Wow, so many good responses from everyone. This thread has definitely been useful in helping to reduce the guesswork in preparing for winter. Now I'm really looking forward to meeting you all in person in September.
Thanks again, Rohit Patnaik On Tue, Aug 14, 2012 at 6:52 PM, Mike Orr <[email protected]> wrote: > Randolph: > > Anything that doesn't get dried will stay wet through the winter and, > probably start growing mold. > > Keep furniture and boxes an inch away from walls That'll prevent > trapped moisture and mold from growing behind them. > > According to my friend who's a third-generation Seattlite, in the > 1950s there were routinely 5' snows every year. I've never seen more > than 1', once in the 70s, once in the 80s, then not for a long time > until 2008 and 2010 (or give or take a year, whenever the > snowpocolypses were).Some years it snows for an hour or two and is > gone. Some years there's a couple inches on the ground for a week, but > it's always gone in three weeks. Temperatures hover around 32 > degrees, so it melts in the daytime and refreezes in the evening and > causes trecherous ice. That's why there are so many car accidents and > thus why most people stay home when it's on the ground. Seattle never > had snowplows until recently and it still only has a few. Both > snowpocolypses led to the non-reelection of the mayors, so there's now > a street map and transit map of which streets will be plowed. So on > Capitol Hill here, it's Pine Street and Broadway. > > Temperatures may get down to the 20s or 10s for a day or two, but not > for several days. The ocean winds keep the temperature stable. One > interesting phenomenon is that the ocean winds drop all their rain and > snow on the west side of the mountain ranges, so the east sides are > unusually dry and warm. This occurs on both the Olympics and the > Cascades and the Bitterroots. Seattle is kind of medium in terms of > storms/rain/snow because the winds are partially diverted around it > through Everett and I think Olympia-ish. Portland gets cold winds > from the east through the Columbia River Gorge gap in the Cascades. > > For summers, you're experiencing it. The northwest has been described > as the land of the long Springs and Falls. The sun comes out > intermittently in late May and becomes more reliable in mid-July till > the end of August. It may last intermittently through September and > October up until just before Thanksgiving. So the farmers' markets are > generally open May-November. > > Winters expect rain or clouds most days, with occasional clear cold > days that may last for a half-week or a week. In December and January > the sun comes up after 8am and goes down before 5pm, so you're going > to work and back in the dark. > > -- > Mike Orr <[email protected]> >
