Walla Walla Washington

[kevink]

DW and I met in Seattle and lived there during my early working years but moved on to Colorado and Arizona. Most of her family is still in Western Washington so we return regularly for summer visits.

No desire to ever spend extended time in the rainy gloom (and nowadays gridlocked traffic and sky-high real estate prices) of Westside WA or OR but we've long wondered if we could ever find a year-round place with a climate we could tolerate, decent culture and food scene and good hiking and biking somewhere in the NW. Good friends who like us used to be Mexico expats but kept a house in Seattle just sold it and moved to Walla Walla and from the research I've done it sounds like it checks most of the boxes on our wish list.

I'd be grateful to hear from anyone who either lives in that area or knows it well. So far the only downsides I'm seeing are winters cold enough to make us still want a tropical escape for a month or two and distance from major airports and shopping - both of which we could live with.

 

[savory]

I won’t be much help. Stopped there during the farmers market about a year ago. It was among the better ones I have visited. The town was impressive. We will be there in a few weeks for a weekend bicycle program sponsored by Cascade Bicycle Club. It is an annual event that attracts lots of cyclists. Our friends who will be joining us have been there before and speak highly of the town, as visitors. Good luck with your decision.

 

[Chuckanut]

91% of Walla Walla county is currently in an Exceptional Drought condition.
100% of Walla Walla county is in an Extreme Drought condition.

Not so good.

 

[savory]

91% of Walla Walla county is currently in an Exceptional Drought condition.
100% of Walla Walla county is in an Extreme Drought condition.

Not so good.

I am sure my bicycle ride will bring rain

 

[Keim]

I live about 2.5 hrs east. Its definitely different from western WA. If you like a touristy little town with lots of wine, its great.

Seriously, tho, you can check annual weather stats at city-data.

 

[ElizabethT]

The nearness of the Walla Walla state penitentiary would give me pause. It makes for an interesting blend of people in the town. Upscale vs penitentiary employees and/or visiting friends and relatives of inmates. YMMV.

 

[Keim]

The nearness of the Walla Walla state penitentiary would give me pause. It makes for an interesting blend of people in the town. Upscale vs penitentiary employees and/or visiting friends and relatives of inmates. YMMV.

Don't forget the college students. And onion farmers. Until the early 90s the town was known for onions, state pen and college as major industries. Wine tourism has really taken off since then.

 

[audreyh1]

Super super dry, ultra low humidity. Most of the little precipitation occurs during the winter as snow.

Quite small city but seems to attract a lot of tourists.

Excellent wine.

 

[stepford]

I've enjoyed visiting the area, but heard concerns from some of the residents about long term downwind radioactive contamination from nearby Hanford.

 

[nwsteve]

Think of Napa in late 70's. Main Street heavily populated by tasting rooms and restaurants in core.
We love spending weekends for good dining and tasting visits during the days. Hotels are usually reasonable except on the big tasting weeiends. Also, nearly all wineries in the area let you taste for free as long as you buy a bottle unlike most CA wineries.

 

[Starsky]

That part of Washington can get very hot and dry in the summer. I remember visiting there a number of years ago. It was an interesting town. Definitely not Seattle. Very rural. Sounds like it's grown up a bit since. When I was there on business, the person I visited operated a card room in the back of his bar for the locals. It was small, sleepy and old-school. I can see the gentrification potential. I hope you enjoy it there!

 

[JackJester]

We live in the wet side and love to visit Walla Walla in the spring and fall. Nice restaurants and excellent wineries. But way too hot and dry in the summer for our tastes. I'll take the moderate rainy climate any day. To each his own. It is growing quickly and we hear that housing is getting scarce and expensive. For us ...Pros: Wine, Food, Blue Mountains. Cons: Hot, rather conservative college town, limited medical facilities. For weather see https://weatherspark.com/y/1788/Average-Weather-in-Walla-Walla-Washington-United-States-Year-Round

 

[RetMD21]

I would favor Spokane

 

[rodi]

My bff's cousin just moved there recently. It's definitely a wine place... My bff and two other friends are going over to visit said cousin and drink a lot of wine.

Lots of hip restaurants and wine bars from the sound of it.

 

[Happyras]

We live in the wet side and love to visit Walla Walla in the spring and fall. Nice restaurants and excellent wineries. But way too hot and dry in the summer for our tastes. I'll take the moderate rainy climate any day. To each his own. It is growing quickly and we hear that housing is getting scarce and expensive. For us ...Pros: Wine, Food, Blue Mountains. Cons: Hot, rather conservative college town, limited medical facilities. For weather see https://weatherspark.com/y/1788/Average-Weather-in-Walla-Walla-Washington-United-States-Year-Round

We live north of JackJester in Redmond. Much prefer the west side, but then my dad grew up over in Pasco, and moved to Seattle for good reason. If I were to consider moving, it would be to Cle Elum, Suncadia area is awesome and I-90 gets you back to the west side in an hour. Property values are still OK, and the traffic now on I-90 is getting way better due to the expanded lanes. You can go either direction and find variety, south east towards Tri-Cities for wine country, West for Seatte, or Costco Issaquah if needed. Winters are snowy, cold, but summers are moderate to hot. A bit windy, but then you are in the mountains!

 

[Happyras]

Another option is Wenatchee. Homes are really reasonable, power is super cheap, <.02/kwhr, so heating and cooling is not an issue for cost. AND who does not like apples! Skiing and mountains and lakes a plenty, and still only 3 hours back on Hwy 2 or I-90 to Seattle. You do need to consider the politics, East versus West side is quite different!

 

[nwsteve]

Another option is Wenatchee. Homes are really reasonable, power is super cheap, <.02/kwhr, so heating and cooling is not an issue for cost. AND who does not like apples! Skiing and mountains and lakes a plenty, and still only 3 hours back on Hwy 2 or I-90 to Seattle. You do need to consider the politics, East versus West side is quite different!

And for those who do not know Wa well, all the counties East of mountains are red and only the three counties (Snohomish(Everett/King(Seattle)/Pierce (Tacoma) are deep blue. Of course, those 3 counties prob house 67-75% of state's population. The rest of the west side are either red or purple.

 

[RunningBum]

Another option is Wenatchee. Homes are really reasonable, power is super cheap, <.02/kwhr, so heating and cooling is not an issue for cost. AND who does not like apples! Skiing and mountains and lakes a plenty, and still only 3 hours back on Hwy 2 or I-90 to Seattle. You do need to consider the politics, East versus West side is quite different!

I've never been but that town got on my radar if I ever get a wild hare to move out west. I read that there's something funny about water, if you have some kind of water rights you can have a lush green lawn, otherwise it's rock and dirt. Maybe not quite that bad.

 

[ejman]

DW and I met in Seattle and lived there during my early working years but moved on to Colorado and Arizona. Most of her family is still in Western Washington so we return regularly for summer visits.

No desire to ever spend extended time in the rainy gloom (and nowadays gridlocked traffic and sky-high real estate prices) of Westside WA or OR but we've long wondered if we could ever find a year-round place with a climate we could tolerate, decent culture and food scene and good hiking and biking somewhere in the NW. Good friends who like us used to be Mexico expats but kept a house in Seattle just sold it and moved to Walla Walla and from the research I've done it sounds like it checks most of the boxes on our wish list.

I'd be grateful to hear from anyone who either lives in that area or knows it well. So far the only downsides I'm seeing are winters cold enough to make us still want a tropical escape for a month or two and distance from major airports and shopping - both of which we could live with.

I would think Bend, Oregon would fulfill most of your requirements

 

[audreyh1]

Bend Oregon is very very nice, but cold snowy winters, no? Snow tires on cars, etc.

 

[ejman]

Bend Oregon is very very nice, but cold snowy winters, no? Snow tires on cars, etc.

The average annual precipitation in Bend is less than 12 inches, over half falls between November and February, often as snow. Brief thunderstorms usually provide most of the light summer rain. The average annual snowfall is 33.8 inches. Snow depth in Bend exceeds 24 inches in only one winter out of twenty.

 

[Montecfo]

The average annual precipitation in Bend is less than 12 inches, over half falls between November and February, often as snow. Brief thunderstorms usually provide most of the light summer rain. The average annual snowfall is 33.8 inches. Snow depth in Bend exceeds 24 inches in only one winter out of twenty.

That sounds like quite a bit of snow to me but I guess it depends on what you compare it to.