Portland Reigns
I recently hosted a client from San Diego looking to move north to Portland and take advantage of Portland’s affordable housing. After 4 days of driving through a relentless Oregon drip-fest, I felt that even if we did find the perfect house for his family, the oppressive gray drizzle might convince him otherwise.
Ever the apologist for PDX, I rationalized the weather with comments like, “It’s not usually this wet.” and “We have a few days like this every year, but by and large, it’s pretty mild.” Then later, while looking at the growing green moss-slick on my driveway, I got to thinking about Portland’s rainfall versus other major cities.
So, here are the facts*: With an average of 37 inches per year, PDX ranks right in the middle of annual rainfall as measured at the country’s major weather reporting stations. In fact, Portland’s annual rain totals are comparable to cities like New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Seattle, and far less than many towns in Florida and throughout the much of the South.
The perceptive reader would ask, “Ah, but how often does it rain?” Admittedly, Portland does not fare so well here. With 283 major weather stations reporting, Portland ranks as the 30th most rainy climate with an average of 153 days per year with at least 0.01 inches of precipitation per day. These numbers are comparable to the Rust Belt and the upper MidWest. The Southern cities don’t start to make an appearance until around 120 days per year. LA is down around 35 days per year.
Alright, alright. So Portland gets a trace (or more) of rain 42% of days throughout the year. “At least there’s no shortage of green here,” I say to myself as I power-wash the moss off my sidewalk.
* Statistics from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, average of 30-year tracking data.
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Add comment November 16th, 2005
