Sequim ~ Can you tell me about it ?

[HonuMan]

Thanks for the additional information, eponabri. Our last two springs in Portland were long, wet, and cool, and our summers were cooler than the previous few, although Portland, being inland and sheltered from the ocean by the Coast Range, gets plenty of warm summer days. This past summer, while it got off to a late start, lasted about a month longer than normal. We have a big maple tree in our front yard, and usually I'm raking up the leaves at the end of October. This year, the leaves are still on the tree, and they haven't even finished turning red yet.

I love the dramatic and rapidly changing weather of the PNW, as well as the microclimates. Aside from elsewhere in the PNW, the only other place my wife and I are considering retiring is to her native Hawaii. She was raised on a high-altitude cattle ranch on the wet side of the Big Island, so the PNW climate wasn't a shock to her. We were on Orcas Island a couple months ago, and we were amazed by the number of similarlities to the BI: friendly people, slow pace of life, influx of artsy/"natural living" types, incredible scenic beauty, and so on. We also love the Olympic Peninsula.

[eponabri]

Two great things about the weather here is that we do have a variety of seasons although some people will say we only have two.... Early autumn, Autumn, Late Autumn and Spring... but we do get a bit more variety than that. And also that we don't have to deal with 6 months of snow. When it snows here it's an occasion and every one gets excited and it's gone before it's a real pain.

[CarawayDJ]

Originally Posted by HonuMan

I'm familiar with Sequim's rain shadow, statistically drier weather, and number of days when the sun comes out, but what does that mean subjectively? Are fall/winter/spring days just as overcast as elsewhere in the PNW, except with less precipitation? Are there really more sunny days, or does a "day with sunshine" just mean that the sun comes out for an hour or so before retreating behind cloudcover? I'm a long-time Portland resident who started out hating the dreary PNW winters, but I stayed because of the scenery and lifestyle. After a few years, I learned to tolerate the rain and cloudcover, and now I actively like it. I wouldn't mind a little less gray and a little more sun during the non-summer months, though. I've only been to Sequim during the late summer and early fall, when the weather was glorious. My wife and I love the area up there (especially the San Juans), and we're compiling a short list of potential retirement areas, if we don't stay in Portland.

The guy behind this site has posted on here before, but I don't recall his username. Anyway, visit here: Olympic Rain Shadow - Information and Resources

He put together some pretty decent objective analysis of the rain shadow. You can find people here who will tell you it is much sunnier, and also those who will tell you it is just as dreary but with less rain. This site has actual facts. It's clear that there is a pronounced difference in terms of sunshine and dreary days, but it's not Arizona either. Anyway, it's a good place to get a fairly objective picture.

[HonuMan]

Originally Posted by CarawayDJ

The guy behind this site has posted on here before, but I don't recall his username. Anyway, visit here: Olympic Rain Shadow - Information and Resources

He put together some pretty decent objective analysis of the rain shadow. You can find people here who will tell you it is much sunnier, and also those who will tell you it is just as dreary but with less rain. This site has actual facts. It's clear that there is a pronounced difference in terms of sunshine and dreary days, but it's not Arizona either. Anyway, it's a good place to get a fairly objective picture.

Thanks! The site makes a convincing case that Sequim and other towns in the rain shadow do indeed have noticeably more sunny days ("noticeable" if you're coming from other areas of the PNW; Arizona transplants might not notice the difference).

[eponabri]

Also please keep in mind that it can be different depending on the year and if we are in a La Nina or El Nino weather pattern.

[ukiyo-e]

Originally Posted by eponabri

Also please keep in mind that it can be different depending on the year and if we are in a La Nina or El Nino weather pattern.

Most definitely. I moved to Port Townsend in the summer of 2010 and my first two winters here were La Nina years, and were much drearier than the current one (so far). Not that I mind it - I like the mild weather here, and the light rain in the rainshadow is nothing. But my neighbors and I have all noticed that this El Nino winter is MUCH sunnier than the last two years. (Just the opposite of how El Nino affects California weather.)

[eponabri]

Originally Posted by ukiyo-e

Most definitely. I moved to Port Townsend in the summer of 2010 and my first two winters here were La Nina years, and were much drearier than the current one (so far). Not that I mind it - I like the mild weather here, and the light rain in the rainshadow is nothing. But my neighbors and I have all noticed that this El Nino winter is MUCH sunnier than the last two years. (Just the opposite of how El Nino affects California weather.)

And now it's getting really cold and they are saying we could get snow. Well, maybe not in PT and DP, but Port Angeles and Sequim could get some. But the sun will still shine!!

[Fairwinds]

I've been noticing that in the month of December, 2012 in Sequim, the rain shadow has moved to the north, over the Strait of Juan De Fuca. It's true that there is much more sunlight in Sequim then in Port Angeles, 15 miles to the west. I've been tracking the Rainshadow effect daily. Even with the cloud cover in Sequim, it's noticeably brighter in Sequim then it is in Port Angeles.