Pinkham Notch, New Hampshire climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Pinkham Notch's normal year runs from 6°F January nights to 75°F July afternoons, with 66.8 inches of precipitation and 136 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 4.9°C, January lows of −14°C, July highs of 24°C, 1,696 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationPinkham Notch
- Station IDUSC00276818
- Location44.26°N 71.25°W
- Elevation2,025 ft (617 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Pinkham Notch is 51°F and the normal low 33°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 46%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Pinkham Notch.
- Jan 26° 6°
- Feb 28° 7°
- Mar 36° 15°
- Apr 49° 27°
- May 62° 39°
- Jun 70° 48°
- Jul 75° 53°
- Aug 74° 52°
- Sep 68° 45°
- Oct 54° 35°
- Nov 42° 24°
- Dec 32° 14°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like at Pinkham Notch each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 75°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 6°F. The most precipitation falls in October (7.82 in), the least in February (4.28 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 26°F | 6°F | 16.1°F | 5.31 | 28.5 | 14 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 10 min |
| February | 28°F | 7°F | 17.9°F | 4.28 | 27.6 | 13 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 30 min |
| March | 36°F | 15°F | 25.6°F | 4.87 | 26.4 | 13 | <1 | 30 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 49°F | 27°F | 37.9°F | 5.75 | 9.4 | 13 | <1 | 23 | 13 h 20 min |
| May | 62°F | 39°F | 50.2°F | 5.48 | 0.6 | 15 | <1 | 6 | 14 h 40 min |
| June | 70°F | 48°F | 58.9°F | 5.88 | 0.0 | 14 | <1 | <1 | 15 h 30 min |
| July | 75°F | 53°F | 64.0°F | 5.48 | 0.0 | 14 | <1 | <1 | 15 h 10 min |
| August | 74°F | 52°F | 62.8°F | 5.12 | 0.0 | 13 | <1 | <1 | 14 h |
| September | 68°F | 45°F | 56.3°F | 4.99 | 0.0 | 12 | <1 | 2 | 12 h 40 min |
| October | 54°F | 35°F | 44.6°F | 7.82 | 1.7 | 14 | <1 | 12 | 11 h |
| November | 42°F | 24°F | 33.1°F | 5.83 | 12.7 | 14 | <1 | 24 | 9 h 40 min |
| December | 32°F | 14°F | 22.6°F | 5.98 | 28.9 | 16 | <1 | 30 | 8 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 51°F | 30°F | 40.8°F | 66.79 | 135.8 | 165 | <1 | 185 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −3°C | −14°C | −8.8°C | 135 mm | 72 cm |
| February | −2°C | −14°C | −7.8°C | 109 mm | 70 cm |
| March | 2°C | −9°C | −3.6°C | 124 mm | 67 cm |
| April | 9°C | −3°C | 3.3°C | 146 mm | 24 cm |
| May | 17°C | 4°C | 10.1°C | 139 mm | 2 cm |
| June | 21°C | 9°C | 14.9°C | 149 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 24°C | 12°C | 17.8°C | 139 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 23°C | 11°C | 17.1°C | 130 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 20°C | 7°C | 13.5°C | 127 mm | 0 cm |
| October | 12°C | 2°C | 7.0°C | 199 mm | 4 cm |
| November | 5°C | −4°C | 0.6°C | 148 mm | 32 cm |
| December | 0°C | −10°C | −5.2°C | 152 mm | 73 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00276818; 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.
Which months are mildest at Pinkham Notch?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July, August and September. Of those, September has the fewest days with rain (12).
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 USC00276818.
When is the last frost at Pinkham Notch?
In Pinkham Notch, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 18 in half of years and after June 1 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before October 1 in half of years and before September 15 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 181 year in 10 after June 1; 9 in 10 after May 3
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- October 11 year in 10 before September 15; 9 in 10 before October 14
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 135 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 160 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 4 in half of springs and before October 12 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Pinkham Notch in zone 5a in ZIP code 03593, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, the station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −16°F (26 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in New Hampshire · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00276818; 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 at Pinkham Notch?
In a normal year in Pinkham Notch, a 90°F day is rare, 185 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 165 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 185a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 79high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 165a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 40a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1930) is 93°F, on July 20, 1982; the lowest is −32°F, on February 16, 1943.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2014, with 87.54 in; the snowiest season is 1968–69, with 323.0 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00276818; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00276818. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Pinkham Notch?
Over a year 66% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Pinkham Notch, 3.5 kWh per square metre a day. September is the sunniest month (73%) and December the cloudiest (54%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 59% | 1.4 |
| February | 62% | 2.3 |
| March | 65% | 3.5 |
| April | 64% | 4.4 |
| May | 64% | 5.1 |
| June | 67% | 5.5 |
| July | 71% | 5.6 |
| August | 73% | 5.0 |
| September | 73% | 4.0 |
| October | 62% | 2.4 |
| November | 59% | 1.6 |
| December | 54% | 1.1 |
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 many heating and cooling degree days does Pinkham Notch record?
A normal year at Pinkham Notch brings 8,902 heating degree days, 66% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 124 cooling degree days, 86% 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 1,475 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,516 | 0 |
| February | 1,320 | 0 |
| March | 1,223 | 0 |
| April | 813 | 0 |
| May | 462 | 3 |
| June | 202 | 21 |
| July | 82 | 52 |
| August | 105 | 35 |
| September | 275 | 12 |
| October | 633 | 1 |
| November | 957 | 0 |
| December | 1,314 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 8,902 | 124 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00276818. 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.
Have recent years at Pinkham Notch been warmer than normal?
2025 averaged 41.3°F, 0.5°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 40.8°F. 5 of the 5 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 42.8°F | +2.0°F | 51.38 | 105.8 |
| 2022 | 42.0°F | +1.2°F | 69.34 | 102.9 |
| 2023 | 42.9°F | +2.1°F | 82.56 | 197.9 |
| 2024 | 43.4°F | +2.6°F | 53.22 | 208.3 |
| 2025 | 41.3°F | +0.5°F | 33.60 | 178.5 |
Over 77 complete years from 1931 to 2025, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 3.7°F per century (+0.21°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00276818; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Pinkham Notch's climate compare?
Pinkham Notch is warmer than 1 of the 28 places with their own NOAA record in New Hampshire, and wetter than 28. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 40.8°F is warmer than 7%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Pinkham Notch 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 Pinkham Notch's climate
What is the coldest month at Pinkham Notch?
January, with a normal high of 26°F and a normal low of 6°F. The warmest is July (75°F by day, 53°F at night).
Does it snow at Pinkham Notch?
Yes: 136 inches in a normal year, falling on 53 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in December (28.9 inches).
What is the rainiest month at Pinkham Notch?
October, with 7.82 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is February with 4.28 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Pinkham Notch in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Pinkham Notch in zone 5a in ZIP code 03593, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at the station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −16°F (26 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come at Pinkham Notch?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 18; in one year in ten it comes after June 1. Waiting until June 1 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- New Hampshire climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Mount Washington, NH2 miles from this station, 28.0°F a year
- Gorham, NH10 miles from this station, 42.6°F a year
- North Conway, NH16 miles from this station, 45.4°F a year
- Whitefield, NH16 miles from this station, 42.5°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made