Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0Guffey has some of the coolest summers among U.S. towns
The coldest hours of a January night bottom out at 8° on average. In January, nights here are colder than in 95% of U.S. towns. Decade by decade the climate has edged up, 1.0° above 1901–2000. Garden chairs stay out from June to August, the months with highs of 72–76°.
A year in Guffey at a glance
Each month’s typical high and low, and what it brings.
What stands out about Guffey’s climate
Compared with towns across the U.S., with Guffey’s place in Colorado beside it.
What a year in Guffey feels like
Typical highs and lows by season and by month, from NOAA’s 30-year normals.
A freeze is possible in every month
About 198 nights a year fall to 32° or below, and 10 to 0° or below. Day counts come from NOAA’s station at Cripple Creek 3nnw, CO, 17 miles from the town’s center, 240 ft higher; frost dates and degree days from Florissant Fossil Bed, CO, 16 miles away.
The 2023 USDA map puts Guffey’s center in zone 5b: the coldest night of a typical winter, averaged over 1991–2020, reaches about −15°. Plant labels use the zone; frost dates tell you when to plant.
Freezing nights by month
Average nights at or below 32°
About 68 inches of snow a winter
Snow, measured at Guffey 10 Se, CO, is heaviest from March through April, about 15 inches a month. Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) adds up to 14 inches a year; July is the wettest month and January the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 78 days a year.
Rain + melted snow by month
Inches of water
Snowfall by month
Inches of snow
Heating and cooling a home in Guffey
Nearly all of the work is heating: a normal year has almost no cooling days. Months averaging under 55° run from September through May.
Degree days add up how far each day’s average falls below (heating) or rises above (cooling) 65° over a year. NOAA normals at Florissant Fossil Bed, CO.
Living with Guffey’s climate
What the numbers mean for a garden, a free afternoon and a bad-weather day.
Zone 5b, and frost can come in any month. The longest frost-free stretch in half of years is about 68 days.
Months with highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more: June, July and August.
Parks & trails →Of the yearly building losses FEMA expects in Guffey from natural hazards, wildfire is the largest share (43%). Normals are averages; the hazards page covers the extremes.
Natural hazards →Guffey and similar climates
TownRatings has no climate map of the towns around Guffey yet.
Climates most like Guffey’s, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guffey, CO | 8° | 76° | 14" | 68" |
| Jackson, WY | 6° | 80° | 19" | 78" |
| Minot, ND | 2° | 82° | 17" | 52" |
| Superior, WI | 6° | 76° | 30" | 56" |
| Whitefish, MT | 17° | 82° | 18" | 63" |
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 Guffey averaged 1.0° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in March (+2.8°).
A smaller shift than in 75% 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 Guffey compares
Against 12,954 U.S. towns of 2,500 or more (one per 5 km climate cell), with Guffey’s place among Colorado’s.
Guffey weather by month
Highs, lows and precipitation from NOAA’s grid at Guffey’s center; snow, wet days and snow on the ground from Guffey 10 Se, CO. 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | 30-yr range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 8° | 0.4" | 6.4" | 3 | 12° – 30° |
| February | 38° | 11° | 0.5" | 6.9" | 3 | 17° – 33° |
| March | 45° | 18° | 0.9" | 14.8" | 6 | 27° – 38° |
| April | 51° | 24° | 1.4" | 14.4" | 7 | 33° – 43° |
| May | 61° | 33° | 1.5" | 3.3" | 8 | 42° – 51° |
| June | 72° | 41° | 1.2" | 0.0" | 8 | 52° – 61° |
| July | 76° | 47° | 2.4" | 0.0" | 11 | 58° – 64° |
| August | 74° | 45° | 2.4" | 0.0" | 13 | 56° – 62° |
| September | 68° | 38° | 1.2" | 0.5" | 7 | 49° – 57° |
| October | 57° | 28° | 0.8" | 5.7" | 5 | 36° – 47° |
| November | 45° | 18° | 0.5" | 10.0" | 4 | 23° – 38° |
| December | 36° | 10° | 0.5" | 5.9" | 2 | 16° – 30° |
| Year | 55° | 27° | 13.6" | 67.9" | 78 |
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average. January swings the most: from 1991 to 2020 its average ranged from 12° to 30°. August is the most reliable, staying within 6°.
Where Guffey’s 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 Guffey’s center.
- Snow: Guffey 10 Se, CO.
- Frost dates, heating and cooling: Florissant Fossil Bed, CO, 16 miles away.
- Freezing nights, 90° and 100° days: Cripple Creek 3nnw, CO, 17 miles from the town’s center, 240 ft higher; the nearest station that passes our checks for distance, height and agreement with the grid.
- 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 Guffey’s climate
What is the weather like in Guffey?
A typical July afternoon reaches 76°, a January night drops to 8°, and about 68 inches of snow falls in a normal winter. Colder January nights than 95% of U.S. towns; cooler July afternoons than 98% of U.S. towns.
How cold does it get in Guffey in winter?
January nights average 8°. About 198 nights a year reach 32° or below and 10 reach 0° or below. In the coldest January of the last 30 years the month averaged 12°.
How much snow does Guffey get?
About 68 inches in a normal winter at Guffey 10 Se, CO, heaviest from March through April, about 15 inches a month.
How hot does it get in Guffey?
July, with a typical high of 76°. 90° days are rare: none in a normal year at Florissant Fossil Bed, CO.
When is the first and last frost in Guffey?
There is no reliable frost-free season: at Florissant Fossil Bed, CO, every month has nights at 32° or below, about 198 a year. In half of years the longest stretch without a freeze is about 68 days.
What growing zone is Guffey in?
Zone 5b on the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map: the coldest night of a typical winter reaches about −15°.
What is the best time of year to visit Guffey?
By one simple rule (highs of 62–84° and lows of 40° or more), June, July and August. The rule is ours, not NOAA’s; the month table has the numbers to judge by.
Is Guffey getting warmer?
Yes: 1991–2020 averaged 1.0° warmer than 1901–2000 on NOAA’s grid. A smaller shift than 75% of U.S. towns.
Neighbors talk weather
Gardens, snow, and the best days of the year in Guffey.
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.