Few Canadian towns have cooler summers than Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako
Nights in January average −10.9°C. Its yearly rain and snow fall short of 75% of Canadian towns. October is the wettest month here, with about 3.4 times the rain and snow of March. Frost comes on about 187 days a year, so leave time to clear the car.
The nearest ECCC normals location to Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako is Smithers, 7.9 km north-west, and every figure on this page is its.
A year in Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in British Columbia beside it.
What a year in Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako feels like
Seasons and months as ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals give them: a typical day’s high and low.
About 187 frosts and 62 warm days a year
Frost comes from September to May; in December almost every night freezes. On about 12 nights a year the air falls below −20°C.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
About 506 mm of rain and snow a year
On about 105 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
Snowfall: about 184 cm in a normal year
The snow season runs October to April; December brings the most, about 48 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako
83% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
One degree below 18°C for one day makes one heating degree day; the year’s days are added together. A house here needs more heating than 65% of Canadian towns.
Living with Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
Gardens get from about 26 May to 17 September without frost, around 113 days in all.
Plan time outside for Jul and Aug: highs of 17–27°C and nights no colder than 8°C.
Parks & trails →Expect around 18 days a year when the wind chill sinks below −20.
About 5 days a year turn sultry, with the humidex past 30.
What averages leave out, the floods and ice storms, is on Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Smithers
ECCC builds the Smithers normals from 3 stations’ records over 1991–2020, joined where one replaced another.
| Distance from the town | 7.9 km north-west |
| Station altitude | 523 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | Yes |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −39.0°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.0°C |
| Average wind | 5.4 km/h on average, most often from the south-east |
| Next-nearest location | Burns Lake Decker Lake, 86 km |
How Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako compares
Against the 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, each read from its own normals location; the dots are the other locations those towns use in British Columbia.
Nearby towns’ climate
Places around Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako whose figures come from another normals location. The nearest places to Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako with figures are 51–106 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako Smithers | 21.8°C | −10.9°C | 506 mm |
| Houston 51 km · Burns Lake Decker Lake | 22.1°C about the same | −14.8°C 3.9°C colder | 506 mm |
| Electoral Area E, Kitimat-Stikine 97 km · Terrace | 21.5°C about the same | −5.3°C 5.6°C milder | 1,338 mm |
Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako weather by month
Each month’s normals, 1991–2020: high, low, mean, precipitation and snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −3.4°C | −10.9°C | −7.2°C | 42 mm | 41 cm |
| February | 0.0°C | −9.2°C | −4.6°C | 24 mm | 25 cm |
| March | 4.9°C | −5.5°C | −0.3°C | 20 mm | 17 cm |
| April | 11.0°C | −1.2°C | 4.9°C | 27 mm | 5 cm |
| May | 16.6°C | 3.3°C | 10.0°C | 39 mm | 1 cm |
| June | 19.5°C | 6.9°C | 13.2°C | 51 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 21.8°C | 9.0°C | 15.4°C | 44 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 21.5°C | 8.1°C | 14.8°C | 45 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 16.2°C | 4.4°C | 10.4°C | 49 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 8.7°C | 0.1°C | 4.4°C | 66 mm | 9 cm |
| November | 1.2°C | −4.7°C | −1.8°C | 54 mm | 38 cm |
| December | −3.1°C | −9.9°C | −6.5°C | 44 mm | 48 cm |
| Year | 9.6°C | −0.8°C | 4.4°C | 506 mm | 184 cm |
A February here can run warm or cold, its average moving by about 3.5°C; the steadiest month is October
Records from 1991 to 2020: no month spans more than December, between −39.0°C (1996) and 13.6°C (2005).
Where Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the 1991–2020 normals from ECCC for Smithers, its nearest location with complete temperatures.
- Comparisons: Canada’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+ (no city totals, no reserves), each through its own nearest location.
- 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 Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako’s climate
How warm does Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako get in summer?
Highs reach 21.8°C on an average July day; no month is warmer.
How cold does Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako get in winter?
Winter bottoms out in January, with lows near −10.9°C.
How much rain and snow does Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako get?
The year adds up to 506 mm. October is the peak month (66 mm) and March the low one (20 mm).
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Expect snow on the ground, at least 1 cm, for about 127 days a year.
Are these figures for Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako itself?
Not exactly. Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako lacks a normals station, so Smithers supplies the figures.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako →
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).