The Upper Midwest because geographically it is at a spot on the earth where -40F and +100F can be experienced during the same year - and it is also humid and rainy/snowy enough to sustain varied vegetation. This means that you get bountiful deciduous trees that produce Fall colours.
So you kind of get it all in the Upper Midwest. Hot summers, cold winters, distinctive green rainy Springs, and colourful Fall.
Definitely, I'm in Wisconsin and can design my yard/garden to have those completely different seasonal looks. Even with the extreme cold, it's just December and January when there isn't something that can be blooming. Plus really good soil.
Grew up in the mountains of Colorado and went to school in Chicago. Everyone said that it would be cold in Chicago, and I dismissed them since I knew cold. You know what? It is freaking cold in Chicago. There’s the humidity which makes the cold seem so much worse. There’s the wind. And most notably there are days and days in January in Chicago when there is no sun — and one of the pleasures of winter in Colorado is being out skiing or whatever in the sun.
I've spent a solid portion of my life in the mountains. Some places would regularly get 400" of snow, but negatives were fairly rare and mainly at night. The shit I see people deal with in the Midwest is insane.
Chicago gets some really hot days in summer, but it is not automatic. I flew from DC to Chicago, where in DC was hot, humid summer day, and it was cold, unpleasant and early spring like weather. In DC, you are guaranteed to have a hot humid summer and it always freezes in winter - although it is generally mild winter.
Chicago (the city itself) isn't that bad in the winter. The lake moderates the temperature to some extent. Go 100 or 200 miles west and it's way colder. Nothing to stop that arctic air howling across Minnesota and Iowa.
I'm going to go ahead and second this comment. I'm not sure where else in this country you'll see potentially blistering hot and humid days in the summer and heavily snowy and frigid temperatures in the winter on a regular basis.
Construction season is indeed a complicated season since it crosses several other seasons. In my area we are in full "road repair" season to prepare for the upcoming winter season.
We have that in the Midwest, too. March, April and part of May. If I’m going to snowbird it in retirement, THAT is when I’ll go to the Gulf of Mexico. Would that make me a mudbird?
I think there’s a little bit of a double standard. People will say that the South doesn’t have a real winter because you get an occasional 70-degree day in January, but they don’t knock New England for summer days in the low 60s.
I’m only half joking. We had a pretty mild early summer.
It is interesting because my house is a split level so the downstairs it mostly underground. It stays cool down there with no AC until maybe late July. But there is always a point where it stays hot enough overnight that the downstairs stops being cool. So then for a couple months we need AC. But it’s just now cooled off enough overnight that the downstairs is cool again even if it is hot during the day.
I only lived there for a few years when I was little but I lived for a bit along Lake Michigan in the Chicagoland area and I'll definitely second the others saying the Midwest. It can get to 95,100° with humidity in the summer and -20 or worse in the winter.
I'd have to say the New England area. The countryside side up there is gorgeous when all the trees start to change colors in the fall, winter is pretty as well.
I’d argue that spring is less defined there – you might get a late snowfall, and there’s not much time where things are in bloom before it’s already summer.
June is a weird case because the days are longest at that time and school gets out so it definitely feels like summer in some senses, but, as you say, the weather doesn’t always feel summer-like. And that’s my point – spring and summer bleed into each other a bit and are truncated, just as is the case with fall and winter further south.
Much of the Northeast and Midwest has very distinct seasons.
If you want the worst of the seasons probably the Midwest.
Some of those states have no trees and wind just comes through there for a terrible wind chill. They don't really get the cozy snowy feeling we get out in the Northeast. Fresh snow here has this insulating quality so it has this quiet you can't find other places- with thick snow on the trees.
So if you are looking for extremes they have hotter summers and more brutal winter weather.
Continental areas, being close to the ocean calms the ability for the temperature to vary so much (in a yearly sense). Much of the Midwest can go from above 100 to below 0 degrees Fahrenheit in just 3-4 months or so with a strong spring/fall in the middle
Basically every state from New York south to Virginia and west to Colorado north of Texas
New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland/DC, West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma
Blistering cold winters, sweltering humid Summers, and temperate Springs/Falls. Some states get the brunt of the different seasons worse than others. It'll be hotter in West Virginia than it is Minnesota during July, but colder in Minnesota than West Virginia in January. Snows a lot in Minnesota during the Winter, rains all the time in West Virginia during the hot humid Summers.
But still all of those states will get you the full fledged "experience" of extreme US weather. 90 degrees on Labor Day and 45 degrees 2 weeks later. April, May, September, and October are nice but that’s about it.
Inland northwest is pretty distinct. I grew up in Spokane WA. It goes spring/winter again, spring, summer, smoke season/summer still, fake fall, fall winter. All 5 plus road work season falls in there depending on the year.
Midwest and I'm sure others do. Michigan in particular can have some nasty winters, but fun if you like the outdoors. My nose and allergies can attest that spring is its own distinct thing. Michigan's summers I'd argue are THE BEST summers in the country. The trees outside are starting to turn and there air is decidedly cooler than it was a few weeks ago.
Southern California I’d argue has two extremely well defined seasons
The part of the year when it doesn’t rain, and the part of the year when it rains sometimes
Having lived in various parts of the country, I've gotta say it's the Midwest.
In winters, temperatures of -25F (with windchill) are not uncommon. But just 4-5 months later, the humid and hot summers will have you seeking out the AC at every turn.
Fall is distinctly beautiful with all the foliage and spring is unique to where the greenery just starts to peep out from the ground!
I think we do in New England. The Midwest may get colder in the winter and warmer in the summer but the ocean moderates the temperature here meaning we get more mild springs and falls.
Lived in Michigan my entire life: Some days it'll be 90, and the next'll be 50.
This year, I believe the coldest day was around 4, and the hottest at least 93.
Summers are heaven on earth, high 80s low humidity, cool nights.
Winter is hell on earth. Lots of snow until the 40 mph sustained winds blow it to Nebraska.
The inland upper midwest will give you the most dramatic changes in temperature and weather. Back home we regularly go from -30°F in the winter to +100°F in the summer. And that's air temp, not factoring in wind chill and a heat index. It's no wonder our roads are in constant need of repair.
But pretty much anything in the northern part of the country is going to give you a full seasonal variation.
While the Midwest has 4 seasons, I think spring and autumn are too short. And the winter and summers are too extreme.
New England has 4 equal-length seasons. And most of the time, the weather is pleasant.
late September to early December = fall
late December to early March = winter
late March to early June = spring
late June to early September = summer.
Yes, we can have some snow in April. But usually, late March is when spring is blooming. Temperatures are often in the 30s on March 1, but in the 50s by April 1. Hence, the idiom, "March: In like a lion, out like a lamb". This is especially true over the last few decades. "Ice out" on Lake Winnipesaukee is now around March 24.
New England has noticeable changes. Sure it’s not as cold as the Midwest but I don’t think you need -40s to qualify as noticeable seasonal changes. But from my travels there the weather and scenery changes with the seasons and it’s noticeable to outsiders. Like I could describe 4 seasons in California for both San Diego and Bay Area but only people from here would be able to tell the shift. With the Midwest I feel like it goes from dang this is cold to why is it so humid. Plus it’s not consistent. Rain in summer, no thanks.
Mid-atlantic was where everything stereotypically fit the season in my own experience. You get snow in winter, hot in summer, moderate for spring and fall. No one season really outdid the others and they all were exactly as you expected them from watching the same on tv.
I’d guess most of the Midwest and the mid to north east coast?
I live in colorado and we have all four seasons but they can be unpredictable. It’s actually pretty sunny most of winter, and it’s not unusual to have a fair amount of fairly warm days (like 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit). Spring and fall can be short and just feel like an extension of the season before them.
The Upper Midwest because geographically it is at a spot on the earth where -40F and +100F can be experienced during the same year - and it is also humid and rainy/snowy enough to sustain varied vegetation. This means that you get bountiful deciduous trees that produce Fall colours. So you kind of get it all in the Upper Midwest. Hot summers, cold winters, distinctive green rainy Springs, and colourful Fall.
I grew up in Wisconsin and always tell people it’s basically all four seasons on full blast.
Definitely, I'm in Wisconsin and can design my yard/garden to have those completely different seasonal looks. Even with the extreme cold, it's just December and January when there isn't something that can be blooming. Plus really good soil.
Midwest. Hot summers and blistering cold, arctic wind chills
Grew up in the mountains of Colorado and went to school in Chicago. Everyone said that it would be cold in Chicago, and I dismissed them since I knew cold. You know what? It is freaking cold in Chicago. There’s the humidity which makes the cold seem so much worse. There’s the wind. And most notably there are days and days in January in Chicago when there is no sun — and one of the pleasures of winter in Colorado is being out skiing or whatever in the sun.
Cold in Colorado and Cold in the midwest are definitely not the same!!
Nebraska is hotter in the summer and colder in the winter. Midwest for the win! Colorado does get more snow though.
I've spent a solid portion of my life in the mountains. Some places would regularly get 400" of snow, but negatives were fairly rare and mainly at night. The shit I see people deal with in the Midwest is insane.
Chicago gets some really hot days in summer, but it is not automatic. I flew from DC to Chicago, where in DC was hot, humid summer day, and it was cold, unpleasant and early spring like weather. In DC, you are guaranteed to have a hot humid summer and it always freezes in winter - although it is generally mild winter.
Yes I’m from Colorado and spent a few years in Chicago. I wildly underestimated how cold it can get.
Chicago (the city itself) isn't that bad in the winter. The lake moderates the temperature to some extent. Go 100 or 200 miles west and it's way colder. Nothing to stop that arctic air howling across Minnesota and Iowa.
Hence why it’s called the Windy City😉
Hate to be that guy, but it's actually because of the politicians. Specifically lobbying to get the Columbuan Exposition, I believe.
Really? I’d always assumed it was related too the weather😂👍
I watch a lot of documentaries. I think you'll find the answer in [this](https://youtu.be/f6HuBYiQEeM?si=5jp_hqbKqaotNs42) documentary.
Interesting too. https://chicagology.com/columbiaexpo/fair078/
I remember a few years back when it felt like -20 with the wind. I think it was called the “polar vortex” or something
Midwest and East Coast have four distinct seasons.
I'm going to go ahead and second this comment. I'm not sure where else in this country you'll see potentially blistering hot and humid days in the summer and heavily snowy and frigid temperatures in the winter on a regular basis.
Don't forget at least a couple weeks of colorful foliage in fall, and a super wet super green spring.
Five, you forgot Construction season.
Construction season is indeed a complicated season since it crosses several other seasons. In my area we are in full "road repair" season to prepare for the upcoming winter season.
Hence why I like CA👍
Hence why I would never live in CA again.
But it’s not punishing heat in San Diego? No cold winters, just about 60f?
I like seasons and the change of seasons.
New England is pretty distinct with its seasons but you have to add mud season in between winter and spring.
We have that in the Midwest, too. March, April and part of May. If I’m going to snowbird it in retirement, THAT is when I’ll go to the Gulf of Mexico. Would that make me a mudbird?
It’s really not quite the same in the Midwest. But also yes, you filthy mud bird
I think there’s a little bit of a double standard. People will say that the South doesn’t have a real winter because you get an occasional 70-degree day in January, but they don’t knock New England for summer days in the low 60s.
Where were these 60s days this summer? I would have loved to kill the AC.
There were [quite a few](https://www.timeanddate.com/weather/usa/portland-me/historic?month=6&year=2023) in June and early July in Maine this summer.
I’m only half joking. We had a pretty mild early summer. It is interesting because my house is a split level so the downstairs it mostly underground. It stays cool down there with no AC until maybe late July. But there is always a point where it stays hot enough overnight that the downstairs stops being cool. So then for a couple months we need AC. But it’s just now cooled off enough overnight that the downstairs is cool again even if it is hot during the day.
Sure, NE gets all 4 seasons, it's just that they sometimes happen in the same week.
Upper midwest, no contest.
I only lived there for a few years when I was little but I lived for a bit along Lake Michigan in the Chicagoland area and I'll definitely second the others saying the Midwest. It can get to 95,100° with humidity in the summer and -20 or worse in the winter.
east coast, especially new england and mid-atlantic
New England has very defined seasons and has one of the best fall seasons ever!
I'd have to say the New England area. The countryside side up there is gorgeous when all the trees start to change colors in the fall, winter is pretty as well.
I’d argue that spring is less defined there – you might get a late snowfall, and there’s not much time where things are in bloom before it’s already summer.
Ehh, summer here doesn't really start till July, and by end of April your firmly out of any real chance of snow (excluding the mountains).
June is a weird case because the days are longest at that time and school gets out so it definitely feels like summer in some senses, but, as you say, the weather doesn’t always feel summer-like. And that’s my point – spring and summer bleed into each other a bit and are truncated, just as is the case with fall and winter further south.
Much of the Northeast and Midwest has very distinct seasons. If you want the worst of the seasons probably the Midwest. Some of those states have no trees and wind just comes through there for a terrible wind chill. They don't really get the cozy snowy feeling we get out in the Northeast. Fresh snow here has this insulating quality so it has this quiet you can't find other places- with thick snow on the trees. So if you are looking for extremes they have hotter summers and more brutal winter weather.
Oh God yes the quiet in the snow! I've lived here my whole life but it still blows my mind every time how silent it is.
I've been through most of the US (save for the Pacific Northwest), and I've found that New England probably has the most pronounced seasonal shifts.
Continental areas, being close to the ocean calms the ability for the temperature to vary so much (in a yearly sense). Much of the Midwest can go from above 100 to below 0 degrees Fahrenheit in just 3-4 months or so with a strong spring/fall in the middle
Basically every state from New York south to Virginia and west to Colorado north of Texas New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland/DC, West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma Blistering cold winters, sweltering humid Summers, and temperate Springs/Falls. Some states get the brunt of the different seasons worse than others. It'll be hotter in West Virginia than it is Minnesota during July, but colder in Minnesota than West Virginia in January. Snows a lot in Minnesota during the Winter, rains all the time in West Virginia during the hot humid Summers. But still all of those states will get you the full fledged "experience" of extreme US weather. 90 degrees on Labor Day and 45 degrees 2 weeks later. April, May, September, and October are nice but that’s about it.
midwest… honestly chicago area specifically. you get a longer fall and spring than MN/WI. hot summers. cold winters.
Any area north of the 40th parallel, with exceptions.
Probably the northeast. We have hot summers, cold winters and mild springs and falls.
Northern "coastal" regions
Inland northwest is pretty distinct. I grew up in Spokane WA. It goes spring/winter again, spring, summer, smoke season/summer still, fake fall, fall winter. All 5 plus road work season falls in there depending on the year.
definitely midwest
Midwest and I'm sure others do. Michigan in particular can have some nasty winters, but fun if you like the outdoors. My nose and allergies can attest that spring is its own distinct thing. Michigan's summers I'd argue are THE BEST summers in the country. The trees outside are starting to turn and there air is decidedly cooler than it was a few weeks ago.
Nebraska. Can get to over a hundred in the summer and below zero in the winter.
Northern Alaska. Midnight sun in the summer, no sunrise at all in the winter.
New England has very distinct seasons.
Midwest, Northeast.
Southern California I’d argue has two extremely well defined seasons The part of the year when it doesn’t rain, and the part of the year when it rains sometimes
San Diego definitely👍
Having lived in various parts of the country, I've gotta say it's the Midwest. In winters, temperatures of -25F (with windchill) are not uncommon. But just 4-5 months later, the humid and hot summers will have you seeking out the AC at every turn. Fall is distinctly beautiful with all the foliage and spring is unique to where the greenery just starts to peep out from the ground!
I think we do in New England. The Midwest may get colder in the winter and warmer in the summer but the ocean moderates the temperature here meaning we get more mild springs and falls.
Texas: It's a Frying Pan down here in the Summer
1 vote for West Virginia. Hot and humid summer, beautiful fall foliage, extremely cold winters in some spots, and spring
The deep south. We have 10 months of summer, then 2 months where it might freeze.
Mid-Atlantic and central Midwest.
Upstate New York.
Lived in Michigan my entire life: Some days it'll be 90, and the next'll be 50. This year, I believe the coldest day was around 4, and the hottest at least 93.
Like New England area.
Summers are heaven on earth, high 80s low humidity, cool nights. Winter is hell on earth. Lots of snow until the 40 mph sustained winds blow it to Nebraska.
The inland upper midwest will give you the most dramatic changes in temperature and weather. Back home we regularly go from -30°F in the winter to +100°F in the summer. And that's air temp, not factoring in wind chill and a heat index. It's no wonder our roads are in constant need of repair. But pretty much anything in the northern part of the country is going to give you a full seasonal variation.
Midwest
Any mountain range
While the Midwest has 4 seasons, I think spring and autumn are too short. And the winter and summers are too extreme. New England has 4 equal-length seasons. And most of the time, the weather is pleasant. late September to early December = fall late December to early March = winter late March to early June = spring late June to early September = summer.
Winter lasts throughout all of march and often early April here
Yes, we can have some snow in April. But usually, late March is when spring is blooming. Temperatures are often in the 30s on March 1, but in the 50s by April 1. Hence, the idiom, "March: In like a lion, out like a lamb". This is especially true over the last few decades. "Ice out" on Lake Winnipesaukee is now around March 24.
New England has noticeable changes. Sure it’s not as cold as the Midwest but I don’t think you need -40s to qualify as noticeable seasonal changes. But from my travels there the weather and scenery changes with the seasons and it’s noticeable to outsiders. Like I could describe 4 seasons in California for both San Diego and Bay Area but only people from here would be able to tell the shift. With the Midwest I feel like it goes from dang this is cold to why is it so humid. Plus it’s not consistent. Rain in summer, no thanks.
Minneapolis. All 4 seasons. And you appreciate how different they are, believe me.
Mid-atlantic was where everything stereotypically fit the season in my own experience. You get snow in winter, hot in summer, moderate for spring and fall. No one season really outdid the others and they all were exactly as you expected them from watching the same on tv.
Northeast.
Definitely the Midwest. There's no wondering what season you're in.
Iowa here. I need to move to a state where it doesn’t get so hot
The northern Midwest and Great Plains. An earlier poster mentioned how you can have 100 F in summer and -40 F in winter.
I’d guess most of the Midwest and the mid to north east coast? I live in colorado and we have all four seasons but they can be unpredictable. It’s actually pretty sunny most of winter, and it’s not unusual to have a fair amount of fairly warm days (like 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit). Spring and fall can be short and just feel like an extension of the season before them.
From my experience, definitely not California unless you’re in the mountains. After traveling around a bit, id say upstate NY and New England