winter in Flagstaff (Sedona, Cottonwood, Williams: house, live, statistics)

[NW4me]

Just curious: when does it start "feeling like winter" in Flagstaff, and when does it start feeling like spring?

[thedirtman]

Originally Posted by NW4me

Just curious: when does it start "feeling like winter" in Flagstaff, and when does it start feeling like spring?

In a few hours. We're getting our first hard freeze tonight, and the temperature is dropping 20 degrees. The weather will be warmer again from time to time in November before becoming consistently cold with December freezes. Spring is difficult to pinpoint as well. The wind gets warmer in April, and suddenly dies half way through June.

[MortonR]

Right now, even though it's a little early this year or seems like it.

Understand that it's a place of (sort of) extremes in the sense that it can snow overnight and be in the 20s and by mid afternoon the next day it's in the 50s and the snow has melted.

One other thing to consider is the "feel" of the climate. The low humidity makes it feel quite pleasant even when it's cold. It's not the damp, bone-chilling cold of the Midwest or New England. I grew up in the Midwest and find that the cold in Flagstaff is nowhere near as bad as it was there.

Spring, as a previous poster mentioned, is equally tough to pinpoint, however, it's known for the wind, which blows constantly and often at high speed. It's not uncommon to have high wind warnings in the spring for wind gusts as high as 50 mph or more. Do realize that the effects of this have a lot to do with the topography, so where you live may not be that bad. My house is in sort of a valley, and as a result I rarely get much wind, but the crowns of the trees do!

Despite the cold temperatures this week, it will be close to 60F this weekend. The one thing that's great about the climate here is the "brilliant sunshine" as the NWS often describes it. It's beautifully sunny most days, which, even on the coldest ones, makes it a wonderful place.

RM

[Slater]

It's supposed to be a "La Nina" winter, so in theory warmer temperatures and less snowfall. I guess we'll see.

[kennykennybopenny]

6" fell in the Doney Park area overnight and gonna be chilly for a couple days.

[Urban Peasant]

Wow, for a place that far down latitudinally, Flagstaff sounds cold. Flagstaff must be high up in elevation (pardon my lack of knowledge about Arizona, I've never been there before). Thanks for all of this information. I am planning a trip to see the Grand Canyon, Painted Rocks, and other attractions near and around Flagstaff later in April and will probably base out of Flagstaff. It sounds like I will still have to make proper preparations and dress warmly. Does it rain a lot in Flagstaff in April? Does it snow then?

[observer53]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Wow, for a place that far down latitudinally, Flagstaff sounds cold. Flagstaff must be high up in elevation (pardon my lack of knowledge about Arizona, I've never been there before). Thanks for all of this information. I am planning a trip to see the Grand Canyon, Painted Rocks, and other attractions near and around Flagstaff later in April and will probably base out of Flagstaff. It sounds like I will still have to make proper preparations and dress warmly. Does it rain a lot in Flagstaff in April? Does it snow then?

Flagstaff is at 7000 feet elevation. April is usually a dry month all over Arizona. You can look up statistics for average temperatures in April for Flagstaff, the Grand Canyon, etc. Layers are always appropriate for clothing in northern Arizona in spring. Enjoy your trip!

[pathrunner]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Wow, for a place that far down latitudinally, Flagstaff sounds cold. Flagstaff must be high up in elevation (pardon my lack of knowledge about Arizona, I've never been there before). Thanks for all of this information. I am planning a trip to see the Grand Canyon, Painted Rocks, and other attractions near and around Flagstaff later in April and will probably base out of Flagstaff. It sounds like I will still have to make proper preparations and dress warmly. Does it rain a lot in Flagstaff in April? Does it snow then?

It will be COLD in April. Bring warm clothing. It will likely be windy too. Flagstaff has gotten snow in April.

I camped out just south of Williams (close to Flagstaff) in late April a few years ago. It was extremely cold at night and there was still a bit of snow on the ground in places. Flagstaff is next to the mountains at a high elevation. Bring layers because it can get warm during the day. If you venture down to Sedona and the Cottonwood area like I did it gets really warm during the day, at least it did when I was in Cottonwood (campground).

[RocketDawg]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Wow, for a place that far down latitudinally, Flagstaff sounds cold. Flagstaff must be high up in elevation (pardon my lack of knowledge about Arizona, I've never been there before). Thanks for all of this information. I am planning a trip to see the Grand Canyon, Painted Rocks, and other attractions near and around Flagstaff later in April and will probably base out of Flagstaff. It sounds like I will still have to make proper preparations and dress warmly. Does it rain a lot in Flagstaff in April? Does it snow then?

You're in for a treat. Arizona is a beautiful state and varies a lot from north to south.

[Urban Peasant]

Thanks everyone! We'll be sure to dress warmly. April is still kind of winter in Boston where I'm from anyways so we'll likely have to dress in layers just to get to the airport anyways.