Winter in NoVa (neighborhood, school, living)

[Nancy in Nokomis]

Being from up North - I would say the winters are extremely mild - 3 inches of snow and the schools close and people go nuts - lots of ice - snow does not last long - I have boxes full of sweaters and coats I cant use because it never gets cold enough. It all depends on where you are coming from.

[Mike From NIU]

Having moved from North Central IL, I will have no problems handling the cold or snow (believe me, 20s is nothing when you've waited outside for a bus for 20 minutes on a day when the high is supposed to be -2).

However, does the Fed Govt. normally close on days with 2-4 inches of snow, or does it just open late? How much snow does it take for the govt. to close/delay its opening or commuter buses to go to reduced schedules? Do counties in NoVA actually have plows, or is it slippery until melted?

[goozer]

Originally Posted by barryhussein

I was pumping gas at the corner of 236 and Backlick Rd. in 1980, before the electronic credit approval. One February day, my ballpoint pen froze solid. You really couldn't have any skin exposed.

Unfortuntely, thanks to the increasingly debilitating climate change, these sorts of days happen with much less regularity now than they did thirty years ago.

I have lived in Boston, NoVa, and Atlanta. As other posters noted, NoVa does not get much snow. Some years it gets none or a dusting. Maybe every three years it gets a good 6-10 inches at one time with a couple of 1-3 inch accumulations during other parts of the winter. Every two decades you might get a blizzard that dumps two feet of snow, but that is unusual. As for temperatures, it is relatively mild. It has almost as many days with 45+ mid-day temps as it does below 30 mid-day temps. As for sun, I find that it is much more like Boston than Atlanta in this department. Atlanta winters had many sunny days (often with temps at 55-60). Boston seemed pretty grey. I think NoVa is pretty gray in the winter too. Overall, it is a MUCH better and more mild winter than what you get in New England, but you definitely FEEL the season.

[novahousehunter]

Totally depends on where you're from. I grew up in Vermont, then moved to Chicago, so I think it's mild, but understand where southerners are coming from.

There are some sunny, bright cold days, some horrible cold rain days.

Worst aspects in my opinion are the mixed precip (a lot of right-around-freezing days/nights have rain and snow mixing) which are terrible for being outside or for driving. And just the driving in general. Because of our congested traffic and generally snow-free climate, when it does snow, expect half of the overcrowded road to be driving 15 mph with flashers and the other half re-enacting an SUV commercial swerving around them. You really don't have the space around you to drive safely in poor conditions.

Still, coming from the land of 6 month winters I love it!

[Mike From NIU]

Originally Posted by novahousehunter

Totally depends on where you're from. I grew up in Vermont, then moved to Chicago, so I think it's mild, but understand where southerners are coming from.

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Still, coming from the land of 6 month winters I love it!

I know what you mean. When we came out in mid-March, our real estate agent was apologetic because it the trees didn't have full leaves on them and only some flowers were in bloom. We thought it looked beautiful, because we hadn't even seen the grass in our yard for 3 months due to the snow, and the trees wouldn't have significant foliage for another 6 weeks!

I grew up in GA, but after the last 11 winters in Illinois, I can definitely declare that a little cold weather won't phase me. Of course, I remember how GA shut down at the slightest hint of snow, so I'm intrigued where in the middle NoVA and DC will fall.

[KeyserSoze]

Same thing here. Slightest hint of snow, and the stores are packed and it takes what seems forever to get home.

[Flamingo13]

My very first winter after I moved here from Pittsburgh - we got a "BIG ONE" - 27" of snow (I was supposed to start a new job the next day, LOL) - I kinda think we're due for another big one - we'll see.

[diertac]

Flamingo was that 1993? Or 2003?

[tgbwc]

Originally Posted by Flamingo13

My very first winter after I moved here from Pittsburgh - we got a "BIG ONE" - 27" of snow (I was supposed to start a new job the next day, LOL) - I kinda think we're due for another big one - we'll see.

Oh please! Wouldn't that be great!?! I hope you are right! I think it was 1996, about one week after Christmas, that we had a big snow of about 3 feet over a weekend. Schools closed on Monday and announced on Tuesday that they would be closed through Friday.
I moved here from NE Ohio in 1993 and would love to have at least one big snow this winter. Compred to NE Ohio, we get many more sunny winter days here. At least here, on a cold day, the sun warms up my car.

[Flamingo13]

Originally Posted by diertac

Flamingo was that 1993? Or 2003?

'83 - I lived in Reston (it was like President's Day or something) - we got bombed.