Any Sunshine in the Winters in Western MI? (Grand Rapids: to live in, activity)

[n8ivmainah]

Hey folks, looking for some help.
first off I was raised on an island in Maine. So I'm familiar with cold winters. I was also in the Army in Ft. Drum NY, outside of Watertown, which is called Snow Town USA. So, I'm familiar with lake effect snow.

But I've lived in the South for basically the last 35 years. As I get older, I'm 53, the humidity and heat of the summers really get to me, and I miss being around water too. My wife though is from Virginia and while she can tolerate snow and cold it's the gray that brings her down.

Do you guys get much sun in the winter or is overcast for like 3 months straight like it is in Maine?

Love to hear any thoughts on this. Thanks!

[craig11152]

In general Michigan overall sees the sun a little under 50% of the time its up over the course of 365 days.
We do see it alot in the summer. So you can connect those dots.
A running joke in the winter is often, "what's that big ball of light in the sky?"

[mjlo]

To be clinical, yes there is sun in the winter. Though overcast days outnumber sunny days for certain. When the wind blows over Lake Michigan it pushes all that moisture over the lower peninsula and creates a cloud dome. The benefit is that those clouds trap in more heat and tends to be "less cold" than other midwestern areas. The downfall is the overcast. I would say on average you have 10 sunny days a month in winter, obviously your mileage may vary, but it's not permanently overcast November-March.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by n8ivmainah

Hey folks, looking for some help.
first off I was raised on an island in Maine. So I'm familiar with cold winters. I was also in the Army in Ft. Drum NY, outside of Watertown, which is called Snow Town USA. So, I'm familiar with lake effect snow.

But I've lived in the South for basically the last 35 years. As I get older, I'm 53, the humidity and heat of the summers really get to me, and I miss being around water too. My wife though is from Virginia and while she can tolerate snow and cold it's the gray that brings her down.

Do you guys get much sun in the winter or is overcast for like 3 months straight like it is in Maine?

Love to hear any thoughts on this. Thanks!

It is overcast around 2/3 of the time or more in the winter, and sunnier in the warmer months. Many hope for more snow and drier arctic air which creates a bit more sun in Michigan during those scenarios. Otherwise take Vitamin D supplements every day in the winter, strongly recommended- in addition to getting outdoors or taking up a winter activity.

[craig11152]

The Weather Underground has a calendar segment where you can view monthly calendars.
For Grand Rapids from Nov 1 2022 through April 30 2023 I counted in that 181 days...

Mostly sunny........25
Partly sunny...........3
Mostly cloudy........20
Cloudy................133

There were 2 or 3 days listed as foggy and I did toss those in with cloudy.

[n8ivmainah]

Originally Posted by craig11152

In general Michigan overall sees the sun a little under 50% of the time its up over the course of 365 days.
We do see it alot in the summer. So you can connect those dots.
A running joke in the winter is often, "what's that big ball of light in the sky?"

Good stuff. Yeah, I just looked up states with percentages of sun. Michigan was on the low end, not was bad as Washington and Vermont but definitely towards the bottom.

Thanks!

[n8ivmainah]

Originally Posted by craig11152

The Weather Underground has a calendar segment where you can view monthly calendars.
For Grand Rapids from Nov 1 2022 through April 30 2023 I counted in that 181 days...

Mostly sunny........25
Partly sunny...........3
Mostly cloudy........20
Cloudy................133

There were 2 or 3 days listed as foggy and I did toss those in with cloudy.

Oh man, that's awesome! I'm going ot check that out. Thanks!

here's the link for anyone reading this. https://www.wunderground.com/calenda...RR/date/2022-8

VERY cool!

[n8ivmainah]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

It is overcast around 2/3 of the time or more in the winter, and sunnier in the warmer months. Many hope for more snow and drier arctic air which creates a bit more sun in Michigan during those scenarios. Otherwise take Vitamin D supplements every day in the winter, strongly recommended- in addition to getting outdoors or taking up a winter activity.

I assume you're from New Hampshire. Is Michigan less sunny than there in your opinion?

[n8ivmainah]

Originally Posted by mjlo

To be clinical, yes there is sun in the winter. Though overcast days outnumber sunny days for certain. When the wind blows over Lake Michigan it pushes all that moisture over the lower peninsula and creates a cloud dome. The benefit is that those clouds trap in more heat and tends to be "less cold" than other midwestern areas. The downfall is the overcast. I would say on average you have 10 sunny days a month in winter, obviously your mileage may vary, but it's not permanently overcast November-March.

Man, that's interesting. Actually warmer than the hinterlands. Good to know. Thanks!

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by n8ivmainah

I assume you're from New Hampshire. Is Michigan less sunny than there in your opinion?

I used to live in New Hampshire, Michigan is far cloudier than New Hampshire, as most of the population in NH is on the leeward side of the Appalachian Mountains. Michigan is downwind from the Great Lakes, so the typical prevailing wind direction will create more cloud cover by default.