Photo: Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domainElectoral Area E, Central Kootenay sits near the top of Canadian towns for July heat
January nights here settle around −2.9°C. A year here swings 32°C from midwinter lows to midsummer highs. Winters are mild: January nights here are milder than in 94% of Canadian towns. Heating does most of its work from October to April, in months below 10°C on average.
No ECCC station in Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay has 1991–2020 normals; the page reads Nelson, 4.2 km north-west, instead.
A year in Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay’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 E, Central Kootenay feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
100 frost days and 120 days above 20°C a year
Frost comes from October to April, most of all in December (about 23 nights). Some 27 days a year climb past 30°C.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
About 759 mm of rain and snow a year
The most falls in December, the least in August. Some 122 days a year see 1 mm of rain or snow or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
ECCC’s Nelson normals leave precipitation out; the figures here come from Warfield, 54 km away.
Snowfall: about 151 cm in a normal year
The snow season runs October to April; December brings the most, about 47 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Nelson publishes no full year of snowfall, so these figures come from Creston, 68 km away.
Heating a home in Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay
90% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
ECCC sums, over the year, how many degrees each day’s average falls short of 18°C. In heating terms, homes need less heating than 88% of Canadian towns.
Living with Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
Plan time outside for Jun and Sep: highs of 17–27°C and nights no colder than 8°C.
Parks & trails →The wind chill passes −20 on about 2 days in a normal year.
Expect around 38 sticky days a year with the humidex above 30.
What averages leave out, the floods and ice storms, is on Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Nelson
Nelson is one of the 450 places where ECCC publishes 1991–2020 normals.
| Distance from the town | 4.2 km north-west |
| Station altitude | 535 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Precipitation from | Warfield, 54 km |
| Snowfall from | Creston, 68 km |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −19.8°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 39.7°C |
| Average wind | 8.1 km/h on average, most often from the south-west |
| Next-nearest location | Warfield, 54 km |
How Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay 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
Nearby places read from a different ECCC location (places on Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay’s own would show the same figures). The nearest places to Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay with figures are 35–45 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay Nelson | 28.5°C | −2.9°C | 759 mm |
| Castlegar 35 km · Warfield | 29.3°C 0.8°C warmer | −4.0°C 1.1°C colder | 759 mm |
| Electoral Area A, Central Kootenay 45 km · Creston | 28.6°C about the same | −4.0°C 1.1°C colder | 689 mm |
Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay 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 | 1.4°C | −2.9°C | −0.7°C | 93 mm | 45 cm |
| February | 4.1°C | −2.9°C | 0.6°C | 62 mm | 21 cm |
| March | 8.9°C | −0.2°C | 4.4°C | 61 mm | 12 cm |
| April | 14.5°C | 2.7°C | 8.6°C | 54 mm | 1 cm |
| May | 20.1°C | 6.5°C | 13.3°C | 72 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 22.9°C | 9.8°C | 16.4°C | 68 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 28.5°C | 12.7°C | 20.7°C | 47 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 28.1°C | 12.6°C | 20.4°C | 25 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 21.9°C | 8.8°C | 15.4°C | 32 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 13.1°C | 3.9°C | 8.5°C | 62 mm | 1 cm |
| November | 5.5°C | 0.3°C | 2.9°C | 86 mm | 23 cm |
| December | 1.0°C | −3.0°C | −1.0°C | 98 mm | 47 cm |
| Year | 14.2°C | 4.0°C | 9.1°C | 759 mm | 151 cm |
September has run from −1.1°C to 35.8°C in thirty years
Year to year, February varies most (a standard deviation of 1.9°C around 0.6°C) and April least (1.1°C).
Where Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the Canadian Climate Normals, 1991–2020, at Nelson (the closest location with all twelve months of temperatures).
- Other locations: where a location publishes no full year of precipitation or snowfall, the nearest one that does supplies it, named beside those figures.
- 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: a sunshine figure (ECCC published none for 1991–2020) and any lapse-rate correction for height, as the town has no elevation here.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay’s climate
How warm does Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay get in summer?
Highs reach 28.5°C on an average July day; no month is warmer.
How cold does Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay get in winter?
In December, the coldest month, the typical low is −3.0°C.
How much rain and snow does Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay get?
Rain and snow add up to about 759 mm of water a year; December brings the most (98 mm), August the least (25 mm).
Are these figures for Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay itself?
Not quite: they come from Nelson, the closest ECCC normals location to Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay →
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).