What is the weather like here? (Portland: house, school, live in)

[MrTomJones]

I grew up in the midwest. Just moved to the Portland area and noticed essentially endless sunny dry days. Maybe 3 days of significant rain in the 2 months I've been here. It got me wondering what weather can be like here.

I know in the midwest, back when I was in school I can distinctly recall there being many rainy and overcast days around back to school time, September/October. Does that happen here? What months tend to be the rainiest/cloudiest and what are the rain storms like? I've heard that severe thunderstorms are EXCEPTIONALLY rare here, which is extremely different to me, all the other places I've lived for extended times had lots and lots of severe storms in the spring.

And what about winter? Just cool and wet essentially? Where I came from stretches of -20 without windchill for a week or two were quite expected in January and even sometimes in the February. I know that doesn't really happen.

So what's it all like?

[patches403]

Originally Posted by MrTomJones

I grew up in the midwest. Just moved to the Portland area and noticed essentially endless sunny dry days. Maybe 3 days of significant rain in the 2 months I've been here. It got me wondering what weather can be like here.

I know in the midwest, back when I was in school I can distinctly recall there being many rainy and overcast days around back to school time, September/October. Does that happen here? What months tend to be the rainiest/cloudiest and what are the rain storms like? I've heard that severe thunderstorms are EXCEPTIONALLY rare here, which is extremely different to me, all the other places I've lived for extended times had lots and lots of severe storms in the spring.

And what about winter? Just cool and wet essentially? Where I came from stretches of -20 without windchill for a week or two were quite expected in January and even sometimes in the February. I know that doesn't really happen.

So what's it all like?

Out of curiosity, why would you move somewhere without first finding out what the year-round weather is like?

FYI, enjoy the sunny dry days while they last. Come sometime around November 1, the clouds, rain and grey will arrive and last for 5 or 6 months.

July - September is mostly sunny with little rain.

October can be sunny and in the 60s, but temps cooler and clouds/rain is more frequent.

November - February. Rainy season for sure. Rain can sometimes be heavy but is usually more of a constant light drizzle that can seem to last for weeks on end. Highs usually in the 40s, lows usually in the high 30s - 40s. Will often feel colder than it actually is due to the humidity. The sun will rarely make an appearance. Freezing temperatures as low as the high teens not as common but do occur multiple times a winter. Snow is not common on the valley floor but usually falls once or twice a year in small amounts. Hasn't been below zero once in the 20ish years I've lived here. Lowest temperature I've ever experienced here was around 10 degrees but that cold is rare. Usually not that windy, but how windy it will be depends on what part of the metro area you live in. We typically get a handful of significant wind/rain storms that cause some damage and flooding every winter.

March - April. Still rainy and cloudy the vast majority of the time, but temperatures warm up into the 50s during the day regularly. If we get a thunderstorm, it almost always seems to occur between March and May.

May - June. Still cloudy more often than not, but less rain, temperatures warm into the 60s most days and the sun comes out more often.

In summary, very little extreme weather which I consider to be a good thing. What drives most people crazy and causes some of them to eventually move away are the long, grey, wet, humid winters.

[KJoe11]

Originally Posted by MrTomJones

I grew up in the midwest. Just moved to the Portland area and noticed essentially endless sunny dry days. Maybe 3 days of significant rain in the 2 months I've been here. It got me wondering what weather can be like here.

I know in the midwest, back when I was in school I can distinctly recall there being many rainy and overcast days around back to school time, September/October. Does that happen here? What months tend to be the rainiest/cloudiest and what are the rain storms like? I've heard that severe thunderstorms are EXCEPTIONALLY rare here, which is extremely different to me, all the other places I've lived for extended times had lots and lots of severe storms in the spring.

And what about winter? Just cool and wet essentially? Where I came from stretches of -20 without windchill for a week or two were quite expected in January and even sometimes in the February. I know that doesn't really happen.

So what's it all like?

First, pack away your winter coat as you won't be needing it in the metro area. If you go the gym you can wear your shorts to get to/from your car without worrying about freezing. Thunderstorms are rare and when they do occur they are not remotely like the house rattlers you sometimes get in the midwest.

Midwest spring and fall are beautiful in which the NW cannot match. But overall, the NW'S weather is one of the best in the country.

[Nell Plotts]

Hush your mouth!!!

[jribe]

Originally Posted by patches403

Out of curiosity, why would you move somewhere without first finding out what the year-round weather is like?

FYI, enjoy the sunny dry days while they last. Come sometime around November 1, the clouds, rain and grey will arrive and last for 5 or 6 months.

July - September is mostly sunny with little rain.

October can be sunny and in the 60s, but temps cooler and clouds/rain is more frequent.

November - February. Rainy season for sure. Rain can sometimes be heavy but is usually more of a constant light drizzle that can seem to last for weeks on end. Highs usually in the 40s, lows usually in the high 30s - 40s. Will often feel colder than it actually is due to the humidity. The sun will rarely make an appearance. Freezing temperatures as low as the high teens not as common but do occur multiple times a winter. Snow is not common on the valley floor but usually falls once or twice a year in small amounts. Hasn't been below zero once in the 20ish years I've lived here. Lowest temperature I've ever experienced here was around 10 degrees but that cold is rare. Usually not that windy, but how windy it will be depends on what part of the metro area you live in. We typically get a handful of significant wind/rain storms that cause some damage and flooding every winter.

March - April. Still rainy and cloudy the vast majority of the time, but temperatures warm up into the 50s during the day regularly. If we get a thunderstorm, it almost always seems to occur between March and May.

May - June. Still cloudy more often than not, but less rain, temperatures warm into the 60s most days and the sun comes out more often.

In summary, very little extreme weather which I consider to be a good thing. What drives most people crazy and causes some of them to eventually move away are the long, grey, wet, humid winters.

well i moved here in March and have found the weather to be excellent so far.. There were a couple of cloudy days w/a small amount of rain in March/April of this year but once it was late April it's been amazing. Besides these weird 95+ days in July/August which i also hear is uncommon but most are saying this type of weather will become more the norm for the PNW with climate change.. I've lived in the midwest as well and i'm glad to be done with the freezing winters and humid summers; but for the 5 years i lived there i noticed it getting worse each year.

[Yankeemama]

Thus summer has been the coolest since I moved here almost seven years ago. This summer had a mix of cool mornings and sunny, hot days and nights that cooled off unlike last year.

[patches403]

Originally Posted by jribe

well i moved here in March and have found the weather to be excellent so far.. There were a couple of cloudy days w/a small amount of rain in March/April of this year but once it was late April it's been amazing. Besides these weird 95+ days in July/August which i also hear is uncommon but most are saying this type of weather will become more the norm for the PNW with climate change.. I've lived in the midwest as well and i'm glad to be done with the freezing winters and humid summers; but for the 5 years i lived there i noticed it getting worse each year.

95+ days are not that uncommon in July/August - they happen just about every year. As an FYI, this past Spring was warmer and dryer than normal so don't expect Spring weather like that every year.

Originally Posted by Yankeemama

Thus summer has been the coolest since I moved here almost seven years ago. This summer had a mix of cool mornings and sunny, hot days and nights that cooled off unlike last year.

[AndyAMG]

It's been an amazingly nice and mild summer but that's just because since 2011 we have been baking. Were actually pretty close to the 100 yr average this summer. June and July were very mild compared to average. April and May were crazy hot compared to normal.

I have only ran my central air 20 days or so this summer. Last summer I never turned it off until late August when we had that nasty storm. I like to rate days by my ability to use my roadster or my motorcycle and it has been a record this year.

I predict a snowstorm this year.

[USDefault]

Originally Posted by MrTomJones

And what about winter? Just cool and wet essentially?

Yes.

Where I came from stretches of -20 without windchill for a week or two were quite expected in January and even sometimes in the February.

Highly unlikely in Portland, and the Pacific Northwest generally. The Pacific ocean is a moderating force. Winters generally are mild. Yes, you will have some days in the 40s, and evenings in the 30s, and very rarely snow or ice. We did have several days of significant ice this past winter. But it was gone in a week. But the average temps are usually higher than this. We also had a lot more rain this past winter, it was an outlier.

It does rain/drizzle quite a bit from December through March, maybe the beginning of April, but it's mild rain, and big thunderstorms are unicorns. Extreme weather simply doesn't happen up here. Even in December and January, most days I'll have shorts on in the house, shorts on when going from my car to the gym, and shorts even when making a quick store run.

Also, don't waste your money on umbrellas. You'll never use it, it simply doesn't rain hard enough to make them useful.

[notnamed]

I saw more umbrellas out today to block the sun on the 100 degree day than I've ever seen on a rainy day.