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Northeast Temps vs. Colorado

SethMTaylor

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In prep for my first ski trip in the NE, does anyone have pointers for differences in temperatures or conditions?

Of course Heavenly is often windy and cold while places like Vail are easier to stay warm. I just want to make sure I have the equipment needed to be safe and warm.

Thanks!

S
 

SethMTaylor

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Alright, plenty of ice to slice up? Thanks for the heads up!


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JDMRoma

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Don't do it. !!!
You'd have to drag me kicking and screaming if I had to leave Colorado to come here right now. Just shoot me !!




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dlague

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OK Colorado literally gets between 4-6 feet of new snow over 7 days and the east has been in a warm up, some rain then refreeze cycle with limited snow and you want to do what? Ski the northeast? Snowmaking stopped around mid December here while snowmaking will be a requirement moving forward back east. Dry powder vs very firm? Hell no! I cannot imagine making that trade!

We were back east last weekend and while visiting family, we popped into the Ride and Ski Party at Pats Peak. I asked my wife if we should ski it for the fun of it and she wanted nothing to do with it.
 

Zermatt

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Clothing's the same, but sharpen your skis.

I disagree. The coldest days in Colorado are clear and calm and the thinner, drier air makes it feel much warmer. Meanwhile, in the NE the coldest days often have wind.

No comparison. Although, quite odd to say that Heavenly is cold versus Vail. Newsflash...you're in for a big surprise if you think Heavenly is cold.
 

drjeff

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I disagree. The coldest days in Colorado are clear and calm and the thinner, drier air makes it feel much warmer. Meanwhile, in the NE the coldest days often have wind.

No comparison. Although, quite odd to say that Heavenly is cold versus Vail. Newsflash...you're in for a big surprise if you think Heavenly is cold.

Agree!

Unless the winds are really whipping, out West it usually feels about 10 to 15 degrees warmer to me than in the same air temp back East
 

dlague

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I have not seen sub zero days yet but winter is young still. But it does feel warmer in Colorado compared to NE for sure. That being said, the winds here can be brutal as well.

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jimk

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Agree!

Unless the winds are really whipping, out West it usually feels about 10 to 15 degrees warmer to me than in the same air temp back East

Agree! I've had about 65 ski days out west (CO, UT, WY, CA) in the last two seasons and a big issue for me was daring to dress light enough to stay comfortable on about 50 of those days. My main jacket and bib ski pants for the past few years skiing the mid-Atlantic were too warm and it's not like I have super heavy duty cold weather stuff. Recently I bought a very light weight upper shell and thin, no-bib ski pants for western use this winter. Hey now that I think about it, maybe that's my little contribution to the abnormal amount of cold and snow they are getting;-)

Conversely, I couldn't put on enough clothes skiing in WV last Sunday due to low single digit air temps and high wind. Reached six thin layers on upper body at one point.

Abubob fixed me up with a proper helmet sticker:
attachment.php
 

BenedictGomez

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I disagree. The coldest days in Colorado are clear and calm and the thinner, drier air makes it feel much warmer. Meanwhile, in the NE the coldest days often have wind.

I guess you have a good point with the air content, but I wear the same stuff and have no ill effects. Then again, I'm not a bundle up in 100 layers person either, I dress pretty lightly. Thin underarmour, maybe a sweatshirt (or not), and a jacket, that's it.
 

dlague

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I guess you have a good point with the air content, but I wear the same stuff and have no ill effects. Then again, I'm not a bundle up in 100 layers person either, I dress pretty lightly. Thin underarmour, maybe a sweatshirt (or not), and a jacket, that's it.

I have been gearing up the exact same way I did back east. T-shirt, thin base layer, UA sweatshirt or Spyder pullover then Jacket. Ski pant with a single base layer. same mittens and socks. I never wore a face mask back east even on the coldest days and to do not now.

The way I look at it, I can always peel off a layer.
 

dlague

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After reading through this thread. I thought it through a bit and since we have been here we have not had any days that were below zero. In fact our coldest day was around 5 degrees which is still very cold. Someone mentioned that the coldest days here are clear and calm - nope. Breck and A Basin can get pretty windy and cold just because of their exposure. The top of A Basin especially can feel very cold with the wind. Coldest days have been windy and cloudy. Generally due to a cold front. That being said nothing compared to New England deep freezes. Overall, I think it is more pleasant but I also think that New England is more prone to wider temperature swings where there are thaws in January and then get cold as hell in February. But that is what makes it good sometimes - fewer people.

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Jully

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I do get excited when there is frigid cold for a few weekends mid season due to the lack of crowds.

So overall you'd say CO does not get as cold, but is more consistently cold?
 

skiur

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I think you have to factor in the humidity. It's much higher on the lower elevation eastern mountains which will make it feel colder at the same temp as the high elevation low humidity west. I have never been skiing in the Pacific Northwest, but would suspect it feels colder there as well.
 

mister moose

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After reading through this thread. I thought it through a bit and since we have been here we have not had any days that were below zero. In fact our coldest day was around 5 degrees which is still very cold. Someone mentioned that the coldest days here are clear and calm - nope. Breck and A Basin can get pretty windy and cold just because of their exposure. The top of A Basin especially can feel very cold with the wind. Coldest days have been windy and cloudy. Generally due to a cold front. That being said nothing compared to New England deep freezes. Overall, I think it is more pleasant but I also think that New England is more prone to wider temperature swings where there are thaws in January and then get cold as hell in February. But that is what makes it good sometimes - fewer people.

Not the same at all as my experience. Colorado Springs gets wide variation in temperatures, snowing one week and warm the next. I agree that the Springs doesn't get the bitter cold the mountains do, but no one skis in the Springs anyway. While I was living in the Colorado mountains, well below zero was the norm. The coldest winter was 3 weeks of 20 below weather, meaning that for 3 weeks the temp did not get above -20. The coldest night was -39F at base elevations. My truck barely started at -35F, I didn't even try at -39. I hitchhiked into work that day. Cars that started had block heaters that were plugged in.

Yes, cold days at Breck can be windy, but those are cold days in the +15 to -10F range. Add some wind chill in. Once it goes below that in true temperature, it's usually a pool of cold air with a high pressure bubble settling in from the Yukon, and there is blue sky and little wind and the bottom falls out of the thermometer.

The air below -20 has a 'bite' to it. It is NOT the same as -20 wind chill. It burns a little breathing. I think that just like the altitude, you acclimate to it eventually as the vessels close to the skin adapt to keeping more warm blood flow. I remember not layering up too much more for that cold, (I had a very warm down parka) but you better stay active. I lived in long underwear that stretch, indoors, in bed, work. Only came off for showers. Let me tell you the burn of cold car seat vinyl at -35F is something to experience.

I think you have to factor in the humidity. It's much higher on the lower elevation eastern mountains which will make it feel colder at the same temp as the high elevation low humidity west. I have never been skiing in the Pacific Northwest, but would suspect it feels colder there as well.

No, for several reasons. First, there is almost no moisture (of significance) in the air once you get below zero. Second, the source of the cold air for NE is Canada, think Alberta Clipper. That air mass is both cold and dry. Moist air masses come from the Atlantic Ocean in a classic Nor'easter scenario. That weather brings snow (or rain) in the well above zero range, frequently in the 20's. So for that air mass, yes it has more water content than out west, and yes it will feel colder at 25F in Vermont than 25F in Colorado. But a damp 25F feels like late spring compared to 30 below. I've lived in both, and I think the damp cold is colder business is more urban legend than reality.

Real cold is also different as physical properties change. Snow get less slippery and squeaky. Grease and oil thicken and won't rotate at first. Rubber (as in car tires) stiffens to where it won't return to round. Bearings fail. Fan belts snap. Batteries have minimal power. Glass is very brittle.

It does make sense that high elevation air will feel less cold than low elevation air at the same temperature and humidity. Less dense air will conduct less heat away from your body. I'm not sure that's anywhere near the major factor though.

 
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