Seattle Weather/Climate Thread (Tacoma, Rainier: bill, retirement, best time)

[usernametaken]

So is the rain seen in the past two days morel like a downpour or is it just slightly more than a drizzle? Is this typical of rainy days in Seattle?

[LordBalfor]

Originally Posted by usernametaken

So is the rain seen in the past two days morel like a downpour or is it just slightly more than a drizzle? Is this typical of rainy days in Seattle?

This type of weather is not unusual - though usually THIS time of year is not like this. This type of weather USUALLY doesn't begin until mid-October then continues on for 6+ months or so (with an occasional sunny day or two thrown in every one in a while). This is "winter pattern" weather. Our winters here are very mild compared to most of the US (and especially compared to other areas of the country at similar latitudes) but cloudy and damp - kind of like what you are seeing outside right now.

Ken

[JesseJB]

Yea these last few days are very typical of late October.

[CityGirl72]

We are also having "October -like weather" as per our news station. Seems a bit crazy on the west coast.

[eskercurve]

Gosh, the past few days have been HARD to wake up to, it's been so dark. And since I just got back from Mesa, AZ, on business, it's been that much harder to wake up.

Don't miss the heat tho.

[LordBalfor]

Originally Posted by eskercurve

Gosh, the past few days have been HARD to wake up to, it's been so dark. And since I just got back from Mesa, AZ, on business, it's been that much harder to wake up.

Don't miss the heat tho.

You think it's dark NOW, wait 3 more months. Chances are you will be GOING to work in the dark and RETURNING HOME in the dark.


Ken

[xeric]

Originally Posted by hanselandgretel

Hi Everyone:

I am moving to the Seattle area in March 2011 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. I have two whippets.

I am concerned about how the weather will affect myself and my dogs. I am over the heat and humidity and the hurricane scares. Everyone keeps telling me it rains all the time and is cloudy most of the year. Cold and damp seems to be the theme.

I am looking for some input as to what is really true as to quality of life issues concerning the weather. Remember, I am from Florida all my life, so I really have no clue. For instance, is it muddy and wet all the time? How cold is cold? Are there any nice days? What are the worst months and how does that look?

Thanks for your help.

Hansel and Gretel are my whippets. They really do not like to get wet, this is another concern. How is it for the dogs?

I did this a exact same move many years ago. All in all, I've come to the conclusion that it wasn't a good move for me primarily because of issues pertaining to lack of sunshine and the high latitude. Fort Lauderdale actually gets more rainfall then Seattle (50" vs. 36" average per year), but it also has a lot more sunshine due to the fact that the rain tends to come in short cloudbursts (primarily during the warmer part of the year) whereas Seattle gets drizzle and overcast weather that is spread out over far more days. You've probably heard this before. What you may not realize is that the sun is much stronger in Fort Lauderdale then in Seattle due to the comparative latitudes (25 degrees vs. 47 degrees). So the days are basically brighter in South Florida which makes a difference if low levels of sunlight adversely affect your mood.

Also if you are used to boating and other water-based activities, Seattle will be a big shock to you (compared to tropical Florida). My brother once spent a freezing evening on a boat in Puget Sound and vowed never to do it again.

As for dogs, we had a German Shepard when we moved and I think she liked it better in Seattle (but then she had very thick fur). It didn't improve her temperment any, though.

To xeric: Well you do make some good points but Seattle's weather/climate is not nearly as bad as you make it sound.

Seattle does get less sunshine than southern Florida but still it averages 1,800-2,100 sunshine hours per year which is roughly equal to places like Amsterdam, Paris, London, and Moscow.

And you forget to mention that someone has to worry about skin cancer/skin diseases because of how strong the sunshine is in Fort Lauderdale, the almost daily dangerous lightning storms in Florida during half of the year, the flying roaches, the sharks in the water, alligators, deadly fire ants, and things like that, the chance of heat stroke because of the heat roughly half of the year, and also the yearly risk of major hurricanes(there was a year where Florida got hit by 3 HURRICANES) , and the lack of 4 seasons that a lot of people enjoy.

So every place has its positives/negatives with weather/climate. In some ways southern Florida's weather/climate beats the PCNW weather/climate but in other ways PCNW weather/climate beats the Florida weather/climate.

And was your brother on a boat in the Puget sound in December or something? Roughly 6-8 months of the year the PCNW seems to be great for outdoor recreation, especially water sports and activities.

I personally really do like the PCNW and Seattle, and like the weather here a lot of the time but am starting to think it might be too cloudy for me. But then again this year seemed to be below average in sunshine for Seattle for April, May, June, July, August, and so far this September(talk about bad luck!).I can understand how for others there is enough sunshine here but for people like you and me it isnt on a yearly basis, so I dont think I'll be here long term. I'll still enjoying my time here a lot though and think its a cool/great place.

I still would take the PCNW over Florida though because I like Seattle, Vancouver, and Portland more than the Florida cities, and things like that. Also, there are people that come from places like Florida and still like it here long term and might even prefer the PCNW over Florida.

[CityGirl72]

Originally Posted by xeric

Also if you are used to boating and other water-based activities, Seattle will be a big shock to you (compared to tropical Florida). My brother once spent a freezing evening on a boat in Puget Sound and vowed never to do it again.

THIS!

I spent a little over 5 years there, and no one I knew or was related to or me ever ever ever was on the Puget Sound or Lake Washington/ South Lake Union etc. Nobody.

I did a short stint at Microsoft, and then was at another large company - no body I ever ran into was on the water! I went to Seattle U! Nobody was on the water!

I know it looks like it's all outdoorsy and water focused there. But to me, maybe because where I came from - it wasn't. I had to buy Argosy tickets just to get to experience the water and get my family or friends to attend!


Here...where I'm at now - every other house has a big boat in the driveway, jet skiis everywhere, we walk down to the River weekly and it's a part of people's lives. I'm loving it. Been fishing and boating and camping more in the year I've been back then the 5 years up there. (This is not a "I'm better than you thing" I'm just trying to elaborate how much I didn't get to experience the water in Seattle)

[xeric]

Originally Posted by

To xeric: Well you do make some good points but Seattle's weather/climate is not nearly as bad as you make it sound.

Seattle does get less sunshine than southern Florida but still it averages 1,800-2,100 sunshine hours per year which is roughly equal to places like Amsterdam, Paris, London, and Moscow.

And you forget to mention that someone has to worry about skin cancer/skin diseases because of how strong the sunshine is in Fort Lauderdale, the almost daily dangerous lightning storms in Florida during half of the year, the flying roaches, the sharks in the water, alligators, deadly fire ants, and things like that, the chance of heat stroke because of the heat roughly half of the year, and also the yearly risk of major hurricanes(there was a year where Florida got hit by 3 HURRICANES) , and the lack of 4 seasons that a lot of people enjoy.

So every place has its positives/negatives with weather/climate. In some ways southern Florida's weather/climate beats the PCNW weather/climate but in other ways PCNW weather/climate beats the Florida weather/climate.

And was your brother on a boat in the Puget sound in December or something? Roughly 6-8 months of the year the PCNW seems to be great for outdoor recreation, especially water sports and activities.

I personally really do like the PCNW and Seattle, and like the weather here a lot of the time but am starting to think it might be too cloudy for me. But then again this year seemed to be below average in sunshine for Seattle for April, May, June, July, August, and so far this September(talk about bad luck!).I can understand how for others there is enough sunshine here but for people like you and me it isnt on a yearly basis, so I dont think I'll be here long term. I'll still enjoying my time here a lot though and think its a cool/great place.

I still would take the PCNW over Florida though because I like Seattle, Vancouver, and Portland more than the Florida cities, and things like that. Also, there are people that come from places like Florida and still like it here long term and might even prefer the PCNW over Florida.

I agree, every place has positives and negatives and people like different things. But this poster was obviously well-aware of the negatives of south Florida. I wanted to let him or her know about sun intensity because its something a lot of people don't think about (rather people tend to focus on the amount of sun more then the strength of the sun).

About the boat thing, boating is different in the PNW then what people usually expect. Most people associate it with hot days, warm water, etc. The sound is always cool and you really can't go out there in a bathing suit or summer clothes and be comfortable (even in the summer).