Chaparral is drier than 82% of Canadian towns: 445 mm of rain and snow a year
The depth of winter brings overnight lows near −13.5°C. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 80% of Canadian towns. June is the wettest month, January the driest. About 72 days a year bring 1 mm of precipitation or more.
These are not Chaparral’s own readings: ECCC keeps no normals there, so the page uses Calgary (Airport), 26 km north.
A year in Chaparral at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Chaparral’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.
What a year in Chaparral feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
About 193 frosts and 87 warm days a year
From September to May frost is routine, and in December it comes on almost every night. Deep cold, under −20°C, comes on about 22 nights a year.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
445 mm of precipitation in a typical year
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
Snowfall: about 139 cm in a normal year
Expect snow from September to May, with about 24 cm in March, the snowiest month.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Chaparral
85% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.
Every day colder than 18°C on average adds its gap in degrees to the year’s heating total. That means homes here need more heating than 68% of Canadian towns.
Living with Chaparral’s climate
What the normals mean for a garden, a day outside and the depth of winter.
Wait until about 21 May to plant out; frost tends to come back around 18 September, about 119 days later.
The comfortable months for a day outside, highs of 17–27°C and nights of 8°C or more: Jul and Aug.
Parks & trails →Wind chill falls below −20 on about 42 days a year: cover skin and dress in layers.
Count on some 9 humid days a year with the humidex past 30.
The normals describe a typical year, not its worst days; the hazards page covers Chaparral’s.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Calgary (Airport)
ECCC builds the Calgary (Airport) normals from 2 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.
| Distance from the town | 26 km north |
| Station altitude | 1,099 m |
| Completeness | at least 20 years |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −39.7°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.5°C |
| Average wind | 13.8 km/h on average, most often from the south |
| Next-nearest location | Queenstown, 80 km |
How Chaparral compares
Compared with 2,611 towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more across Canada; the dots mark the other normals locations in Alberta.
Nearby towns’ climate
Places around Chaparral whose figures come from another normals location. The nearest places to Chaparral with figures are 57–75 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chaparral Calgary (Airport) | 23.5°C | −13.5°C | 445 mm |
| Wheatland County 57 km · Queenstown | 25.0°C 1.5°C warmer | −13.7°C about the same | 412 mm |
| Nanton 62 km · Claresholm | 25.2°C 1.7°C warmer | −13.2°C about the same | 428 mm |
| Stoney 142, 143, 144 66 km · Banff | 22.5°C 1.0°C cooler | −13.5°C about the same | 454 mm |
| Carstairs 75 km · Sundre | 22.8°C 0.7°C cooler | −18.0°C 4.5°C colder | 496 mm |
Chaparral weather by month
Month by month, 1991–2020: the usual high, low and mean, the rain and snow, and the snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1.5°C | −13.5°C | −7.6°C | 10 mm | 17 cm |
| February | 0.1°C | −11.8°C | −5.9°C | 12 mm | 17 cm |
| March | 3.8°C | −8.1°C | −2.2°C | 18 mm | 24 cm |
| April | 10.8°C | −1.9°C | 4.5°C | 30 mm | 23 cm |
| May | 16.4°C | 3.4°C | 9.9°C | 61 mm | 10 cm |
| June | 19.7°C | 7.7°C | 13.7°C | 113 mm | under 1 cm |
| July | 23.5°C | 10.2°C | 16.9°C | 66 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 23.1°C | 9.2°C | 16.2°C | 54 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 18.3°C | 4.7°C | 11.5°C | 37 mm | 2 cm |
| October | 11.1°C | −1.3°C | 4.9°C | 17 mm | 12 cm |
| November | 4.1°C | −7.5°C | −1.7°C | 16 mm | 19 cm |
| December | −0.4°C | −12.1°C | −6.3°C | 13 mm | 16 cm |
| Year | 10.8°C | −1.8°C | 4.5°C | 445 mm | 139 cm |
December: −38.2°C at its coldest, 19.5°C at its warmest
Year to year, February varies most (a standard deviation of 4.1°C around −5.9°C) and June least (1.1°C).
Where Chaparral’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: ECCC’s normals for Calgary (Airport), 1991–2020, chosen as the nearest location with a full temperature record.
- Comparisons: the 2,500-plus towns and neighbourhoods of Canada, each read from its closest normals location; whole cities and reserves aren’t counted.
- Not on this page: sunshine, not in ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals, and the effect of the town’s height, for which there is no figure.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Chaparral’s climate
How warm does Chaparral get in summer?
At its warmest, in July, the normal high is 23.5°C.
How cold does Chaparral get in winter?
Lows sink to −13.5°C on an average January night.
How much rain and snow does Chaparral get?
The year adds up to 445 mm. June is the peak month (113 mm) and January the low one (10 mm).
How long does snow stay on the ground?
In a normal winter there are about 93 days with at least 1 cm of snow lying.
Are these figures for Chaparral itself?
Not exactly. Chaparral lacks a normals station, so Calgary (Airport) supplies the figures.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Chaparral →
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).