When does it get really cold?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Chicago ✅
1

<p>I'm not talking about fleece-wearing weather. I'm talking about the North Face/LL Bean sort of wind/cold/snow. </p>

<p>Would like to know if S needs to bring the serious winter weather gear at move in, or if he can take it back with him after Thanskgiving (and I have time to comparison shop). Having lived in Chicago as a young kid, one of my main memories is snow. I <em>know</em> he'll need the stuff before January.</p>

<p>Any suggestions on winter clothing that works (or doesn't) for dorms and walking around campus would be appreciated!</p>

2

<p>If I remember correctly my D didn't need her "serious" snow gear until after winter break. There may have been snow before then, but she didn't break out the knee length puffy coat until January!</p>

3

<p>I wore the winter jacket I wore at home (home is the mid-Atlantic) up until winter break (early December). When I got back from break, it was the big cahuna all the way. For me, that was a nice fuzzy synthetic hat, synthetic gloves, pure wool underclothing (expensive, but worth the price!), and a wool coat.</p>

<p>Most of the stuff I got on clearance at a ski shop (mom sent them to me); the jacket I got at Filene's for about $150. (It's a designer-label jacket that originally cost three times as much).</p>

<p>State Street has a Filene's, a TJ Maxx, and Loehmann's all together, and all are great destinations for not-super-expensive winter gear. (Found a great coat for a friend for $90). If you are going to be in and around Chicagoland, rumor has it there are some good outlet stores in the suburbs.</p>

4

<p>We get snow here, too, so S obviously has a winter coat -- but it's not as heavy as he'll need in Chicago (and he's grown since the last time we bought one). Forgot that he'll actually be back home during a good bit of December -- am still thinking in semester mode!</p>

5

<p>Having lived in Chicago for 25 years (but no longer), it is very difficult to predict. I can remember a couple of below zero thanksgivings and some in the 50's or warmer. January and February can be brutal. I was there in January 1985 when it was -27 F, and close to -90 with wind chill.</p>

6

<p>We've found that waterproof foot wear is really helpful in the late winter city slush.</p>

7

<p>You can't assume that it won't be really cold before Thanksgiving, although often it isn't.</p>

8

<p>It would be unusual here to have snow that sticks to the ground in November. That usually waits for Christmas. Usually being the operative word. Recently I have had roses still going in December. </p>

<p>There is generally a beautiful Indian summer here. Last year, remember, the Chicago Marathon (Oct 19) was ended early due to heat and humidity. That was odd weather.</p>

<p>I agree with serious cold being after the winter solstice. It is also common to have a January thaw.</p>

<p>What we always have is change!</p>

9

<p>wool underclothing... is it really that bad? how do chicago winters compare to new york city winters?</p>

10

<p>There is no comparison. We live in a NYC suburb and 2 of my kids have been at Chicago. The wind is the difference. Though snow amounts vary from year to year (Chicago tends to get much more than NYC), the air temperature is much colder. Add to that the ever-present wind chill and you will realize why you need much more serious cold weather gear in Chicago. My kids never wore boots, or even hats and gloves all that often in high school. At Chicago they learned the merits of layering...lots of layers!</p>

11

<p>NYC is meaningfully south of Chicago, and next to an ocean that moderates the temperature to some extent. Temperatures below -5C are relatively rare, even in midwinter. There is a lot of density of construction, and the city itself generates a lot of heat, especially in Manhattan (although the buildings can create a wind-tunnel effect).</p>

<p>Chicago is in the middle of a plain that extends to the Arctic. And you can tell. The average winter temperature is 2C below that of NYC, and the extremes are even further below.</p>

<p>NYC actually gets more winter precipitation than Chicago, but more of it is rain.</p>

12

<p>Not only is the measured temperature low, but the Hawk has a severe bite. (Hawk=wind)</p>

13

<p>JHS did a good job of pointing out the difference between NYC weather and Chicago weather.</p>

<p>You may hear the term "continental" climate, used both here and in Europe. It refers to areas like Chicago and Moscow that are far from any large water masses, so they have extremes of temperature that cities like NYC or Boston that are of comparable latitude don't. </p>

<p>The key to understanding Chicago weather is that there is nothing to moderate or stop arctic air masses from coming down. Lake Michigan is too small and to the east (so it has much more warming effect for Western Michigan!). Aside from the wind, which is a factor of course, the actual low temperatures that can be found in a Chicago winter are much lower than further east. During my D's undergrad years, when we lived in Boston, we usually found Chicago temps to be 5-10 degrees cooler than Boston, sometimes more. </p>

<p>Precipitation is another interesting issue. Contrary to popular belief, Chicago, like much of the midwest outside lake effect places (Cleveland, NW Indiana, western Mich etc) gets far less snow than back east. This is mostly because there are no large bodies of water to provide moisture - no "northeasters", and because the colder average air temperatures means the air holds less moisture.</p>

<p>Now, when it snows, it can seem like a lot because the snow is often accompanied by high winds and lots of drifting. But the absolute amounts are usually far less. OTOH, from a safety POV, the storms are far more dangerous because of the blowing snow, poor visibility and such. </p>

<p>The most important thing to remember, though, is that these kids are pretty resilient and resourceful. </p>

<p>I personally don't think it matters much what they have for winter gear because they will layer, borrow and improvise. And believe it or not, gloves (and a hat?) are more important than the right winter coat. You can stretch the temperature range of a light jacket by layering underneath with fleece, sweaters and such. </p>

<p>One other thing to consider is that Chicago does not seem to get as much really cold weather any more. When I was there myself for the first time (80-83), I remember well an entire week in early January where every day it was well below zero, including one -20 day. Don't think that's happened in quite a while.</p>

14

<p>To answer the original question...no, your son most likely will not need the heavy-duty winter outerwear before Thanksgiving break. There might be a couple of cold-ish days, but he'll work up to that and won't find pre-December weather that hard to bear w/o a winter coat.</p>

15

<p>ok so i'm basically never going outside.</p>

16

<p>Thanks, everyone. Sounds like what he has will work fine for the fall, and will give me a chance to scout out the good sales over Winter Break! By then he should have a good idea of whether layers are better than a heavier coat, given that he'll be in and out of buildings all day.</p>

17

<p>Cheer up. It's not likely this winter will be as bad as the last one.</p>

18

<p>Newmassdad:</p>

<p>Chicago may not get as much cold weather as it used to, but I remember a telephone conversation with my daughter the winter before last. She called in the morning as she was walking in to class, and cheerfully said, "It's the nicest weather we've had so far this week. When I opened the door and stepped outside, my heart didn't even stop."</p>

19

<p>JHS,</p>

<p>Cold is relative. We lived in Minneapolis when our daughter was born. People without garages would often bring their car batteries inside on really cold nights. You don't see that in Chicago!</p>

<p>Many schools have coat areas in the back of the classroom for the parkas, because they're pretty bulky. And insulated boots were standard. </p>

<p>Then again, they used to turn all the city baseball fields into hockey rinks - portable berms, flood the ground, turn on the lights...I'm told that these days that tradition has died out - they've built permanent rinks everywhere. But the ice fishing goes on.</p>

<p>Yes, cold is relative!</p>

20

<p>"...I'm told that these days that tradition has died out"</p>

<p>Carleton College still floods the center of their campus to turn it into an ice rink. it's not the baseball field, but I still think it's a pretty cool tradition.</p>