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Comment by grecy | Hacker News Reader

Coastal Alaska isn't nearly as cold as everyone thinks. The ocean keeps it mild. It snows a lot, and it's often windy, but the actual temperature is rarely below ~ -20C.

I'm in the Yukon, away from the ocean. I rode my bike to work at -37C this morning :)

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I read somewhere that Whitehorse has the highest number of bicycle commuters per capita. I rode my motorcycle through there a few years ago, and it was quite beautiful.. but I don't get why so many bike commuters. I guess compared to a big city it has no transit or less transit? But less spread out than a typical suburban area?

The statistic would have surprised me in an area with mild weather year-round; nothing about the area seemed particularly well- (or ill- , for that matter) suited to bicycle commuting. A fairly compact downtown but plenty of rural housing.

The cold winters just made the bicycle commuting stat mind-blowing.

Any feedback about this statistic? Is it like a "yeah, but.." kind of thing? Or does the area really take pride in bicycling? Some kind of history I'm not aware of?

The vast majority of people that live here do so because of the amazing array of wilderness outdoor activities on offer mere minutes from town. I've lived in a lot of places in Western Canada, and none of them hold a candle to Whitehorse in this regard.

I don't know for sure, but my guess on a bike riding stat is that there are a lot of people living here that are outdoor/fitness freaks. Most of them are super freaks.

Also, anyone that doesn't like the winter leaves. So those of us that stay love it, and we don't care if it's +30C or -30C when it comes to doing awesome outdoor activities :)

That's indeed true. My sister lives in Whitehorse, and she says that pretty much everyone who lives there is an outdoor enthusiast. If you aren't, you just won't fit in.

My mom grew up in the panhandle (Ketchikan) which rarely even sees snow, I guess (but lots of rain).

That's a LONG way South of me :)

We did the drive from Washington to Anchorage when I was 6 or 7. It was a very beautiful, to say the least, and I have many memories of that part of Canada (BC and Yukon) etched into my head.

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