ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Waking Up to Snow in Tucson Arizona

Updated on May 19, 2011

The Population Swells in Winter

March 19, 2011

Like other America's other sunbelt states, Arizona is the destination for thousands of visitors from America's northern states and Canada every year during the winter months.

First and foremost are our snowbirds, people who, like the feathered variety of birds, migrate south each winter in search of warm weather. The more nomadic types drive their RVs (recreational vehicles), down with their car in tow and spend the winter living in their RVs. When spring comes they start up their RV and migrate north again.

Many other snowbirds maintain two homes, one in Arizona for the winter and one in the north for the summer.

Snow covered Mt. Lemon in the Santa Catalina Mountains above Tucson, Arizona
Snow covered Mt. Lemon in the Santa Catalina Mountains above Tucson, Arizona | Source

In addition to the snowbird population, Arizona is also a popular spot for sunny and warm winter vacations as well as for conventions and business meetings. After all, who wouldn't prefer to relax after a day of meetings a lectures with a swim in an outdoor pool or a few rounds on the golf course?

However, despite its popular image as winter refuge from snow and cold, not all of Arizona is warm in the winter.

In addition to deserts, Arizona also hosts a number of mountains as well as the high plateaus of Northern Arizona where the altitude is such that snow and cold are common in the winter.

It is the low desert communities of the southern part of the state - places like Tucson, Phoenix, Yuma, etc. - in which the winter weather is generally sunny and warm year round.

Arizona's Catalina Mountains Framed by ground level vegetation
Arizona's Catalina Mountains Framed by ground level vegetation | Source
Mt Lemon and Catalina mountains
Mt Lemon and Catalina mountains | Source
Cacti with Catalina Mountains in distance
Cacti with Catalina Mountains in distance | Source
Snow on Teddybear Cholla Cactus with Catalina Mountains as Background
Snow on Teddybear Cholla Cactus with Catalina Mountains as Background | Source

It Snows Occasionally in the Desert Areas of Southern Arizona

While snow is not common in cities like Tucson, we do get it occasionally.

Unlike colder climates, the intervals between snow storms in Tucson tend to be a little longer.

When we do see snow falling in Tucson we talk about how many years, rather than days of weeks, have passed since the last snow storm.

The amount of snow that falls during a big snowstorm in Tucson is also a little less than the amount which falls on northern cities and this results in our having to report the snowfall in terms of fractions of an inch rather than whole inches or feet.

The last big storm we had in 2007 brought the city to a near halt for a few hours by dropping a mere quarter inch on the land.

Winter Beauty

New fallen snow is always beautiful and makes for great pictures and snow in Tucson is no different.

The two biggest differences between winter and summer in Tucson are heat and humidity.

Summers tend to be very hot with night time temperatures hovering in the low eighty degrees Fahrenheit (about 26 Celsius) and daytime temperatures around 100 degrees Fahrenheit (around 38 Celsius).

The hot weather also brings moisture laden clouds from the nearby Gulf of California and Pacific Ocean which causes the humidity to rise.

While still not as high as other places, any increase in humidity combined with high temperatures tends to make people uncomfortable.

The hot summers last from about June through September. The rest of the year the air is dry, the temperatures mild and the sky usually cloud free.

The temperature does drop, with the daytime temperature generally varying between sixty and eighty degrees with lower temperatures in the evening.

There are occasional night time freezes where the temperature drops close to freezing. This generally occurs during January or February.

The winter months are also accompanied by some rainy days. These are generally steady but light showers lasting for a day or so.

Frequently while the city and other low lying areas receive rain the surrounding cloud covered mountains receive the precipitation in the form of snow.

Often, when the rain stops and the clouds lift, the mountains are covered with snow. This is beautiful but short lived. While high, the mountains surrounding Tucson do not tower above the tree line and are thus tree covered from top to bottom. When snow falls in these mountains it covers the top branches of the trees as well as the ground.

However, within a few hours after the snow storm passes, the wind tends to blow the snow off the branches while the warming rays of the sun begin to melt the snow on the branches causing it to become heavier and slide off the branches.

While the ground remains covered with snow, the branches are now not only free of snow but also hide the snow beneath them from viewing by onlookers at the base of the mountains.

Patch of snow along N. Shannon Rd. in Tucson
Patch of snow along N. Shannon Rd. in Tucson | Source
N. Shannon Rd with snow covered Tortolita Mountain Range to north of Tucson, AZ
N. Shannon Rd with snow covered Tortolita Mountain Range to north of Tucson, AZ | Source

Waking Up to Snow on a Sunday Morning

Getting up early one Sunday morning a couple of weeks ago I was surprised by the sight of a thin dusting of snow on the roof tops of the neighbor's homes.

Quickly dressing and grabbing my camera and cell phone I headed outside leaving my wife and sons still enjoying the luxury of sleeping in on Sunday.

The snow covering was light with most of it on cooler roof tops, car tops and some cacti along with occasional small patches on the ground. The mountains, however, were covered from top to bottom.

While there was very little snow, the touch of snow on the landscape was beautiful and made for great pictures.  While I naturally captured the best shots with my camera,

I also took a number of shots with my cell phone.  These cell phone photos were immediately forwarded to my sleeping wife and children so that when they awoke they would see what they missed.  I also included in my photo messages family and friends up north to let them know that we also get snow - we just don't have to shovel it!

This was the first snowfall since January of 2007 that was big enough to enable any amount of snow to accumulate on the ground in my area.

As you can see by the accompanying pictures the momentary beauty created by the snowfall. I say momentary because I started taking pictures a little after seven in the morning and by 8:30 it was all but gone in the city. The mountains remained white until later in the morning, but by noon snow on the mountains was no longer visible.

Tucson Mountains, to west of Tucson, partially obscured by low hanging clouds & ground fog
Tucson Mountains, to west of Tucson, partially obscured by low hanging clouds & ground fog | Source
Snow on roof of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in suburban Tucson, AZ
Snow on roof of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in suburban Tucson, AZ | Source
Snow covered prickly pear cactus leaf
Snow covered prickly pear cactus leaf | Source
Snow on Prickly Pear Cactus
Snow on Prickly Pear Cactus
Leaf of Prickly Pear Cactus completely covered with snow
Leaf of Prickly Pear Cactus completely covered with snow
Snow on Staghorn Cholla Cactus
Snow on Staghorn Cholla Cactus
Close up of snow melting on Staghorn Cholla Cactus
Close up of snow melting on Staghorn Cholla Cactus
Barrel Cactus with light coating of snow
Barrel Cactus with light coating of snow
Desert vegetation with Catalina Mountains in background
Desert vegetation with Catalina Mountains in background
Snow on roofs of homes and cars
Snow on roofs of homes and cars
Snow covered cars parked on street
Snow covered cars parked on street

My Dog, Chika, Was not Happy with the Snow

The little patch of snow was more than Chika was prepared to endure.  It was with great reluctance that she posed next to it and, as far as she was concerned,  this was hopefully both her first and last encounter with snow.
The little patch of snow was more than Chika was prepared to endure. It was with great reluctance that she posed next to it and, as far as she was concerned, this was hopefully both her first and last encounter with snow.
As you can see, Tucson winter mornings  are not that cold
As you can see, Tucson winter mornings are not that cold
working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)