Extreme Wind, Snow and Cold in Rathdrum / Athol ? (Post Falls, Hayden: new house, living)

[cliff949]

We are searching for a property in NID and we were told by more than one person that both Rathdrum and Athol has more wind and snow and is colder than Coeur d' Alene, Hayden or Sandpoint.

Do you all agree or disagree with this assertion? What are your thoughts, should we try and avoid those areas?

Thanks !

[cliff949]

I'm replying to my own thread....

After posting my question I read about the train noise (see below, I copied from the other thread)

"I know the north-south line that runs through Sandpoint south through Athol and across the prairie towards Post Falls runs about eighty trains a day."

Wholly cow, 80 trains a day??? Maybe I should be more concerned with non stop train noise than wind?

Which places are the worst (get the most train activity) for train noise and which are least affected?

Thanks again!!

[elousv]

I live in Hauser and hear quite a few trains. The tracks follow the 53. We are protected from the wind here. We notice the wind on the prairie where it is wide open. There are areas with heavy forest in both Rathdrum and Athol so I assume the wind is minimal there also. You should be able to find a place well away from the tracks also. You would also get noise from the 95 so keep that in mind.

[elousv]

Oh I forgot, there are areas known as snow belts and we are in one ( I can see Mt. Spokane from my house) and so is Rathdrum and Athol from what I gather.

[Clark Fork Fantast]

Living with trains is part of the NID experience. If you look at a map, you'll find that there are trains running along the highways such as 53, 95, 2 (two lines up there!), and 200, and that lonesome whistle blows multiple times a day! So when you look at property in the vicinity of tracks you actually need to stand there and listen for the train! You're likely to hear trains just about anywhere within an easy drive of the major roads, the question is how often and how close. So you need to do your homework, like you're doing now. If there are trees, and you're 1/2 mile or more from the tracks, it shouldn't bother you, or you'll at least get used to it. It's when the train runs close to or through the property that you should think twice!

[Sage of Sagle]

Yes. About 75 trains per day run across the long bridge. A LOT of trains through the area. When property shopping, proximity to RR tracks was a big factor.

There are microclimates, but I don't think Rathdrum and Athol are colder...just more open and windier. So maybe perceived cold but not actual temps. Athol is pretty close to Sagle and Sandpoint, but a couple miles west on 54 from Hwy 95 you're up on higher plains with less dense tree cover. Rathdrum "prairie" is windy and feels cold, but is generally similar in temps to Hayden. Up (north) into the hills Rathdrum could have a colder microclimate, not sure.

No hard science here...but I'm in those areas enough that I'm pretty sure I'm generally correct.

[cliff949]

Thanks to all for the info about the weather and trains.

[mistyriver]

Originally Posted by Clark Fork Fantast

Living with trains is part of the NID experience. If you look at a map, you'll find that there are trains running along the highways such as 53, 95, 2 (two lines up there!), and 200, and that lonesome whistle blows multiple times a day! So when you look at property in the vicinity of tracks you actually need to stand there and listen for the train! You're likely to hear trains just about anywhere within an easy drive of the major roads, the question is how often and how close. So you need to do your homework, like you're doing now. If there are trees, and you're 1/2 mile or more from the tracks, it shouldn't bother you, or you'll at least get used to it. It's when the train runs close to or through the property that you should think twice!

It amazes me what the people in Snug Harbor on Highway 2 (between Laclede and Sandpoint) in their expensive houses put up with in train noise to live on the water.

[MeInIdaho]

I have no idea of the wind or train situation up there, but I just wanted to say that a friend of mine back east lives next to train tracks and she, literally, does not even hear them any more. We can be on the phone and I can hear the train in the background and when I mention it to her she always says, "Oh yeah, I guess there is one going by." And she lives in the country, far from any city noise with a field in between her and the tracks. I think it's just something people get used to. And good luck with your house hunting, Cliff. I hope you find exactly what you're looking for.

[KTMMan]

I live two hundred yards from the main East/West railroad tracks that leave LA and run East. The first night in our new house, my wife and I looked at each other and said "how could we be this stupid". That was really the last night it truly bothered us though. I know that sounds ridiculous, but it's true. That said, I spent a week in my RV, parked in my buddies driveway in Athol last August. The difference is: in Athol the train is about two hundred yards from his house as well, but their is a road crossing on those tracks and every train all night long blows their horn when coming to that road crossing. And I truly believe the 75 trains a day statement. I will not make that mistake twice.