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Location: 3.5 sq mile island ant nest next to Canada
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Quote:
Originally Posted by michael_atw
Half of one. But the only difference between a Maine winter and a Great Lakes winter is 1.) colder at night (generally not during the day) and more windy (but I lived on the coast). Anything within 10-20 miles of the coast will have the ocean to regulate the winter. The temps of Deer Isle (where I'm moving to next) are equal to the temps of Western NY (except at night it seems). Snow is about 40-50 inches less a season. Northern Maine and the mountains west would have the worst winters, not any worse snow-wise than the snowbelt of NY though. Just the cold snaps and the general isolation. Ice storms on the coast are more prevalent than the Great Lakes snowbelt but I'd say not by leaps and bounds.
People from outside Maine (see: south) like to exaggerate the winters because they don't know better. They think those "Yankees" have horrid winters. People in Maine like to exaggerate them to make themselves look like hardy Yetis. When I moved to Lubec last year I was told it was the worst winter in decades. Three weeks after I moved in the snow began to melt, and by mid-March it was in the 50's. This year, I moved in early March and found bare ground - saw one short storm and that was it. Meanwhile, the whole month of April was on and off pelting of lake effect back in the hinterland.
You have to consider wha some folks call a bad winter. To me it was a very bad winter. Not much snow, warm temps, only used the snowblower twice, no snowshoing. Horrible winter. That might be what they're talking about.
Hey guys, I'm currently an RN here in south Florida and I want to try and find a job up in Maine. I hate Florida's year-round hot and muggy weather... I really love cold climates. I have been to Maine during winter for a couple of weeks at a time (loved it), and I've visited during summer as well, but what is it like to actually live there? What areas are safer than others (safety isn't a major concern, but I am a single female)? Is there anything I should be aware of before making the move? I've done a lot of research on Maine and other northern states, but I feel like tips from people who actually live there would be much more helpful.
Also, for those of you who have been through a blizzard, how do you prepare for them? I think it could be similar to preparing for a hurricane (1 gallon of water per person per day, canned/dried food, batteries, flashlights, generator, etc.), but instead of stocking up on fans I'd need blankets and other things to keep warm in case of a power outage. I have a large dog, so how do you deal with them while you're snowed in?
Thank you in advance!!
Some time ago, I use to live in Maine, Northern Aroostook County near Houlton and 17+miles from the Canadian border. I don't ever recall having a hard time when it would snow and believe me every storm seemed to me like a blizzard. I had snow up over my dining room windows all the time and there were snowbanks almost touching the telephone wires. Don't recall a serious power outage and if there was one, we would burn the woodstove and light candles. Maine does a far better job of keeping their roads and highways clear than we do down here in Connecticut that is for sure. I always tell my husband that we need a Maine snowplowo contractor to come down here and keep our City workers straight! Houlton Maine has a medium sized hospital where you could find work and the town of Houlton itself is really pretty and quaint. Pretty far North, but a nice area. Bangor and Portland both have good sized hospitals and lots of quaint small towns around both areas. Check out the Chamber of commerce websites for all the areas in Maine you are interested in and I am sure you will have some more of your questions answered. Good luck with your move.
Winters are quite variable. Some, like this past one aren't too bad...but others can be worse, you get whatever Mother Nature dishes out.
Next variation is location. Maine is a fairly big state, there is about 400 miles (roughly) from south to north and that 400 miles can make a big difference. Heck, 200 miles can make a pretty big difference. Coastal weather is affected by the thermal mass of the ocean- cooler in Summer and warmer in Winter than inland areas. The Winter in Portland can be hugely different than the same Winter in Ft. Kent.
Here where I am (15 miles west of Bangor, in a creek valley surrounded by hills that can cause local variations) this past winter wasn't bad at all. But, Winter of 2007/2008 there was a fair amount of snow and the temp dropped as low as 15 below...briefly, most of Jan/Feb it was around 0*. Winter of 2008/2009 was a bit worse- temp dropped to -25 and stayed there for 3 weeks...and as I recall there was a good bit of snow.
One person's relatively brief experience on the coast cannot be generally and reliably applied to the longer term and to the conditions experienced over the larger areas of the state.
Pammyd mentions:
"I always tell my husband that we need a Maine snowplowo contractor to come down here and keep our City workers straight!"
I was the operations duty officer at NAS Quonset Point in 1967 when they had a blizzard. There was only one runway in southern New England capable of taking in jets. That was Quonset. Even Logan Airport in Boston was closed. I called together the plow crews and asked them to change the way they plowed. They were reluctant to do it, but tried it. I organized them into squads of four plows that started at the edges of the runways instead of the middle. If they had started in the middle they would not be able to push the snow all the way to the edges of the runway. They would have had a very narrow runway and it would take a week with bucket loaders to move those piles.
They tried it my way and it worked. In addition they could plow at 25 MPH which speeded up the process. The CO of the base was quite pleased. He asked where I had learned it. I told him that in Maine we just know how to move snow and we don't want to move the same snow twice.
Half of one. But the only difference between a Maine winter and a Great Lakes winter is 1.) colder at night (generally not during the day) and more windy (but I lived on the coast). Anything within 10-20 miles of the coast will have the ocean to regulate the winter. The temps of Deer Isle (where I'm moving to next) are equal to the temps of Western NY (except at night it seems). Snow is about 40-50 inches less a season. Northern Maine and the mountains west would have the worst winters, not any worse snow-wise than the snowbelt of NY though. Just the cold snaps and the general isolation. Ice storms on the coast are more prevalent than the Great Lakes snowbelt but I'd say not by leaps and bounds.
People from outside Maine (see: south) like to exaggerate the winters because they don't know better. They think those "Yankees" have horrid winters. People in Maine like to exaggerate them to make themselves look like hardy Yetis. When I moved to Lubec last year I was told it was the worst winter in decades. Three weeks after I moved in the snow began to melt, and by mid-March it was in the 50's. This year, I moved in early March and found bare ground - saw one short storm and that was it. Meanwhile, the whole month of April was on and off pelting of lake effect back in the hinterland.
Hi michael_atw If you don't like Maine weather, wait a minute.
Whoever told you that last winter was the worst winter in decades was pulling your leg. I wouldn't call this past winter typical. Look back at snow totals for the past five years or more. I often agree with things you write, but I don't think half of one Maine winter is enough experience to make certain statements or qualify you as a Maine weather expert (I don't claim to be a Maine weather expert either--I just have more ME weather experiences)....such as the only difference between a Maine winter and a Great Lakes winter...Yes, it's usually colder at night...must have something to do with the sun...lol... One Christmas day, my manual transmission nearly refused to shift (new car) with -30 degree day time temps...I've experienced 18 inches of snow in April on the coast and my mom told of snow on Memorial Day. There's usually more snow in Bangor (somewhat inland) compared to less snow in Ellsworth (coastal). The ocean offers a cooling effect in the summer and a warming effect in the winter. This past winter where you say you spent one half of it was one of the mildest winters in the last decade. I remember the snow drifting so bad one year on the Georges Pond Rd. in Franklin that it was like driving through a tunnel. My dad got out the snow shoes to walk to town during the blizzard of 62 mentioned by NMLM.
A woman from NC once asked my mother how she survived winters in Maine. This woman thought people in Maine were literally stuck in their houses all winter and couldn't get out and drive to get groceries...she must have thought no one went to work either. Southerners can't help having some fear of the unknown about Maine winters...
I agree with TheFarmingWife...no one I know in Maine feels a need to impress anyone by exaggerating a Maine winter or trying to portray themselves as a hardy Yeti. A half a winter? Spend 20 or 30 or more winters in Maine and maybe you'll qualify to be a hardy Yeti too.
Last edited by mainegrl2011; 07-08-2012 at 08:13 AM..
You have to consider wha some folks call a bad winter. To me it was a very bad winter. Not much snow, warm temps, only used the snowblower twice, no snowshoing. Horrible winter. That might be what they're talking about.
Hi michael_atw If you don't like Maine weather, wait a minute.
Whoever told you that last winter was the worst winter in decades was pulling your leg. I wouldn't call this past winter typical. Look back at snow totals for the past five years or more. I often agree with things you write, but I don't think half of one Maine winter is enough experience to make certain statements or qualify you as a Maine weather expert (I don't claim to be a Maine weather expert either--I just have more ME weather experiences)....such as the only difference between a Maine winter and a Great Lakes winter...Yes, it's usually colder at night...must have something to do with the sun...lol... One Christmas day, my manual transmission nearly refused to shift (new car) with -30 degree day time temps...I've experienced 18 inches of snow in April on the coast and my mom told of snow on Memorial Day. There's usually more snow in Bangor (somewhat inland) compared to less snow in Ellsworth (coastal). The ocean offers a cooling effect in the summer and a warming effect in the winter. This past winter where you say you spent one half of it was one of the mildest winters in the last decade. I remember the snow drifting so bad one year on the Georges Pond Rd. in Franklin that it was like driving through a tunnel. My dad got out the snow shoes to walk to town during the blizzard of 62 mentioned by NMLM.
A woman from NC once asked my mother how she survived winters in Maine. This woman thought people in Maine were literally stuck in their houses all winter and couldn't get out and drive to get groceries...she must have thought no one went to work either. Southerners can't help having some fear of the unknown about Maine winters...
I agree with TheFarmingWife...no one I know in Maine feels a need to impress anyone by exaggerating a Maine winter or trying to portray themselves as a hardy Yeti. A half a winter? Spend 20 or 30 or more winters in Maine and maybe you'll qualify to be a hardy Yeti too.
I'm not sure if there was a point where I said I didn't like Maine winter...I think you're mistaken by my point.
I proclaim myself no expert, but I come from a place where winters are often just as bad - if not worse. Like I said, only difference is in some areas of Maine it is colder. But out in the Allegheny foothills the temps can drop like a rock. Along the coast the winters in Maine could actually be considered much better (with variations year to year).
I think I had two original points. One was that vehicles don't make people good drivers. One has to learn how to drive in the snow - at least, I think that was the original point, heh. Snow can make a good driver better or a poor driver worse. I think the other half was about people who like to overrate things they don't know - or things they do know, but wish for a better story.
I actually meant that last winter (or should I say, last last winter) - they were calling it the worst winter in decades but when I got there halfway in the snow was gone in 3 weeks. The irony being the worst winter I never saw. This past winter (I might be discerning more clearly) was what one could call a "joke". There was no snow on the ground that I found, except for one storm in April (I got here in late winter again). It was in the 70's during part of March - but even then back in Western NY they were getting snowstorms and cold snaps while Maine was in the 50's.
You have to consider wha some folks call a bad winter. To me it was a very bad winter. Not much snow, warm temps, only used the snowblower twice, no snowshoing. Horrible winter. That might be what they're talking about.
Good point.
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One Christmas day, my manual transmission nearly refused to shift (new car) with -30 degree day time temps...I've experienced 18 inches of snow in April on the coast and my mom told of snow on Memorial Day. There's usually more snow in Bangor (somewhat inland) compared to less snow in Ellsworth (coastal). The ocean offers a cooling effect in the summer and a warming effect in the winter. This past winter where you say you spent one half of it was one of the mildest winters in the last decade. I remember the snow drifting so bad one year on the Georges Pond Rd. in Franklin that it was like driving through a tunnel. My dad got out the snow shoes to walk to town during the blizzard of 62 mentioned by NMLM.
