Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0Few U.S. towns get less rain and snow than Arboles: 12 inches a year
Sunny July days climb to about 91°. Its January nights bite harder than in 88% of U.S. towns. Compared with 1901–2000, the average now sits 1.6° higher. The heating season runs November to April: each of those months averages under 50°.
A year in Arboles at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Arboles’ climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Arboles’ place in Colorado beside it.
What a year in Arboles feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
About 128 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by May 23 and the first by September 29. Frost and day counts come from Ignacio 6ese, CO, 8 miles away.
The 2023 USDA map puts Arboles’ center in zone 6b: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −5°. Plant labels use the zone; frost dates tell you when to plant.
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
90° days by month
Average days at 90° or more
About 56 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Dulce, NM, falls mostly in January, February and December. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 12 inches a year; August is the wettest month and June the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 96 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Arboles
96% of the work is heating, so the furnace matters far more than the air conditioner. Months averaging under 55° run from October through April.
Degree days add up how far each day’s average falls below (heating) or rises above (cooling) 65° over a year. NOAA normals at Ignacio 6ese, CO.
Living with Arboles’ climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
128 frost-free days in zone 6b. The last frost comes by May 23 in half of years, so many gardeners wait a week or two past that to set out tomatoes. The first fall frost comes by Sep 29.
Months with highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more: September. 5.7 miles of trails are waiting.
Parks & trails →Of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Arboles from natural hazards, river flooding is the largest share (57%); heat waves, cold waves, winter storms and ice storms together are 1%. Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Arboles and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Arboles yet.
Climates most like Arboles’, farther away
TownRatings’ own comparison of NOAA 1991–2020 normals, not a NOAA product: places of 5,000+ at least 150 miles away, one per state, closest on January low, July high, precipitation and snow.
| Town | Jan. low | July high | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arboles, CO | 14° | 91° | 12" | 56" |
| Cedar City, UT | 18° | 91° | 11" | 60" |
| Elko, NV | 15° | 90° | 10" | 41" |
| Scottsbluff, NE | 15° | 90° | 15" | 43" |
| Preston, ID | 14° | 89° | 15" | 52" |
Temperatures and precipitation come from NOAA’s 5 km grid; snow and day counts from the stations named on this page.
Warmer than it used to be
The last 30 years in Arboles averaged 1.6° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in January (+3.1°).
A bigger shift than in 65% of U.S. towns.
Change by month
The two periods overlap (1991–2000 is in both), which makes the gap a little smaller than it would be between separate periods.
How Arboles compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Arboles’ place among Colorado’s.
Arboles weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from NOAA’s grid at Arboles’ center; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Dulce, NM. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground | 30-yr range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 14° | 0.9" | 13.4" | 7 | 23 | 21° – 35° |
| February | 48° | 19° | 0.8" | 12.8" | 8 | 18 | 29° – 40° |
| March | 58° | 26° | 0.8" | 6.3" | 8 | 5 | 37° – 47° |
| April | 66° | 32° | 0.8" | 2.7" | 7 | 0 | 44° – 53° |
| May | 76° | 39° | 0.8" | 0.4" | 7 | 0 | 51° – 62° |
| June | 87° | 47° | 0.5" | 0.0" | 5 | 0 | 62° – 71° |
| July | 91° | 55° | 1.4" | 0.0" | 12 | 0 | 69° – 77° |
| August | 88° | 54° | 1.6" | 0.0" | 13 | 0 | 68° – 75° |
| September | 81° | 45° | 1.4" | 0.0" | 8 | 0 | 57° – 66° |
| October | 68° | 34° | 1.1" | 1.0" | 7 | 0 | 46° – 55° |
| November | 54° | 24° | 1.0" | 5.7" | 6 | 4 | 32° – 46° |
| December | 43° | 15° | 0.9" | 13.4" | 8 | 16 | 23° – 35° |
| Year | 67° | 33° | 12.0" | 55.7" | 96 | 67 |
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average. November swings the most: from 1991 to 2020 its average ranged from 32° to 46°. August is the most reliable, staying within 8°.
Where Arboles’ numbers come from
Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. How TownRatings reads climate data →
- Temperatures and precipitation: NOAA’s gridded 1991–2020 normals for the 5 km cell at Arboles’ center.
- Snow: Dulce, NM.
- Frost, freezing nights, 90° and 100° days, heating and cooling: Ignacio 6ese, CO, 8 miles from the town’s center, 360 ft higher; no station nearby passes every check; this is the nearest one in the same valley, flagged above.
- Growing zone: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023. USDA Agricultural Research Service and PRISM Group, Oregon State University, prism.oregonstate.edu/phzm, accessed 8 Oct 2026.
- Then and now: NOAA’s gridded normals for 1901–2000 at the same cell.
- Storms and extremes: FEMA National Risk Index (expected annual losses to buildings).
Common questions about Arboles’ climate
What is the weather like in Arboles?
A typical July afternoon reaches 91°, a January night drops to 14°, and about 56 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than 88% of U.S. towns; hotter July afternoons than 84% of U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Arboles in winter?
January nights average 14°. About 202 nights a year reach 32° or below and 9 reach 0° or below. In the coldest January of the last 30 years the month averaged 21°.
How much snow does Arboles get?
About 56 inches in a normal winter at Dulce, NM, most of it in January, February and December, with snow on the ground about 67 days a year.
How hot does it get in Arboles?
July, with a typical high of 91° and a low of 55°. About 21 days a year reach 90° (Ignacio 6ese, CO).
When is the first and last frost in Arboles?
In half of years the last spring frost (32°) comes by May 23 and the first fall frost by September 29, about 128 frost-free days, at Ignacio 6ese, CO.
What growing zone is Arboles in?
Zone 6b on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −5°.
What is the best time of year to visit Arboles?
By one simple rule (highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more), September. The rule is ours, not NOAA’s; the month table has the numbers to judge by.
Is Arboles getting warmer?
Yes: 1991–2020 averaged 1.6° warmer than 1901–2000 on NOAA’s grid. A bigger shift than 65% of U.S. towns.
Neighbors talk weather
Gardens, snow, and the best days of the year in Arboles.
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000; USDA/PRISM 2023 hardiness zones; FEMA National Risk Index. Today’s forecast: National Weather Service.