Photo: P199 · CC BY-SA 4.0Powassan sits near the top of Canadian towns for snow: about 312 cm a year
The depth of winter brings overnight lows near −17.3°C. Winter nights are cold: in January they are colder than in 81% of Canadian towns. The wettest month is September; the driest is February. Ice scrapers and block heaters earn their keep on roughly 176 days a year at 0°C or below.
ECCC publishes no normals for Powassan itself; the figures are those of North Bay, 33 km north.
A year in Powassan at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, in °C.
What stands out about Powassan’s climate
Compared with Canadian towns, with its place among towns of 2,500+ in Ontario beside it.
What a year in Powassan feels like
Each season’s and each month’s usual high and low, 1991–2020.
Frost on 176 days, 20°C on 96
From September to May frost is routine, and in January it comes on almost every night. Deep cold, under −20°C, comes on about 28 nights a year.
Frost days by month
Average days at 0°C or below
Days above 20°C by month
Average days
1,020 mm of precipitation in a typical year
On about 133 days a year, 1 mm or more falls.
Rain and snow by month
Millimetres
Rain alone by month
Millimetres
Snowfall: about 312 cm in a normal year
The snow season runs October to May; December brings the most, about 71 cm.
Snowfall by month
Centimetres
Snow on the ground by month
Centimetres at month’s end
Heating a home in Powassan
90% 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. In heating terms, homes need more heating than 72% of Canadian towns.
Living with Powassan’s climate
The averages read for the garden, the outdoors and the coldest and hottest days.
Between the last frost, near 15 May, and the first, near 29 September, lie about 135 frost-free days.
Highs of 17–27°C with nights of 8°C or more come in Jun, Jul, Aug and Sep.
Parks & trails →Roughly 61 days a year feel colder than −20 in the wind.
Humid summer days, the humidex above 30, number about 25 a year.
For the weather that does damage, from ice storms to floods, see Powassan’s hazards page.
Flood & hazards →ECCC’s normals location: North Bay
Behind the 1991–2020 normals for North Bay are 3 stations, which ECCC combines into one record.
| Distance from the town | 33 km north |
| Station altitude | 370 m |
| Completeness | meets the WMO “3 and 5” rule |
| WMO standard normals | No |
| Coldest reading, 1991–2020 | −39.3°C |
| Hottest reading, 1991–2020 | 35.3°C |
| Average wind | 14.0 km/h on average, most often from the south-west |
| Next-nearest location | Barrage Témiscamingue, 75 km |
How Powassan compares
Compared with 2,611 towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more across Canada; the dots mark the other normals locations in Ontario.
Nearby towns’ climate
Places around Powassan whose figures come from another normals location. Distances here run 50–59 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Powassan.
| Town | July high | January low | Rain & snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powassan North Bay | 24.3°C | −17.3°C | 1,020 mm |
| Burk's Falls 50 km · Muskoka | 25.3°C 1.0°C warmer | −15.3°C 2.0°C milder | 1,062 mm |
| Mattawa 58 km · Barrage Témiscamingue | 25.5°C 1.2°C warmer | −16.0°C 1.3°C milder | 1,020 mm |
Powassan weather by month
Each month’s normals, 1991–2020: high, low, mean, precipitation and snowfall.
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Rain & snow | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −7.4°C | −17.3°C | −12.3°C | 70 mm | 70 cm |
| February | −5.6°C | −15.9°C | −10.8°C | 54 mm | 63 cm |
| March | 0.7°C | −9.6°C | −4.5°C | 60 mm | 39 cm |
| April | 8.6°C | −1.8°C | 3.4°C | 72 mm | 18 cm |
| May | 17.0°C | 5.7°C | 11.4°C | 89 mm | 4 cm |
| June | 22.0°C | 11.1°C | 16.6°C | 91 mm | under 1 cm |
| July | 24.3°C | 13.7°C | 19.0°C | 98 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 23.1°C | 12.8°C | 18.0°C | 93 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 18.5°C | 8.3°C | 13.4°C | 114 mm | under 1 cm |
| October | 10.6°C | 2.3°C | 6.5°C | 109 mm | 9 cm |
| November | 3.1°C | −4.3°C | −0.6°C | 97 mm | 38 cm |
| December | −3.8°C | −11.7°C | −7.8°C | 73 mm | 71 cm |
| Year | 9.3°C | −0.6°C | 4.4°C | 1,020 mm | 312 cm |
A March here can run from −33.1°C to 25.2°C
Bars run from each month’s record low to its record high over 1991–2020; January is the month whose average wanders most from year to year (±3.4°C around −12.3°C), June the one that wanders least (±1.3°C).
Where Powassan’s numbers come from
Averages over 30 years, not a forecast.
- Normals: ECCC’s 1991–2020 Canadian Climate Normals for North Bay, the nearest location with a full year of 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: sunshine, absent from every 1991–2020 location, and an altitude correction, for want of the town’s own elevation.
Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence. Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Questions about Powassan’s climate
How warm does Powassan get in summer?
On a normal day in July the thermometer climbs to 24.3°C, the warmest of the year.
How cold does Powassan get in winter?
Of all twelve months, January has the coldest nights, about −17.3°C.
How much rain and snow does Powassan get?
A normal year brings 1,020 mm, snow included as water: September is wettest at 114 mm, February driest at 54 mm.
How long does snow stay on the ground?
Expect snow on the ground, at least 1 cm, for about 137 days a year.
Are these figures for Powassan itself?
Not as such: North Bay is the nearest normals location, and Powassan has none.
Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada · ECCC Data Services End-use Licence Today’s forecast for Powassan →
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).