La Sal, Utah climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
La Sal's normal year runs from 17°F December nights to 86°F July afternoons, with 12.7 inches of precipitation and 50 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 8.9°C, December lows of −9°C, July highs of 30°C, 322 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationLa Sal (1 mi SW)
- Station IDUSC00424947
- Location38.30°N 109.27°W
- Elevation6,787 ft (2,069 m)
- Population (census place)251
On October 23, the normal high in La Sal is 59°F and the normal low 34°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 16%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for La Sal.
- Jan 37° 17°
- Feb 41° 21°
- Mar 51° 28°
- Apr 59° 33°
- May 69° 40°
- Jun 81° 50°
- Jul 86° 57°
- Aug 84° 56°
- Sep 75° 48°
- Oct 62° 36°
- Nov 48° 26°
- Dec 37° 17°
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 La Sal each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 86°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 17°F. The most precipitation falls in September (1.45 in), the least in June (0.66 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37°F | 17°F | 27.1°F | 1.04 | 10.4 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 50 min |
| February | 41°F | 21°F | 30.8°F | 0.81 | 8.6 | 6 | <1 | 27 | 10 h 50 min |
| March | 51°F | 28°F | 39.2°F | 0.94 | 7.3 | 6 | <1 | 25 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 59°F | 33°F | 45.7°F | 1.11 | 3.8 | 5 | <1 | 16 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 69°F | 40°F | 54.6°F | 0.99 | 0.6 | 5 | <1 | 5 | 14 h 10 min |
| June | 81°F | 50°F | 65.3°F | 0.66 | 0.0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 86°F | 57°F | 71.5°F | 1.31 | 0.0 | 7 | 11 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 84°F | 56°F | 69.7°F | 1.20 | 0.0 | 7 | 4 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 75°F | 48°F | 61.4°F | 1.45 | 0.1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 62°F | 36°F | 49.0°F | 1.36 | 1.8 | 5 | <1 | 10 | 11 h 20 min |
| November | 48°F | 26°F | 36.8°F | 0.93 | 5.3 | 4 | <1 | 25 | 10 h 10 min |
| December | 37°F | 17°F | 26.7°F | 0.89 | 12.3 | 5 | <1 | 30 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 61°F | 36°F | 48.1°F | 12.69 | 50.2 | 66 | 19 | 169 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3°C | −8°C | −2.7°C | 26 mm | 26 cm |
| February | 5°C | −6°C | −0.7°C | 21 mm | 22 cm |
| March | 10°C | −2°C | 4.0°C | 24 mm | 19 cm |
| April | 15°C | 0°C | 7.6°C | 28 mm | 10 cm |
| May | 21°C | 5°C | 12.6°C | 25 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 27°C | 10°C | 18.5°C | 17 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 30°C | 14°C | 21.9°C | 33 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 29°C | 13°C | 20.9°C | 30 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 24°C | 9°C | 16.3°C | 37 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 17°C | 2°C | 9.4°C | 35 mm | 5 cm |
| November | 9°C | −4°C | 2.7°C | 24 mm | 13 cm |
| December | 3°C | −9°C | −2.9°C | 23 mm | 31 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00424947; 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 La Sal?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in May, June, August and September. Of those, June has the fewest days with rain (3).
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 USC00424947.
When is the last frost in La Sal?
In La Sal, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 17 in half of years and after June 5 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 6 in half of years and before September 24 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 171 year in 10 after June 5; 9 in 10 after April 30
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 61 year in 10 before September 24; 9 in 10 before October 19
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 141 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 161 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 4 in half of springs and before October 14 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts La Sal in zone 7a in ZIP code 84530, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, La Sal's NOAA station is in zone 6a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −5°F (19 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 Utah · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00424947; 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 La Sal?
In a normal year in La Sal, 19 days a year reach 90°F, 169 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 66 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 19a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 169a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 23high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 66a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 15a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1978) is 101°F, on July 8, 1989; the lowest is −25°F, on February 6, 1989.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1986, with 18.35 in; the snowiest season is 2022–23, with 106.8 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00424947; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00424947. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is La Sal?
Over a year 85% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around La Sal, 5.3 kWh per square metre a day. June is the sunniest month (91%) and December the cloudiest (76%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 78% | 2.7 |
| February | 77% | 3.6 |
| March | 83% | 5.2 |
| April | 84% | 6.5 |
| May | 86% | 7.5 |
| June | 91% | 8.3 |
| July | 88% | 7.5 |
| August | 87% | 6.7 |
| September | 89% | 5.8 |
| October | 87% | 4.3 |
| November | 84% | 3.1 |
| December | 76% | 2.3 |
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 La Sal need?
A normal year in La Sal brings 6,607 heating degree days, 23% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 496 cooling degree days, 45% 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 2,410 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,175 | 0 |
| February | 958 | 0 |
| March | 800 | 0 |
| April | 581 | 0 |
| May | 328 | 7 |
| June | 78 | 87 |
| July | 6 | 209 |
| August | 13 | 159 |
| September | 140 | 34 |
| October | 496 | 0 |
| November | 846 | 0 |
| December | 1,187 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 6,607 | 496 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00424947. 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.
Has La Sal been warmer than normal lately?
2023 averaged 48.2°F, 0.1°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 48.1°F. 3 of the 3 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 49.6°F | +1.5°F | 15.31 | 72.3 |
| 2022 | 48.6°F | +0.5°F | 12.17 | 50.3 |
| 2023 | 48.2°F | +0.1°F | 12.47 | 87.1 |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00424947. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does La Sal's climate compare?
La Sal is warmer than 41 of the other 96 places with their own NOAA record in Utah, and wetter than 43. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 48.1°F is warmer than 32%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, La Sal 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.
Questions about La Sal's climate
What is the coldest month in La Sal?
December, with a normal high of 37°F and a normal low of 17°F. The warmest is July (86°F by day, 57°F at night).
Does it snow in La Sal?
Yes: 50 inches in a normal year, falling on 21 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (12.3 inches).
What is the rainiest month in La Sal?
September, with 1.45 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is June with 0.66 in.
What plant hardiness zone is La Sal in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts La Sal in zone 7a in ZIP code 84530, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at La Sal's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −5°F (19 years, 1991-2020): zone 6a.
How late can frost come in La Sal?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 17; in one year in ten it comes after June 5. Waiting until June 5 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Utah climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Paradox (2 mi N), CO18 miles from this station, 50.6°F a year
- Castle Valley, UT23 miles from this station, 54.7°F a year
- Moab, UT24 miles from this station, 57.6°F a year
- Canyonlands-The Needles, UT29 miles from this station, 53.6°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made