Climate in Strathcona Park · ECCC 1991–2020 normals

Dry weather: only 445 mm of rain and snow a year falls on Strathcona Park, less than on 82% of Canadian towns

In January the night’s low is typically −13.5°C. Summers stay cool: July afternoons here are cooler than in 80% of Canadian towns. The year swings widely: the coldest month’s nights and the warmest month’s afternoons are 37°C apart. Frost comes on about 193 days a year, so leave time to clear the car.

July afternoons: cooler than 80% of Canadian towns

January nights: milder than 51% of Canadian towns

Rain and snow a year: drier than 82% of Canadian towns

Figures: ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals for Calgary (Airport) (14 km north-east).

July high

23.5°C

Typical Canadian town 25.5°C

January low

−13.5°C

Typical Canadian town −13.5°C

Rain & snow a year

445 mm

Typical Canadian town 883 mm

Snowfall a year

139 cm

Typical Canadian town 141 cm

Frost days

193

a year at 0°C or below

Frost-free days

119

21 May to 18 Sep

A year in Strathcona Park at a glance

Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.

Jan−2°C−14°CColdest nights

Feb0°C−12°C

Mar4°C−8°CSnowiest

Apr11°C−2°C

May16°C3°CLast frost ~21 May

Jun20°C8°CWettest

Jul24°C10°CWarmest

Aug23°C9°C

Sep18°C5°CFirst frost ~18 Sep

Oct11°C−1°C

Nov now4°C−8°C

Dec0°C−12°C

What stands out about Strathcona Park’s climate

Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Alberta beside it.

Drier than 82% of Canadian townsAbout 445 mm of rain and melted snow a year; June is the wettest month and January the driest.Cooler than 80% of Canadian townsJuly afternoons average 23.5°C, the warmest of the year.

A normal year

What a year in Strathcona Park feels like

Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.

Winter

−1°C / −12°C

34 mm, with 50 cm of snow

Spring

10°C / −2°C

108 mm, with 56 cm of snow

Summer

22°C / 9°C

232 mm of rain and snow, the wettest season

Autumn

11°C / −1°C

71 mm, with 33 cm of snow

−20°

−10°

0°

10°

20°

30°

−2°C−14°C

0°C−12°C

4°C−8°C

11°C−2°C

16°C3°C

20°C8°C

24°C10°C

23°C9°C

18°C5°C

11°C−1°C

4°C−8°C

0°C−12°C

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Best months to be outsideJulAugHighs of 17–27°C and nights of 8°C or more

Frost & warm days

About 193 frosts and 87 warm days a year

The frost season runs September to May, and December freezes nearly every night. Deep cold, under −20°C, comes on about 22 nights a year.

119 frost-free days · average dates, 1991–2020

21 May 18 Sep

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

193

Frost days a year (0°C or below)

More frosts than 79% of Canadian towns

Days that stay below 0°C

Nights a year below −20°C

Days a year above 20°C

Days a year above 30°C

Frost days by month

Average days at 0°C or below

JFMAMJJASOND

Days above 20°C by month

Average days

JFMAMJJASOND

Rain & snow

Rain and melted snow: about 445 mm a year

The most falls in June, the least in January. About 72 days a year bring 1 mm or more.

445 mm

Rain and snow a year

Drier than 82% of Canadian towns

342 mm

Of it as rain alone (77%)

113 mm

June, the wettest month

10 mm

January, the driest month

Rain and snow by month

Millimetres

113 mm

JFMAMJJASOND

Rain alone by month

Millimetres

113 mm

JFMAMJJASOND

Snow

139 cm of snow in a typical year

The snow season runs September to May; March brings the most, about 24 cm.

139 cm

Snowfall a year

Less snowy than 54% of Canadian towns

Days a year with 0.2 cm of snow or more

Days a year with 1 cm or more on the ground

6 cm

Snow on the ground at the end of December, the deepest month

Snowfall by month

Centimetres

24 cm

JFMAMJJASOND

Snow on the ground by month

Centimetres at month’s end

6 cm

JFMAMJJASOND

Heating

Heating a home in Strathcona Park

85% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to May.

4,994 heating degree days (below 18°C)a year, 1991–2020

1,448 growing degree days (above 5°C)a year, 1991–2020

Each day the mean sits under 18°C adds its shortfall; a year’s total is its heating degree days. Homes here need more heating than 68% of Canadian towns.

Living here

Living with Strathcona Park’s climate

What the normals mean for a garden, a day outside and the depth of winter.

The garden window

A normal year gives the garden about 119 frost-free days, roughly 21 May to 18 September.

Get outside

Warm afternoons without cold nights, 17–27°C and 8°C or more, mark Jul and Aug.

Parks & trails →

Wind chill

Winter brings about 42 days with a wind chill below −20.

Humidex

About 9 days a year feel above 30 on the humidex.

Storms and extremes

Thirty years of averages say little about one bad storm; Strathcona Park’s hazards page does.

Flood & hazards →

Weather station

ECCC’s normals location: Calgary (Airport)

Calgary (Airport) is a composite: ECCC joins 2 stations’ readings to make its 1991–2020 normals.

Distance from the town	14 km north-east
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	Sundre, 88 km

Compared with other towns

How Strathcona Park compares

Placed among 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+, each on its nearest normals location; each dot is another location used in Alberta.

July afternoons23.5°C

Strathcona ParkMedian Canadian town

20°C22°C24°C26°C28°C

Cooler than 80% of Canadian towns

January nights−13.5°C

Strathcona ParkMedian Canadian town

−25°C−20°C−15°C−10°C

Milder than 51% of Canadian towns

Rain and snow a year445 mm

Strathcona ParkMedian Canadian town

05001,0001,500

Drier than 82% of Canadian towns

Snowfall a year139 cm

Strathcona ParkMedian Canadian town

0100200300

Less snowy than 54% of Canadian towns

Next door

Nearby towns’ climate

Nearby places read from a different ECCC location (places on Strathcona Park’s own would show the same figures). Strathcona Park has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 49–68 km out.

Town	July high	January low	Rain & snow
Strathcona Park Calgary (Airport)	23.5°C	−13.5°C	445 mm
Stoney 142, 143, 144 49 km · Banff	22.5°C 1.0°C cooler	−13.5°C about the same	454 mm
Carstairs 56 km · Sundre	22.8°C 0.7°C cooler	−18.0°C 4.5°C colder	496 mm
Wheatland County 66 km · Queenstown	25.0°C 1.5°C warmer	−13.7°C about the same	412 mm

Month by month

Strathcona Park weather by month

Average daily high and low, mean temperature, rain and snow (as water) and snowfall by month, 1991–2020.

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

Year to year

December: −38.2°C at its coldest, 19.5°C at its warmest

The month to count on least is February: one year in three its average strays more than 4.1°C from −5.9°C. June moves least, typically by 1.1°C.

−50°

−40°

−30°

−20°

−10°

0°

10°

20°

30°

40°

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Record low to record high, 1991–2020Normal

Sources

Where Strathcona Park’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: every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 or more, each read from its own nearest location; city totals and reserves are left out.
Not on this page: hours of sunshine, missing from the 1991–2020 normals, and a height correction: the town has no elevation on file.

Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada

Questions about Strathcona Park’s climate

How warm does Strathcona Park get in summer?

Midsummer means July, with afternoons near 23.5°C on a typical day.

How cold does Strathcona Park get in winter?

Midwinter means January, when a typical night reaches −13.5°C.

How much rain and snow does Strathcona Park get?

Measured as water, a year brings 445 mm: 113 mm in June, the wettest month, and 10 mm in January, the driest.

How long does snow stay on the ground?

About 93 days a year count as snow-covered, with 1 cm or more.

Are these figures for Strathcona Park itself?

Close to it: they are ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals for Calgary (Airport), just outside Strathcona Park’s boundary.

Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Strathcona Park →

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).