[migratory birds]

You're peak summer there...and we're due to get to -23C (-10F) this mid-January week :eek: I am vividly able to recall why I submitted my application to emigrate. It wasn't politics, quality of life, a job offer...it was CLIMATE!!

If you can bring forward from the depths of your memories...

Please report on what winters are like in your communities (please state community or region you're in, whether you're on the N or S island, and a bit about typical mid-winter days/nights/weather.

Ta!

[Tia Maria]

Auckland, Villa, Non Driver, Feels the Cold

Cold, wet, colder in the wind (we're on the coast).

Colder because my 100 year old villa is badly insulated. Bed socks, blanket on the sofa because the heating is expensive

No snow, hailed twice, more blue skies, less of those long dark mornings. Confusingly daffodils grow and when the sun comes out, my whole house can heat up nicely.

You should probably get people to say whether they feel the cold also. I do feel the cold and my OH doesn't find it half as bad (although boy is he suffering with this heat! :laugh )

I wear the same winter coat I did in the UK but I'm outside a lot. I think if you drive you can easily treat it as more of an autumn. And I see plenty of locals who wear shorts all year round.

I don't mind winter but I do object to being cold in my house, that really is the worse bit about it. This is probably why, even though NZ winters are much milder, I prefer UK winters - if that makes sense!

Cheers

Tia

[Moorf]

Inland Canterbury Plains 55km inland from Chch, Driver, prefers cold to hot!

In the three winters we have experienced here not one has been the same!

2005 - Mild winter, lots of low cloud
2006 - Massive snow dumps (snowed in at home for 3 days without leccy etc), not overly cold but wetter than usual
2007 - V.cold altho milder than average apparently, lots of crisp clear-sky days with sun and even a few high-temp days (low 20's)

The main themes running through the winters I have experienced in Canterbury are:

Dry
Hot in sun - FREEZING in shade
Frosts inland
Snow falls expected inland.

Please bear in mind our weather inland is very different from Christchurch's (we're at the foot of the Alps for a start and at a higher elevation).

HTH
Moorf

[K&CS]

Very changeable. I've had two winters so far, and in each winter month, the temp has topped at least 20 degrees, even if for just one day, and the minimum was about -5 last July. In chch, it can be grey and chilly, or very sunny and cold or else sunny and warm. When a norwester comes, it will fan the temperatures right up. We had about 4 days in July last year when a norwester came and the temperature was up in the 20s and it felt like summer had returned for a few days. Everyone was walking down the esplanade in shorts, eating icecreams! You just never know what to expect.

I have found winter to be generally shorter, lighter, sunnier and milder than the UK, but with the odd few days that would rival any sort of winter weather you'd get in the UK. This probably hasn't helped much actually!

[jubjub]

Im Auckland too, but inland a bit. only seen three frosts since we got here, and they were mild, no need to scrape the car windscreen.

We have a wood burner in a large lounge/kitchen/diner area, that gets roasting, while the back of the house is above the garage and its cold! we dont bother with a heater in our room, just get into jammies quickly and jump under the thick quilt, with a blanket on top.

Our little boys room has an oil heater on all night.

It really only gets very cold May/June/July, then the rest is kind of UK autumn like, until summer hits at around end Oct, until March-ish..

Midwinter it doesnt get dark until about 6 and light just after 7

I have not worn a winter coat since I got here, just hope the moths havent got to it, might have to get round to selling it on TM to some poor soul on SI who needs it! ;)

[Sam B]

Basically short, more sun than UK but also more rain. Houses v cold, but few frosts and quite warm during day time mostly. Washing dries outside all year. Winter proper lasts 2 months. In Cambridge. Nights indoors are cold - brrrr.

[Familyofmonkeys]

Auckland, spent winter in 28 yr old house (now moved) in-land a bit, love proper cold winter but feel the cold....alot more hardy than I used to be!

Winter was not very cold...more lilke UK autumn...but very wet!
Was in house with poor insulation and biggest problem was keeping in dry.

Many mornings it was warmer outside than indoors (6 degrees some mornings indoors)...not kidding!

We survived by having halogen heater on low (cheap to run) all night in bedrooms, plus hot water bottles, winter duvets and pj's. During the day we stayed in one room so we didn't have to heat whole house.

Now in modern house with insulation and are planning on getting nice warm, well insulated house built :)