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I love varied weather - there's no temperature that really bothers me, and the change throughout the year is a beautiful way to mark time. The grayness that often accompanies the colder parts of the year in places like Pittsburgh, though? That really gets me down.
Which US cities have a lot of sunshine/ relatively few overcast days but also a reasonably varied climate?
I think a city like Flagstaff or something is probably the best possible answer, but I'd really like to hear of anything that might check similar boxes closer to the middle/ to the East. Anything come to mind?
If you’re thinking San Diego sunny (3,500 hours+), that doesn’t exist in the Midwest or Northeast. Sunny usually requires arid climates and those don’t exist on the East Coast. If Virginia became mostly sunny, it would mean the forests have died out.
That said, the coastal cities on the East Coast average 50-52% cloud cover in the winter. That’s your best bet. That increases to the 55-60% cloud cover more inland, but stays fairly constant. Even going to a place like Tulsa, Oklahoma (closer to the sunbelt) and it’s still only 55% average sun. So not a lot of variability.
I suppose the goldilocks zone would be somewhere like North Carolina or Hampton Roads that still experiences winter but gets more sun. By the time you get to Charleston or Savannah, you have winter highs in the 60s - which is hardly Winter.
Higher elevations in Colorado may be your best bet outside the Eastern Half of the U.S.
The main places to avoid are the Eastern Midwest/Great Lakes cities: Ohio, Michigan, Western PA & Western NY are the cloudiest part of the country after Washington & Oregon.
Flagstaff airport averages 89 inches of snow per year. This past winter got 163 inches. So, heavy on that 4th season, though it usually melts off pretty fast.
20 plus miles away from Flagstaff gets far less snow.
I love varied weather - there's no temperature that really bothers me, and the change throughout the year is a beautiful way to mark time. The grayness that often accompanies the colder parts of the year in places like Pittsburgh, though? That really gets me down.
Which US cities have a lot of sunshine/ relatively few overcast days but also a reasonably varied climate?
I think a city like Flagstaff or something is probably the best possible answer, but I'd really like to hear of anything that might check similar boxes closer to the middle/ to the East. Anything come to mind?
Denver and Fort Collins, CO are the first ones that come to mind: closest to the "middle" with mild-ish and sunny winters. Rapid City, South Dakota could work too if you don't mind SD politics - it's in a banana belt of sorts, so the winters are milder than you'd think for the latitude.
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