If you are considering a move to WA... (Seattle, Sequim: new home, college)

[Jumpindogs]

...be sure to check out the Washington Picture thread. Some amazing captures of incomparable beauty.

I see now that when we retire to Sequim there will be lots of rewarding travel opportunities close by in our new home state.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Jumpindogs

...be sure to check out the Washington Picture thread. Some amazing captures of incomparable beauty.

I see now that when we retire to Sequim there will be lots of rewarding travel opportunities close by in our new home state.

And realize that many of the pics were taken during our very short summer (but with long days!!!)

I.e. Don't miss WA 100 days of summer if you live on the we_tside!

If you heat by wood, are an avid gardener, or a farmer, or are active in sports (especially cycling), you will be very busy in the summer and need to hibernate in the winter to rest up!

If you have to leave WA during the summer to visit other locales, you lose a yr of your life.

[Jumpindogs]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

And realize that many of the pics were taken during our very short summer (but with long days!!!)

I.e. Don't miss WA 100 days of summer if you live on the we_tside!

If you heat by wood, are an avid gardener, or a farmer, or are active in sports (especially cycling), you will be very busy in the summer and need to hibernate in the winter to rest up!

If you have to leave WA during the summer to visit other locales, you lose a yr of your life.

LOL! Yes, we plan on busy summers and laid back winters. Except I plan on hiking all winter long. During the day. The short day.

I cannot imagine summering elsewhere if one lives in the PNW.

[Lamplight]

I bike year round here, both for commuting and for fun. It's really not that difficult but you have to have the right clothing and, perhaps most importantly, good fenders. (I don't own a car, so I'm outside a LOT) In fact, I think I enjoy biking on a cool, damp day more than a sunny summer one, but I'm not as likely to take pictures because I don't want to get my camera wet Hiking in the winter, at least to me, is not really a challenge at all. If it's drizzling I just wear my rain coat. Not even an issue.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Lamplight

I bike year round here, both for commuting and for fun. .... Not even an issue.

YMMV.

I have had 3 WA friends killed while biking in the PNW winter (blurred wipers / dark / slick)

I biked nearly everyday when in Colorado (30 yrs) (wide shoulders (for snow removal) / many bikers (motorists recognize and look for bikes) / free use of right lane for bikers), but seldom biked in 30 yrs in PNW (rural living). Too narrow of roads, and dark. I use my 50mpg 'grease car' with heater and wipers. The car cost 1/10th the price of my bike and uses free fuel that has no emissions, so I'm not out much (except health benefit of cycling) I do miss that since I rode many thousand miles / yr.

In the PNW summer, I am too busy getting ready for winter to spend time biking. (Farmer activities).

Enjoy your WA benefits however they come.

[TrueTimbers]

Stealth.. You do realize this is insanely mild for those of us from the upper Midwest yes?

When we get 6 inches of snow every day in March, and the average temp is around d 0 for 3 months with snow and ice deep in the ground for 7 months.. Then I will take whinning about biking in winter seriously...

Your soft,...
This is a tropical heaven.. Compared to the lake superior snow belt.

[Lamplight]

You do need to make sure your bike is very well lit if you ride in the winter, of course. Especially if you know you'll be riding after dark. But that goes for any other state, too. So far I've been biking here for three years without incident, which is more than I could go in a couple of weeks in Tennessee (where I moved from). But like anywhere, you have to make yourself visible and be predictable. That's just common sense.

[analogkid84]

Go talk to some folks that ride with Seattle Randonneurs. They'll show you how to light up a bike and make it rideable year 'round. Fenders are a must during the wet part of the year. Many of them are bike commuters as well, as it fits into training for their rides.

[Jumpindogs]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

YMMV.

I have had 3 WA friends killed while biking in the PNW winter (blurred wipers / dark / slick)

I biked nearly everyday when in Colorado (30 yrs) (wide shoulders (for snow removal) / many bikers (motorists recognize and look for bikes) / free use of right lane for bikers), but seldom biked in 30 yrs in PNW (rural living). Too narrow of roads, and dark. I use my 50mpg 'grease car' with heater and wipers. The car cost 1/10th the price of my bike and uses free fuel that has no emissions, so I'm not out much (except health benefit of cycling) I do miss that since I rode many thousand miles / yr.

In the PNW summer, I am too busy getting ready for winter to spend time biking. (Farmer activities).

Enjoy your WA benefits however they come.

So sorry to hear about your friends, StealthRabbit.

Road biking can be dangerous anywhere. I work at SE WI's only Level I Trauma Center and we get lots of biking traumas in the summer. I was run off the road by a car while biking close to the curb on a very wide road along Milwaukee's Lake Park when I was in college...dumped my bike and earned some cuts and bruises. So I have some road biking fears myself. Which is why I rarely bike roads opting instead for trails. And why we were thrilled to find property so close to the Discovery Trail for biking fun. However, even though we are only about 1/4 mile from the DT we will prolly load bikes and drive to the DT...Palo Alto is too curvy/narrow and crossing 101 there is dicey in a car let alone a bike.

At work we see the tragic evidence that an argument between a bike and a car, or even a motorcycle and a car, always end up in favor of the car. We don't call motorcycles "donorcycles" for laughs. Those are odds I don't care to fight.

[Jumpindogs]

Originally Posted by Lamplight

You do need to make sure your bike is very well lit if you ride in the winter, of course. Especially if you know you'll be riding after dark. But that goes for any other state, too. So far I've been biking here for three years without incident, which is more than I could go in a couple of weeks in Tennessee (where I moved from). But like anywhere, you have to make yourself visible and be predictable. That's just common sense.

Definitely. And I agree that drivers in some areas of the country are much more tuned in to watching for bikers than other areas.

But the fact remains that if you are biking roads anywhere you are putting your life in the hands of the drivers on that road. And, if one of those drivers happens to be texting or reaching for coffee or spilling that coffee (and so on and so forth), you may wind up the casualty of their inattentive driving. Because that argument will always be won by the car.

I see road biking as living on the edge. Like sky diving and race car driving. But that's prolly cause I see the results and help clean up the sad mess.