Wisconsin > Arizona

[saget]

I know you've all been aching to know where I've been for the past week. Myself and two of my cousins traveled to the AZ for an 8ish day trip.

 

It was ungodly hot the entire time. The car thermometer read 123 degrees at one point. That was the high for the trip.

 

We traveled to the Grandest of Canyons and it was quite a site. I enjoyed seeing all the run-down Navajo selling huts as we drove up there.

 

Being in that horrifying state for a week made me realize just how awesome Wisco is. I could never live in that state. It's.. just so hot. All the time... And no Brewers for a week almost made me lose my mind. Going to a D-backs game to watch the Unit get lit up just wasn't the same as watching Dave Bush pitch another quality start. Anyways, after about 5 days in that state you run out of things to do pretty fast. Although we did hit up pretty much every single restaurant in Phoenix.

 

We took about 800+ pictures and almost 60 minutes(57minutes 16 seconds) of killer digital footage taken by yours truly. I saw 3 species of lizard, but no scorpions. Luckily there were no tarantulas to be seen.

 

Let the comparing begin!

[pitchleague]

They both have their merits. I'm a Wisconsin native, but I've lived in Arizona for 11+ years now.

 

The heat is not all that bad. Really. It depends on where you live, too. The lower areas (Phoenix, Yuma, Bullhead City, Lake Havasu City) can get scorching hot, I'll give you that. But Flagstaff is beautiful. It's like being in Wisconsin, honestly. I live in Kingman and it's routinely 10 degrees cooler than the lower elevation cities. Of the 365 days we have each year, most of the state gets at least 300 days of sunshine. It's only rainy twice a year--early spring (Febuary/March) and Monsoon season (tends to vary every year. July/August is most common.) Depending on where you live, the monsoons barely do anything. In Phoenix, they get drenched. But up at our place, the surrounding mountains tend to suck most of the rain up and instead of daily late-afternoon monsoon storms, we only get it in town when the humidity gets to (prepare yourselves) 30%!!!

 

I'll also spot you the "run out of things to do fast" part of the state. Unless you live in Phoenix where there's plenty to do, you're pretty much left with doing stuff out of doors (hiking, camping, etc.) or just staying inside and bumming around the house. If you go outside, you learn to stay hydrated and prevent sunburn. It's quite nice knowing that most people never see tarantulas or snakes in town--only in the desert wilderness. Mosquitoes and other biting/stinging insects are next to non-existent. And allergies and breathing ailments are much better to control here.

 

On the other hands, Wisconsin has better defined seasons than Arizona, with greatly varied weather patterns. And to find things to do is a lot easier in Wisconsin because towns and cities are so much closer together but there remains plenty of "wilderness."

 

In summary, it is very difficult for me to decide which I like best. The wife and I would love to move back to Wisconsin but at the same time, we have things so well off here. We have learned to adapt to the desert lifestyle and would probably have a shock to our systems by moving back and dealing with high humidity, and tornadoes, and winter storms, and hay fever, and mosquitos. We would love to move back if we had the opportunity and the means to do it, though. Once Wisconsin is in your blood, you can never truly get rid of it.

[NeedMoreFans]

Based on your post, I'm guessing the only reason why you didn't like Arizona was because of the heat. If you took over 800 pictures, there was obviously plenty to see.

 

My wife and I went down to Arizona for a week back in March. We went to the typical places...Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Antelope Canyon and Sedona, and we loved it. I mean it wasn't warm and the wind blew 50 mph and it snowed in Sedona...but 80 in Phoenix sure felt nice in March. I'm sure I'd think different if we went now. One thing I loved was how the scenery changed as we drove. Yeah, most of it was desert, but the landscape was always different. I've never been through such crazy elevation changes, either.

 

With that being said, the post is comparing Wisconsin to Arizona. In my opinion, it comes down to weather and your personal preference. I'd love a climate with the low humidity that Arizona has, reduced allergens to make me suffer, and warm winters with snow just a couple hours away (Flagstaff gets lots of snow). But, June through September would kill me. I don't care if it's a dry heat or not, 120 is pretty darn hot. It would take the enjoyment out of pretty much everything outside. I'd also probably miss green grass and lakes. So to me, it's a toss up.

[homer]

I've lived in both places - 4 years in Phoenix (Tempe and Scottsdale) and 3 in Milwaukee (as an adult - I grew up in Wisco).

 

I HATED summers in AZ so I can see where you are coming from. But I could easily be a snow bird. The weather from Late Sept through Memorial Day is awesome for the most part and has been mentioned Flagstaff is very much like northern wisconsin (lots of pine trees, very temperate climate). Not to mention the state taxes are almost non existant in AZ compared to WI.

 

All in all, AZ is just OK to me. I hated the car culture there and all the strip malls and the heat in summer but there's a lot of natural beauty - moreso than WI IMO - and I will put Scottsdale women up against women in any city in the world....and I'd win easily http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

 

And who goes to AZ in the summer time? Did you not know it gets to like 115 on a regular basis in mid June?

 

reduced allergens to make me suffer

I didn't get allergies until I moved to AZ. The Phoenix valley is notorious for it.

[blatzlight]

I was in Scottsdale last week for a Golf Trip / Wedding of a good friend and thought the weather was fine. Sure it was 108, 110 and 112 the days we played TPC, Grayhawk (by far the best public course I have ever played) and Troon North - but you just drink a lot of water and put sunscreen on. Also, pool time is great.

 

I remember my time at the U of A as well and loved the weather. Nothing can beat February - May in Zona or the women.

[hammytime]

I have a hard time with the heat, but, like my husband said, you learn to adapt. When I moved here 14 years ago, I didn't think I'd be here that long, but here I am. I'll always love Wisconsin, and I miss it a lot (especially around Christmas, when I wish for snow), but I also love Arizona. If we ever did move back, I'd probably miss Arizona like I miss Wisconsin.