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Eugene and Atlanta seem about the same in the winter in terms of the temperature means, the snowfall (of lack thereof), and fairly similar in terms of rainfall too. The main differences would be Atlanta is more prone to winter warmth and very cold mornings below 10F and Eugene is considerably darker in the winter, but I imagine they would feel more or less interchangeable?
I'm mostly talking about west of the Cascade Mountains. I was talking to a girl on the train home the other day and she said that Dallas and Portland are basically the same during the winter.
Nowhere in the PNW... be it the coast, mountains, or inland areas of WA and/or OR, have even remotely similar winters. As someone who grew up on the Gulf coast and now lives in WA, I can honestly say that the winters up here are a completely different deal from the Southeastern U.S., or anywhere back East for that matter.
For one, we don't get the chaotic temperature and humidity fluctuations up here that they get during the winter in the South. A typical Seattle winter day is almost always exactly the same: in the 40's, constant drizzle, overcast, with very little variation. By comparison, in the South (let's just say Atlanta), in one day it can go from sunny, dry, with temps in the 70's... to light snow or icy conditions, and temps in the 20's... to heavy rain and temps in the 40's, then right back to sunny and warm again the next day.
Now, let's look at the inland NW in winter. Typically the highs will hover just beneath the freezing point (32f), with lows dipping down into the teens and sometimes even single-digits. It can sometimes snow for several days in a row, followed by crisp, dry, but very cold sunny days (those are always the coldest days). There still aren't any parts of the South that immediately come to mind where it does that. Perhaps the very high elevations of the Blue Ridge and Smoky mountains? Still, how many people live at those elevations?
So, in summation, NO. Nowhere in (the populated areas of) these two regions experience the same kind of winters.
Quote:
Originally Posted by valsteele
I'm mostly talking about west of the Cascade Mountains. I was talking to a girl on the train home the other day and she said that Dallas and Portland are basically the same during the winter.
I forgot to mention she's from Dallas and has lived here in Portland for a year.
She still had no clue. I lived in Dallas for three years, and have lived in the NW almost six years now. In different parts of the NW. Dallas and Portland might have a few brief periods during winter that are similar, but Dallas, like so much of the South, experiences those wild fluctuations I was talking about earlier. I'm pretty sure Portland doesn't have those kind of extremes.
She still had no clue. I lived in Dallas for three years, and have lived in the NW almost six years now. In different parts of the NW. Dallas and Portland might have a few brief periods during winter that are similar, but Dallas, like so much of the South, experiences those wild fluctuations I was talking about earlier. I'm pretty sure Portland doesn't have those kind of extremes.
It does just to a lesser extent. It can dip down into the teens and get very cold or get to about 60F during the winter and the humidity definitely varies as well. Usually the winter air is close to saturated but you'll get times where it's sunny, cold, dry and brisk as well.
It does just to a lesser extent. It can dip down into the teens and get very cold or get to about 60F during the winter and the humidity definitely varies as well. Usually the winter air is close to saturated but you'll get times where it's sunny, cold, dry and brisk as well.
Yeah, it's still just... different. Now, I haven't actually lived in Portland. I know you guys get a little more variation in your winter weather than we do up here in WA, but I seriously doubt that it's anywhere near similar to a Dallas winter. Dallas winters are heavily influenced by the frequent Southerly dips in the jet stream over the Great Plains and Midwest, which often brings in these "Blue Northers", as the locals call them; blasts of dry arctic air that come barreling down the plains, that can cause temps to drop as much as 40 degrees in a matter of minutes. The cold, dry air can hang around for a few days, or even a week... but then the warmer, more moist Gulf air eventually moves back in from the South. Then, a few days later, another cold front will come ripping through. These fluctuations would occur in rapid succession all through the winter when I lived there.
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