Cavendish, Vermont climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Cavendish's normal year runs from 8°F January nights to 82°F July afternoons, with 46.5 inches of precipitation and 83 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 6.9°C, January lows of −14°C, July highs of 28°C, 1,182 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationCavendish
- Station IDUSC00431243
- Location43.38°N 72.60°W
- Elevation842 ft (257 m)
- From the centerunder 1 mile
- Population (town)1,396
- Census place316
On October 23, the normal high in Cavendish is 56°F and the normal low 32°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 39%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Cavendish.
- Jan 30° 8°
- Feb 33° 8°
- Mar 42° 17°
- Apr 55° 29°
- May 68° 41°
- Jun 77° 51°
- Jul 82° 56°
- Aug 81° 54°
- Sep 73° 46°
- Oct 59° 34°
- Nov 46° 25°
- Dec 35° 16°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Cavendish each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 82°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 8°F. The most precipitation falls in October (4.86 in), the least in February (2.73 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 30°F | 8°F | 18.7°F | 3.76 | 21.2 | 13 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 20 min |
| February | 33°F | 8°F | 20.7°F | 2.73 | 18.7 | 10 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 42°F | 17°F | 29.3°F | 3.50 | 17.1 | 12 | <1 | 29 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 55°F | 29°F | 42.2°F | 3.75 | 4.1 | 12 | <1 | 20 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 68°F | 41°F | 54.9°F | 3.89 | 0.1 | 14 | <1 | 5 | 14 h 40 min |
| June | 77°F | 51°F | 64.1°F | 4.57 | 0.0 | 14 | 2 | <1 | 15 h 20 min |
| July | 82°F | 56°F | 69.0°F | 4.04 | 0.0 | 13 | 3 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| August | 81°F | 54°F | 67.1°F | 3.94 | 0.0 | 11 | 2 | <1 | 14 h |
| September | 73°F | 46°F | 59.3°F | 3.82 | 0.0 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 59°F | 34°F | 46.8°F | 4.86 | 0.8 | 13 | <1 | 15 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 46°F | 25°F | 35.9°F | 3.63 | 4.5 | 11 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 40 min |
| December | 35°F | 16°F | 25.5°F | 4.05 | 16.8 | 13 | <1 | 30 | 9 h |
| Year (annual) | 57°F | 32°F | 44.5°F | 46.54 | 83.3 | 146 | 8 | 183 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −1°C | −14°C | −7.4°C | 96 mm | 54 cm |
| February | 1°C | −13°C | −6.3°C | 69 mm | 47 cm |
| March | 5°C | −8°C | −1.5°C | 89 mm | 43 cm |
| April | 13°C | −1°C | 5.7°C | 95 mm | 10 cm |
| May | 20°C | 5°C | 12.7°C | 99 mm | 0 cm |
| June | 25°C | 11°C | 17.8°C | 116 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 28°C | 13°C | 20.6°C | 103 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 27°C | 12°C | 19.5°C | 100 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 23°C | 8°C | 15.2°C | 97 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 15°C | 1°C | 8.2°C | 123 mm | 2 cm |
| November | 8°C | −4°C | 2.2°C | 92 mm | 11 cm |
| December | 2°C | −9°C | −3.6°C | 103 mm | 43 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00431243; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit Cavendish?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, July, August and September. Of those, August has the fewest days with rain (11).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00431243.
When is the last frost in Cavendish?
In Cavendish, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 16 in half of years and after May 31 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 29 in half of years and before September 16 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- May 161 year in 10 after May 31; 9 in 10 after May 1
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 291 year in 10 before September 16; 9 in 10 before October 11
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 136 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 158 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 2 in half of springs and before October 7 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Cavendish in zone 5b in ZIP code 05142, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Cavendish's NOAA station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −17°F (22 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Vermont · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00431243; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get in Cavendish?
In a normal year in Cavendish, 8 days a year reach 90°F, 183 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 146 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 8a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 183a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 49high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 146a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 22a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1903) is 102°F, on July 5, 1911; the lowest is −42°F, on December 31, 1917.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2011, with 62.31 in; the snowiest season is 1970–71, with 165.5 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00431243; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00431243. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is Cavendish?
Over a year 69% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Cavendish, 3.7 kWh per square metre a day. August is the sunniest month (76%) and December the cloudiest (57%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 63% | 1.6 |
| February | 67% | 2.5 |
| March | 68% | 3.7 |
| April | 67% | 4.6 |
| May | 67% | 5.2 |
| June | 69% | 5.6 |
| July | 75% | 5.8 |
| August | 76% | 5.2 |
| September | 75% | 4.2 |
| October | 64% | 2.6 |
| November | 64% | 1.7 |
| December | 57% | 1.2 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does Cavendish need?
A normal year in Cavendish brings 7,818 heating degree days, 46% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 363 cooling degree days, 60% fewer than the median (908). Eight months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 2,114 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,435 | 0 |
| February | 1,242 | 0 |
| March | 1,105 | 0 |
| April | 685 | 1 |
| May | 327 | 12 |
| June | 99 | 70 |
| July | 21 | 145 |
| August | 40 | 105 |
| September | 200 | 29 |
| October | 565 | 1 |
| November | 873 | 0 |
| December | 1,226 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 7,818 | 363 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00431243. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
How does Cavendish's climate compare?
Cavendish is warmer than 16 of the other 28 places with their own NOAA record in Vermont, and wetter than 20. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 44.5°F is warmer than 17%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Cavendish is Dfb: continental, no dry season, warm summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Which places near Cavendish share this climate record?
2 places have no NOAA station with 1991-2020 normals of their own, and this station is the nearest full record. A place's own climate can differ from these figures, by several degrees where it sits much higher or lower than the station, nearer the coast, or inside a large city's heat; for the larger places the next nearest records are named with their yearly mean, so the spread around them is visible, and places of 50,000 or more have their own page with NOAA's gridded normals.
- Ludlow, VT781 people · 5 mi W
- Proctorsville, VT309 people · 2 mi W
Source: Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer (place centers) and Vintage 2024 population estimates. Distance and direction from the station to each place's center.
Questions about Cavendish's climate
What is the coldest month in Cavendish?
January, with a normal high of 30°F and a normal low of 8°F. The warmest is July (82°F by day, 56°F at night).
Does it snow in Cavendish?
Yes: 83 inches in a normal year, falling on 40 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in January (21.2 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Cavendish?
October, with 4.86 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 2.73 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Cavendish in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Cavendish in zone 5b in ZIP code 05142, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Cavendish's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −17°F (22 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come in Cavendish?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 16; in one year in ten it comes after May 31. Waiting until May 31 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Vermont climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Springfield, VT5 miles from this station, 45.5°F a year
- North Springfield, VT6 miles from this station, 45.4°F a year
- Peru, VT17 miles from this station, 42.5°F a year
- Woodstock, VT17 miles from this station, 44.9°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made