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I really enjoy reading these forums of the mountain areas in NC, TN, & VA. Especially NC. I currently live in MO, just west of St. Louis. One of these days we plan on moving; don't know exactly where yet. Some things have to fall into place first but I'm working on it. I definitely want to move to the mountains. A few years ago I lived in East TN and loved it and want to get back the mountains more than likely on the NC side. I'm really interested in the Waynesville and Boone areas. In doing some research between the two places, I noticed that Boone sits roughly at 3200' and Waynesville sits roughly at 2800' elevation. However, the snow averages are completely different. Boone's average is around 36" and Waynesville's average is around 12" (according to the town website). Boone gets 3 times as much snow. How can this be when the elevation difference is only around 400'? It's hard to imagine that only 400' can make that much of a difference. I'm looking for a place where around 20" of snow is average (give or take). That is about what we get over here near St. Louis. In addition, I've got to get away from the stifiling summer heat over her in MO. Anyway, any input would be most appreciated -- not just on snow but other weather factors and the differences between the two towns.
Boone is a good bit further north than Waynesville...Also Haywood county has taller Mountains that can tend to break up the storms and push them around us.....If you would like to Live near Waynesville and want some more snow look into the Fines Creek Area close to the TN boarder...
Agree with WNC-hiker...
both altitude and latitude at work.
Downtown Waynesville can have rain, while up any of the roads to mtn side housing can have snow, and sometimes lots of it, at 4,000 ft and higher.
Boone proper is cooler than Waynesville in almost all months, 'town vs town'. Get higher in either area, and temps drop that magical 4-6 degs per 1000 ft of elevation.
Looking for a "20 inch annual" snowfall location is a bit of a stretch, and with the recent years' worth of extreme weather I would suggest that even annual data is suspect these days.
We have had 7-8" already, in '2 snows' this season, but I am going down the mtn tomorrow to play golf. It's not like all of the higher elevations are in the Arctic 6 months a year...
GL, mD
Thanks so much for the responses. I love NC mountains. We have been many a time on vacation to NC. It's been a while though. Yes, I know Boone is a little further north so that can make some difference and the elevation, while higher, is not that much higher. I can understand the snow average been higher in Boone, but 3 times as much??? I guess the taller mountains really break up the storms -- a lot of descending air instead of ascending. Anyway, it was the huge difference that I was having trouble reconciling. I want to say thanks to motordavid for the beautiful photography -- keep those pictures coming! It will still be a couple of years before the move. Son has to graduate HS. We also want to get our financial house in order. We want to be relatively close to Asheville. My wife is an accountant and I'm a mortgage loan consultant. I figure the best jobs would be in Asheville, but I could be wrong. We also want to find a more conservative area than we are presently.
Location: River's Edge Inn, Todd NC, and Lorgues France
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It makes a big difference where you live in the Boone area. Ray's weather often gives it forecasts depending on what side of the Blue ridge you are on.
It makes a big difference where you live in the Boone area. Ray's weather often gives it forecasts depending on what side of the Blue ridge you are on.
Yes, I've seen Ray's weather page. There is quite a difference in temperatures and weather.
Sperling's site says 14" for average snowfall. I would assume that just a few hundred feet in elevation around town can make quite a difference as well.
I never have come across this site. Thanks! A lot of good info. It shows 13.8 for Waynesville and 35.8 for Boone. Huge difference.
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