What the heck! I had thought to follow up yesterday's post, and now it doesn't seem terribly appropriate or important, but the map is done and loaded, and I haven't anything else to say, so I might as well go ahead and do it and end this freight train sentence, which is not technically a run-on because it's a legitimate and properly punctuated sentence.
As you can see, at -4°C/25°F the most populated part of the country isn't as cold as many might think in winter. Mind you, even in this zone, the more northerly reaches will go down to -10°C/14F, which isn't exactly blazing hot. Nevertheless, -4°C/25°F is about the same temperature as Chicago, Omaha, Lincoln, and Des Moines. It's only a little colder than Kansas City, St Louis, Salt Lake City, or Flagstaff and somewhat warmer than Milwaukee or Duluth.
Mind you, it get's pretty darn cold as you head north beyond this zone — unless you are a polar bear -35° is just a tad nippy. (FYI, once you get into the -35° range, there's not much difference between celsius and farenheit.)
Did you notice our own little subtropical zone of sorts on the west coast where the average January temperature stays above freezing? That makes the area roughly equivalent to Denmark, The Netherlands, Paris, London, and Milan.
All of that said, however, except for that narrow belt on the west coast, we most defintely experience winter (just not to the degree that many non-Canadians believe, which is the main point of these two blogs). If you don't believe me, just go back to my December posts with all of the snow scenes. Even here in our relatively southern city, where there is virtually no snow after several days of rain, it is sometimes difficult to go out for a walk in mid-February because the whole rain-snow-freeze-thaw cycle leaves difficult-to-spot, icy patches that can cause pedestrian ambulating to be a highly problematic enterprise by times.
Yes, we all get a little house-bound in February and yearn for it all to be over for another year. I eagerly look forward to spring, but I know that despite the occasional, teasing, warm interlude, we're a long way from flowers, green grass, and warm scented breezes.
Yes, I agree with -epm; at this time of year, the notion of enjoying a hiatus in Rome (perhaps even Rome, GA for that matter) seems mighty appealing.
Very interesting. I was just wondering... Why is it that British Columbia is warmer than 0C? Does that have anything to do with the warmer ocean streams coming from Japan?
ReplyDeleteWell, I had to wear a thin fleece jacket for part of the day today over my short-sleeved shirt, and I was mad! It was supposed to be hot, and I wanted to go to the playground w/o a jacket on!
ReplyDeleteWe made our first-ever trip North last summer -- Maine and into Canada. It was a great trip and the area was beautiful, but I'm glad I packed my fleece! I think it was the first time in my entire life that I had to wear long sleeves in June. Guess I'm just a whimpy little southerner.
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