Photo: Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domainChester is among the wettest of Canadian towns: 1,561 mm of rain and snow a year
Midwinter brings lows of about −10.2°C. Its January nights stay gentler than in 67% of Canadian towns. Winter and summer sit 36°C apart. Heating does most of its work from October to April, in months below 10°C on average.
Chester has no ECCC normals station of its own: every figure here comes from Bridgewater, 31 km south-west.
A year in Chester at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Chester’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Nova Scotia beside it.
What a year in Chester feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals.
About 162 frosts and 105 warm days a year
The frost season runs September to May, and January freezes nearly every night. Deep cold, under −20°C, comes on about 5 nights a year.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
1,561 mm of precipitation in a typical year
The most falls in December, the least in July. 2nd wettest of 90 towns of 2,500+ in Nova Scotia. About 136 days a year bring 1 mm or more.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
About 184 cm of snow a year
Expect snow from November to April, with about 50 cm in January, the snowiest month.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Chester
89% of a year’s heating need falls between October and April. Months averaging under 10°C: October to April.
Degree days add up how far each day’s mean temperature falls below 18°C over a year. A house here needs less heating than 70% of Canadian towns.
Living with Chester’s climate
Gardening, time outside, winter cold and summer heat, from the 1991–2020 normals.
Seedlings can go out once the average last frost, around 26 May, has passed; autumn’s first, near 28 September, ends a season of about 124 days.
Highs of 17–27°C with nights of 8°C or more come in Jun, Jul, Aug and Sep.
Parks & trails →Severe weather is a separate story from the averages: see Chester’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: Bridgewater
Every temperature, frost, snow and degree-day figure on this page is the 1991–2020 normal ECCC publishes for Bridgewater.
| Distance from the town | 31 km south-west |
| Station altitude | 27 m |
| Completeness | at least 15 years |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −33.5°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 36.0°C |
| Next-nearest location | Waterville Cambridge, 59 km |
How Chester compares
Compared with 2,611 towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more across Canada; the dots mark the other normals locations in Nova Scotia.
Nearby towns’ climate
Places around Chester whose figures come from another normals location. The nearest places to Chester with figures are 46–55 km away.
Chester weather by month
Each month’s normals, 1991–2020: high, low, mean, precipitation and snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −0.1°C | −10.2°C | −5.2°C | 136 mm | 50 cm |
| February | 1.0°C | −9.3°C | −4.2°C | 115 mm | 47 cm |
| March | 4.9°C | −5.3°C | −0.2°C | 143 mm | 35 cm |
| April | 10.8°C | −0.2°C | 5.3°C | 121 mm | 13 cm |
| May | 16.8°C | 4.7°C | 10.7°C | 138 mm | under 1 cm |
| June | 22.2°C | 9.7°C | 15.9°C | 104 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 25.5°C | 13.3°C | 19.4°C | 87 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 25.4°C | 13.2°C | 19.3°C | 107 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 21.1°C | 9.0°C | 15.1°C | 125 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 14.4°C | 3.5°C | 9.0°C | 162 mm | under 1 cm |
| November | 8.7°C | −0.2°C | 4.3°C | 160 mm | 10 cm |
| December | 3.3°C | −5.2°C | −1.0°C | 163 mm | 30 cm |
| Year | 12.8°C | 1.9°C | 7.4°C | 1,561 mm | 184 cm |
A January here can run warm or cold, its average moving by about 2.4°C; the steadiest month is August
Records from 1991 to 2020: no month spans more than March, between −23.5°C (1993) and 28.5°C (2012).
Where Chester’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: the Canadian Climate Normals, 1991–2020, at Bridgewater (the closest location with all twelve months of temperatures).
- Comparisons: the towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+ across Canada, each on its nearest normals location, without the city totals or the reserves.
- Not on this page: sunshine (no 1991–2020 normals exist for it) and any altitude adjustment, since there is no elevation for the town itself.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Chester’s climate
How warm does Chester get in summer?
Summer peaks in July: a typical afternoon reaches 25.5°C.
How cold does Chester get in winter?
Midwinter means January, when a typical night reaches −10.2°C.
How much rain and snow does Chester get?
Rain and snow, with snow counted as water, total 1,561 mm a year; December leads with 163 mm and July trails with 87 mm.
Are these figures for Chester itself?
They come from Bridgewater, which ECCC uses as the nearest normals location for Chester.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Chester →
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).