Is Leavenworth dreary? (Seattle, Wenatchee, Chelan: houses, college, taxes)

[LavenderDays]

Hi, all.

I'm highly considering a move to Leavenworth, but I'm concerned about the weather. I have Seasonal Affective Disorder and am worried about the winter months.

Is the winter very dreary, like other parts of Washington? Does it get plenty of sunny days in the winter? What is the snowfall actually like (does it snow for days, does the snow stay on the ground long, etc)? And finally, when does it start feeling and looking more like spring?

Thanks for any info and advice!

[StealthRabbit]

Elevation and location (sheltered on east side of Mtn range) means Leavenworth is cold, dreary, and snow can last till April. And since latitude is 47.5962° N, it can have really short days in winter.

If you have SADD and want Leavenworth style living... Angel Fire, NM, or Pagosa Springs CO. (Or bigger towns nearby if you want college or services) Everywhere in PNW is dreary in the winter in comparison to southern CO and Northern NM. Deary includes ID and MT to an extent, + they are still in northern latitude (dark by 4-5PM in winter solstice)

If you like Lavender... Consider heading to NZ (Tho much of it can be deary too, similar latitude (S) to PNW). Greece has a lot of Lavender farms, and a bit sunnier. (and currently on fire)

[509]

The weather in eastern Washington is WORSE than Seattle from Thanksgiving to President's Day.

Leavenworth is worse than most of eastern Washington.

When I was working we always took winter vacations to Hawaii and Mexico to get out of the cloudy weather.

Now that we are retired we have a house in Arizona and spend the winter there.

The worse cloudy day streak, no sun at all, was 19 straight days. That is almost a month.

[Ruth4Truth]

OP, what draws you to Leavenworth? IMO the issue isn't winter dreariness. It's that for much of the year, tourist season overcomes the town, whose residents decided many years ago to reinvent itself as a quaint Bavarian village for economic development, because the population was shrinking.

Streets and alleyways were given German names, the buildings in the downtown core were refurbished to look like the old-time timbered houses of German villages, AND last but by no means least, groups of residents had to dress in traditional German clothing and organize oom-pah bands to perform on street corners to create the right ambience. But rural Americans aren't 19th Century Germans, and their musical skills are a bit wanting, so on weekends (especially during Oktoberfest), the town floods with tourists strolling among the shops accompanied by anemic-sounding "Bavarian" live music.

This would be your environment. You might even be pressured to pick up a tuba yourself, to staff one of those "colorful" and "quaint" bands to keep up the town's image, and wear the black knickers (or dirndle, if you're female) all weekend. And in winter, the town is so scenic with a nearby snowy mountain in the background, just like in Bavaria, that the whole scenario repeats itself for the holiday season for holiday shoppers from urban areas in Western and Eastern WA. Got to re-create those colorful German Christmas markets, you know.


Still interested?

[MtnSurfer]

If you are affected by SAD, I agree with Stealth on this one. That includes pretty much anywhere in the PNW. While some parts may have a bit more sun, it very likely will still be too cloudy, snowy, rainy, icy or just dreary. While eastern WA is different than the west in terms of more snow vs. rain, I think you are still going to get harsher winters than what you are looking for.

Did you know that Washington state is further north than Main? As such, winter days are also shorter and darker overall. Add in some clouds, rain, snow, ice and cold and its not cheery weather unless you like that stuff. Lots of folks suffer from SAD as a result. For more mild winters that are less dreary, you need to head south.

Derek

[87112]

No, Never move to the PNW if you suffer from SAD especially Western Side. It is horrible and those with money usually bolt once October hits and I am very jealous. If you do still move here don't make big commitments, you probably will last 2 years at most. My money is on one.
I am already dreading when October comes around. The gray and weeks of clouds is punishing. Please don't do this to your life.

[LavenderDays]

Thank you so much for the replies. You have helped me cross Leavenworth off the list of possible places to move to! I definitely hope to visit at some point though, because it looks like a very charming and unique town.

[MtnSurfer]

Originally Posted by LavenderDays

Thank you so much for the replies. You have helped me cross Leavenworth off the list of possible places to move to! I definitely hope to visit at some point though, because it looks like a very charming and unique town.

It reminds me of some mountain resort towns I enjoyed visiting while living in Colorado such as Aspen or Telluride. While fun to visit, I would never want to live there. This is one of those kind of places for most unless you run a Bavarian business selling trinkets or food to tourists passing through. I also got the sense that locals have a love/hate relationship with outsiders including other Washingtonians coming through to visit. Those yuppie Seattleites! So, in addition to climate issues, they may not be all that welcoming a bunch to newbies moving in.

There are likely many, many better options throughout the US given your requirements and preferences.

Derek

[leastprime]

OP, try further down at Wenatchee or Chelan. Probably more in the rain/snow shadow. Also hotter in the summers.
Wenatchee and Chelan, housing will be displacing orchard land but housing land pays more in taxes than farm land.
Good luck.

Get a SADD Light. Inexpensive. A good investment for west, wet side cascade people.
YMMV

[MechAndy]

I don’t know if I could handle an area that relies so heavily on the tourist industry.
Our area on the OP sees enough tourists for me and they create traffic issues.
Thankfully I live a bit out of town.
I imagine I’d go nuts in Leavenworth.

About SAD,
I probably suffer from it to a degree.
I think everyone does to a degree and that people handle it differently.
The cold weather doesn’t bother me but I think the lack of daylight does
It makes me lethargic during the winter if I don’t take steps to combat it.
I do a healthy diet with daily supplements, exercise and spend as much time outside as possible either doing chores or walking the dogs.
I’m a very active person, I think if I wasn’t SAD could snowball into something much larger.
I know everyone is different but this seems to work for me.