Telkwa sits near the bottom of Canadian towns for July heat
The coldest hours of a January night bottom out at −10.9°C on average. The seasons are far apart: from a winter night to a summer afternoon the average spans 33°C. Its yearly rain and snow fall short of 75% of Canadian towns. About 105 days a year bring 1 mm of precipitation or more.
No ECCC station in Telkwa has 1991–2020 normals; the page reads Smithers, 18 km north-west, instead.
A year in Telkwa at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Telkwa’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in British Columbia beside it.
What a year in Telkwa feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
187 frost days and 62 days above 20°C a year
The frost season runs September to May, and December freezes nearly every night. 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
506 mm of precipitation in a typical year
October brings the most rain and snow; March, the least.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
184 cm of snow in a typical 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 Telkwa
83% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Heating degree days total each day’s gap between its mean temperature and 18°C. A house here needs more heating than 65% of Canadian towns.
Living with Telkwa’s climate
What the normals mean for a garden, a day outside and the depth of winter.
Tender plants are usually safe from around 26 May until frost returns near 17 September: about 113 days.
Plan time outside for Jul and Aug: highs of 17–27°C and nights no colder than 8°C.
Parks & trails →Winter brings about 18 days with a wind chill below −20.
Plan shade and water for about 5 days a year above 30 on the humidex.
Thirty years of averages say little about one bad storm; Telkwa’s hazards page does.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Smithers
Behind the 1991–2020 normals for Smithers are 3 stations, which ECCC combines into one record.
| Distance from the town | 18 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, 78 km |
How Telkwa 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 Telkwa whose figures come from another normals location. The nearest places to Telkwa with figures are 42–101 km away.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telkwa Smithers | 21.8°C | −10.9°C | 506 mm |
| Houston 42 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 98 km · Terrace | 21.5°C about the same | −5.3°C 5.6°C milder | 1,338 mm |
Telkwa 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 |
Two years in three, February’s average lands within 3.5°C of normal, against the steadier October
December has the widest record range, −39.0°C in 1996 to 13.6°C in 2005; the tick on each bar is the month’s normal.
Where Telkwa’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: 1991–2020 normals for Smithers from ECCC’s climate data site, the nearest location with every month of temperature.
- Comparisons: a pool of Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, read alike; whole cities and reserves stay out of it.
- 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 Telkwa’s climate
How warm does Telkwa get in summer?
Summer peaks in July: a typical afternoon reaches 21.8°C.
How cold does Telkwa get in winter?
Lows sink to −10.9°C on an average January night.
How much rain and snow does Telkwa get?
Measured as water, a year brings 506 mm: 66 mm in October, the wettest month, and 20 mm in March, the driest.
How long does snow stay on the ground?
In a normal winter there are about 127 days with at least 1 cm of snow lying.
Are these figures for Telkwa itself?
Not directly: Telkwa has no ECCC normals of its own, and Smithers stands in for it.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Telkwa →
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).