Sparky***]

I live in Ashburn which is a few miles from Leesburg. Winters can be hit or miss. In 2010 we had three major snow storms that piled the snow up to several feet. The following years (2011 - 2013) we barely got a trace. Mostly, we get two or three snow storms per winter with the snow levels ranging from 3-9 inches. Anything over 12 inches is unusual.

[TheseGoTo11]

Coming from Arizona, it will feel very cold. But still less of an adjustment than New England or the Midwest. Spring comes fairly quickly as others have pointed out.

Issue is the response. I grew up in Massachusetts, and no one there blinked if we got 5 inches. Here, that can be much more disruptive and cause a lot more problems.

[John7777]

I lived in Alexandria for six years. The winters were OK. It's not Arizona, but then again, it's not Minneapolis. You'll get some snow once in a while which will be sufficient to close down the whole metropolitan area. But most of the time, no snow. Just cold. And the cold isn't really all that cold. You'll be OK.