Happy Minot Monday, everyone! Today–in honor of our first big cold snap , I’ll be chatting about what a winter in Practically Canada is really like.
We moved from Minot to Rapid City (SD) in 2016. As we settled into town and told folks where we were moving from I heard a lot of responses like this.
“Yuck, it’s too cold up there. Bet you’re glad to be out of there.”
“Ugh. The winters are awful up there and there’s nothing to do. Bet you’re glad you live here now.”
“North Dakota? Ugh. It’s cold there.”
“The winters are too cold. I could never live there.”
Etc, etc, etc. You get the picture.
I actually refused to work with a couple realtors who thought they were making cute small talk by dishing negative comments about a town I happen to love. I mean, it’s fine if they want to harbor negative thoughts, but please don’t try to entrap me in negative camaraderie. It’s not going to work.
I get a similar vibe from people who find out they are moving here for military orders (“Minot is the worst assignment…” “You’ll be miserable because it’s so cold…” “I’ll hate it there…”)
And don’t forget about the snarky comments when we revealed that we were moving back:
Them: I’m so sorry you got stationed there again. That’s awful. It’s so cold and isolated.
Us: We actually requested to go back, if possible.
Them: …..
What is winter in Minot really like?
So today I’m going to clear some things up. If you found out you’ve got orders to Minot, or you’ll be moving here for work, or this is your first winter, or last winter was miserable–I’m here to tell you what winter is really like in Practically Canada and give you tips on surviving–attitude intact.
First of all, winter is no one’s favorite feature of Minot.
Winter is harsh. The windchill can be brutal. You won’t find anyone in town who says they love January weather.
But you know what else is brutal? July in Florida and Louisiana. Hurricane season in the Panhandle. Tornado season in Oklahoma. Everywhere has something that isn’t ideal.
I actually find the dark harder than the cold. After Daylight Savings Time, it gets dark pretty early. Like early enough that it will disorient you for a while. On the flip side, the loooong summer days are also a little confusing at first.
Yes, winter here is cold. It’s a fact. Accept it, don’t dwell too much on it, and move on. I promise you–the long, perfect summer days will make up for a lot of the pain of winter.
When does winter start? End?
I start to expect winter to come calling around Halloween. Around this time temperatures will become consistently colder with a few warmer days sprinkled in.
Winter is safely over by June. (I’m kind of kidding.) By April we’ll see warmer days, melting snow and even a little green grass. However, there are usually still some snowy days in April. May is more sure to be spring-like. June is perfect and summery. So I guess what I’m saying is, spring is very iffy around here.
How cold is winter in Minot?
We just got back from a week in Rapid City. While we were there, I had several people ask me, “Is winter really that much different in Minot than Rapid?”
The answer is YES. Winter here is different than any other place I’ve lived.
While some places get cold for a while, then warm up for a few days, then get cold again, Minot will get cold and stay cold. In Rapid City, and my home state, Indiana, snow will fall, sit on the ground for a bit, then melt a little (or completely) before more snow falls. In Minot, snow that falls late in November will likely not melt completely until April. (But sometimes a random 30-40˚ day does give us a pleasant surprise.)
Once temperatures fall for good there will be days when the high doesn’t get above zero (yes, I’m talking Fahrenheit.) Lows will definitely be in the negatives. Sometimes they high will be below zero for days.
If you want to sound like a true North Dakotan, you can say something like, “It’s really not that bad today. It’s just the wind that makes it cold.” (Even if you don’t care about sounding like a local, you’ll probably find yourself saying it anyway.)
This sentiment is 100% true. A 2˚ day with no wind will feel like summer vacation compared to a 2˚ day with a windchill of -20˚. The last time we lived here I remember marveling at the fact that the interior of my house was a full 100˚ warmer than the windchill outside.
But it’s a dry cold, right?
Yes! And that really helps. Because the humidity is so low it’s not damp, chill-you-to-the-bone cold. I’ve “felt” like the cold here is comparable to the cold in Indiana or Michigan where the humidity is high even in winter.
The dry cold also means that the snow that falls isn’t always the best for making snowballs and snowmen. Even the snow is pretty dry. It’s light and blows around pretty easily. (Which creates drifts and can be hazardous for driving, but we’ll chat about that in a bit.)
What about school?
School just keeps happening. Schools are rarely cancelled for cold temperatures and snow. (If school did cancel for cold temps, kids would be making up days past the 4th of July.)
Recess happens outside as long as the actual temperature is above -5˚ or the windchill is above -15˚. What can I say, people are hardy here.
Is the cold dangerous?
It can be.
Believe me, you won’t want to spend loads of time outside on the super cold days. So when you go out, be prepared. Dress for the weather. Plan extra time into your outings so you have time to start your car and take extra caution on slippery roads.
Once, on an icy morning I struck up a conversation with an older man at a gas station. We talked about the brutal wind and he told me a story I’ll never forget.
He was a retired pastor and he told me about a cold winter when the boiler went out at the church. He and another church member went to the church–to try to prevent the pipes from freezing. When he reached to unlock the front door his jacket slipped up his arm exposing a bit of skin between his glove and sleeve. On that arm, he showed me a scar like a rope burn–where the wind had burned his skin.
Then he told me he felt a sharp pain like a bee sting on his other wrist. Even though it was covered, his watch had frozen to his skin! (Read the full story here.)
Then he pushed his sleeve up and showed me the scar. He laughed and told me that was the coldest day he could remember, but he still wears the watch.
Dress for the weather.
The other big danger comes with driving. Blowing snow can be very disorienting and wind speeds can be high. If you aren’t confident driving in snow, heed warnings to stay off the roads. Avoid driving in storms (duh).
So, what do you do all winter in Minot?
I’m so glad you asked.
I cannot stress this enough–the Minot community tries really hard to make this an enjoyable place to live year-round. Each week there are tons of events going on. VisitMinot has an awesome calendar (it’s super comprehensive). So if you are looking for something special to do, start there.
Winter is the perfect time to try something new. And since Minot is a small community, you can try lots of different things!
There are events that happen regularly–like story times, trivia nights, open gym, open hockey and the Fun Zone (a free play space for kids with games, bounce houses, coloring and other activities.) Again–check VisitMinot for a full list of what’s going on. But here are my personal favorite activities.
- Curling–we learned to curl last time we lived in Minot and loved it! The curling club has leagues on three days each week. It gave us something specific to do each week and a reason to leave the house and socialize.
- Ice Skating–I love skating at the Maysa Arena. It’s affordable, indoor and my personal favorite way to exercise or socialize. I like to go during the day, it’s super quiet.
- Square Dancing–Another quirky hobby we took up last time we lived here. It’s not as dorky as it sounds (or maybe it is, but I don’t care). Square dances happen about once a month and is a nice way to get out of the house, interact with other adults, and do something active.
- Walking at the dome–the MSU dome is open and free to the public for walking/running.
- Being at home–Winter has consistently been the time that my Minot friendships take great leaps forward. It’s a great time to invite friends in, share meals, offer play dates and have marathon board game nights.
- Special events–Like plays, concerts, the symphony and ballet.
- Classes–Minot has started to boom with classes. There are cooking, craft, painting, glass, and sewing classes happening all the time.
I have never, ever been bored in the winter. Ever.
How do I survive?
First of all, make your house and car winter ready. For your house, stop up drafts, service your furnace, be sure your fireplace is safe. For the car, put together a winter-emergency kit, put a shovel in your trunk, get things serviced.
Then think about picking up a few things that will make your winter a little more comfortable. Here are some of my favorite winter-items.
A down comforter–I hate being cold at night. I got a down comforter as a gift and it is by far the item that keeps me most comfortable.
A sleep sack for your little–I bought a Gunapod for Gideon. It is SO soft and keeps him so warm. He loves it and sleeps so well in it. I highly recommend getting one if you’ve got a little that is too little to know how to sleep under a blanket.
A great jacket–Not just something that looks pretty, but something rated for very cold temps.
Boots–Again, don’t just get something that looks cute. Spend a little money to spring for something that will last more than one year and actually keep your feet warm and dry.
Two pairs of gloves–This is Derek’s big trick. Wear a thin pair of gloves under a big thick pair. You can take the big gloves off for dexterity–and still have your fingers covered.
A back-saver shovel–even if you have a snow-blower, you’ll still need to shovel every once in a while. This really does help.
What are your winter tips? I’d love to hear them!
