Sheep Mtn, CO Climate: Temperature & Rain by Month
Pulled from NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals →: climate measurements used in PlainClimate's documented score
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) from Sheep Mtn's primary NOAA station, SHEEP MTN.
The climate verdict for Sheep Mtn
Dryness leads the climate profile for Sheep Mtn, Colorado, with 13.6 inches of precipitation a year. NOAA records an annual average of 46°F. At 44/100 (moderate) the climate comfort score falls in the bottom third of the station-mapped U.S. score corpus, exceeding only 10% of scores.
- 46°F
- annual average temperature (NOAA normal)
- 44/100
- comfort score, above 10% of station-mapped location scores
- 13.6"
- annual precipitation · 51" snow
- 121 days
- growing season, frost-free days
Sheep Mtn: NOAA 1991-2020 normals describe a typical year, not a forecast. Method: /methodology.
Normals record plate
Sheet USC00057572 · Sheep Mtn, CO 46°F mean · 13.6" precip
TEMP-COOL · RANK-COOL · PHOTO-FINISH · PRCP-DRY · SWING-MID · COMF-LOW · LOAD-HEAT · STN-1 · BOOK-FULL
- TEMP-COOL 46°F
- RANK-COOL #1,509
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Jess Valley
- PRCP-DRY 13.6"
- SWING-MID 37°F
- COMF-LOW 44/100
- LOAD-HEAT 7,092 HDD
- STN-1 USC00057572
- BOOK-FULL 6/6 fields
Nearest mean-temperature peer: Jess Valley, CA (+ 0.2 °F mean)
Instrument codes from this station's NOAA 1991–2020 normals, mean temperature, corpus warmth rank, photo-finish peer station, precipitation band, seasonal swing, comfort composite, degree-day load, and field book, not a livability rating.
Mean-temperature neighbourhood
Nationwide NOAA normal poles and nearest peers, not a reprint of every CO station list.
- Sheep Mtn (this station) 46°F
- Hot Trout Creek Ran…, MT 46°F
- Near Jess Valley, CA 46°F
- Near Lemolo Lake, OR 46°F
- Near Sunset Crater N…, AZ 46°F
Climate Living Index · Sheep Mtn
Sheep Mtn: 19/100 · grade F
Sheep Mtn publishes 5 of 6 Living Index dimensions (NOAA annual/seasonal normals · NOAA daily multivariate normals); 1 missing weight rescale to 100.
PlainClimate-derived for Sheep Mtn, not an official NOAA rating. Rankings still use Comfort Score 44/100 (separate formula). Breakpoints and limits.
| Dimension | Station value | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Annual temperature balance | 45.9°F · 21.6° from 67.5°F | 23/100 · F |
| Precipitation balance | 13.6 in · 21.4 from 35 in | 23/100 · F |
| Snowfall burden | 51.2 inches/year | 20/100 · F |
| Normal heat + freeze calendar | 197 calendar days | 16/100 · F |
| Frost-free season | 121 days/year | 7/100 · F |
Sheep Mtn · 2026-08-04 · NOAA NCEI Climate Normals · method · Comfort Score method.
Sheep Mtn is a continental Köppen climate: Dfb
Coldest-month mean 28.8°F and warmest-month mean 66.2°F place this station in continental, no dry season, warm summer climates (Dfb). Class Dfb is the Peel et al. (2007) label for this station's monthly mean temperature and precipitation normals: continental, specifically continental, no dry season, warm summer.
- Köppen code
- Dfb
- Group
- Continental
- Warmest month
- 66.2°F
- Coldest month
- 28.8°F
Source: official public datasets monthly normals (1991–2020) at the city’s primary station. This is a station classification, not a mapped regional consensus.
National standing · heating-led station
Where Sheep Mtn sits across the climate record
Three NOAA fields for Sheep Mtn's primary station, temperature, precipitation, and seasonal swing, are ranked against every station-mapped normal that carries the same field.
- Annual temperature
- Cooler than 78%
- Among 6,861 stations, Sheep Mtn sits in the cooler third of annual means.
- Annual precipitation
- Drier than 86%
- Sheep Mtn's annual total ranks in the drier third of 6,352 measured normals.
- Seasonal temperature swing
- Narrower than 75%
- Warmest-to-coldest month gap for Sheep Mtn is compact versus 6,861 complete station-years.
How Sheep Mtn compares across U.S. station-mapped locations
Sheep Mtn's comfort score vs. all station-mapped locations
PlainClimate composite comfort index (1–100), NOAA 1991–2020 normals
44 10th percentile score exceeds 10% of 6,189 station-mapped location scores
- 0–10: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 10–20: 0 station-mapped locations (0%). Below this entry.
- 20–30: 96 station-mapped locations (2%). Below this entry.
- 30–40: 280 station-mapped locations (5%). Below this entry.
- 40–50: 1,113 station-mapped locations (18%). This entry sits in this band.
- 50–60: 1,329 station-mapped locations (21%). Above this entry.
- 60–70: 1,236 station-mapped locations (20%). Above this entry.
- 70–80: 650 station-mapped locations (11%). Above this entry.
- 80–90: 921 station-mapped locations (15%). Above this entry.
- 90–100: 564 station-mapped locations (9%). Above this entry.
Source NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, PlainClimate comfort index · 1991–2020
Monthly Temperatures
Average daily high and low temperatures by month
| Month | Avg High | Avg Low | Mean | Precip | Snow | Freeze Days | 90°F+ Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 41°F (5°C) | 17°F (-8°C) | 29°F (-2°C) | 0.5" | 7.7" | 29.0 | 0.0 |
| February | 42°F (6°C) | 18°F (-8°C) | 30°F (-1°C) | 0.7" | 7.2" | 25.6 | 0.0 |
| March | 50°F (10°C) | 23°F (-5°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 0.8" | 7.8" | 25.0 | 0.0 |
| April | 57°F (14°C) | 28°F (-2°C) | 42°F (6°C) | 1.4" | 8.3" | 19.5 | 0.0 |
| May | 66°F (19°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 51°F (11°C) | 1.3" | 0.7" | 6.9 | 0.0 |
| June | 77°F (25°C) | 45°F (7°C) | 61°F (16°C) | 0.8" | 0.0" | 0.5 | 0.6 |
| July | 82°F (28°C) | 51°F (10°C) | 66°F (19°C) | 2.3" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 1.3 |
| August | 79°F (26°C) | 50°F (10°C) | 64°F (18°C) | 2.3" | 0.0" | 0.1 | 0.3 |
| September | 73°F (23°C) | 43°F (6°C) | 58°F (14°C) | 1.0" | 0.1" | 1.4 | 0.0 |
| October | 62°F (16°C) | 33°F (1°C) | 47°F (8°C) | 1.0" | 1.8" | 12.0 | 0.0 |
| November | 49°F (10°C) | 24°F (-5°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 0.9" | 10.3" | 22.9 | 0.0 |
| December | 41°F (5°C) | 17°F (-8°C) | 29°F (-2°C) | 0.6" | 7.3" | 28.5 | 0.0 |
The year, day by day
Summer here tops out rather than builds: the warmest normal high is 82°F around July 12, short of 90°F on every date, while 197 dates carry a normal low at or below freezing, the coldest 16°F near December 21.
The freezing stretch
The normal low stays at or below 32°F into May 2, then returns to freezing around October 19, covering 197 dates in all.
Derived from the normal daily minimum. This is a different measure from the 50%-probability frost dates shown elsewhere on this page, which come from NOAA’s frost product.
Where the wet dates fall
The likeliest wet date is August 1, when 33% of years recorded at least a hundredth of an inch. The driest is January 11 at 10%. Summed across the calendar, that is about 61 wet dates a year.
The widest day
June 26 carries the biggest normal gap between afternoon and dawn, 32°F between the normal high and the normal low.
Look up any date
Any date's 1991–2020 normal for Sheep Mtn.
Where Sheep Mtn Stands Nationally
Winters bite deep and often: the normal nightly low dips to freezing or below on around 197 nights a year, placing this among the most frost-prone tenth of ranked stations.
A drier-than-most normal water year — around 14 inches, below what four out of five ranked stations collect.
Sheep Mtn earns 2 nationally notable standings (outer quintiles) against 6,860 NOAA 1991–2020 normals stations; only those extremes render.
Monthly Precipitation
Average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Snow: 7.7"
3.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 7.2"
3.8 days with precipitation
Snow: 7.8"
4.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 8.3"
4.4 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.7"
5.9 days with precipitation
4.2 days with precipitation
9.4 days with precipitation
9.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 0.1"
5.0 days with precipitation
Snow: 1.8"
4.3 days with precipitation
Snow: 10.3"
3.6 days with precipitation
Snow: 7.3"
3.3 days with precipitation
Sheep Mtn runs a summer-peaked wet season
40% of Sheep Mtn's yearly precipitation falls in June, July and August alone, against the 25% an evenly spread year would give those three months. The wettest month is August at 2.3", on a 37.4°F seasonal spread. Warm-season convection and, across the Southwest, the North American monsoon produce this shape: rain arrives in short heavy bursts during the hottest part of the year rather than as long cool-season soaking.
- Wettest three months: August, July, April, taking 44% of the annual total between them.
- Driest month: January at 0.5".
- Winter share: 13% falls in December, January and February.
Shares are computed from this station's own 1991-2020 monthly precipitation normals. A summer-peaked label means the June-August share reaches 35%; it describes timing across an average year, not any single season, and says nothing about how heavy an individual storm can be.
How Sheep Mtn's precipitation splits across the calendar
About 61 days a year record measurable precipitation here, carrying 13.6" between them, or roughly 0.22 inches on a typical wet day. That sits in the middle band: neither the many-light-days pattern of the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes, nor the few-heavy-events pattern of the Gulf and the desert Southwest.
A wet day is one recording at least 0.01 inches. These are 1991-2020 normals: they describe an average year and say nothing about the heaviest single storm on record.
Winter brings real snow to Sheep Mtn
Sheep Mtn averages 51.2 inches of snowfall a year, with November the snowiest month on the normals, spread across roughly 17 days that record measurable snow. That is depth accumulating on the ground, which is why it can exceed the annual precipitation figure: precipitation counts the liquid the snow melts down to, and fresh snow is mostly air.
- Annual snowfall: 51.2 inches of depth.
- Days recording measurable snow: about 17 a year.
- At a rough ten-to-one melt ratio, snow accounts for on the order of 38% of the year's precipitation.
NOAA 1991-2020 normals. The ten-to-one ratio is a convention, not a measurement: real ratios vary with temperature, so treat the share as an order of magnitude rather than an exact split.
Frost Dates & Growing Season
First Fall Freeze
September 25
50% probability date
Last Spring Freeze
May 27
50% probability date
Growing Season
121 days
Heating & Cooling Degree Days
Annual totals indicate energy demand for heating and cooling
Heating Degree Days
7,092
Higher = more heating needed
Cooling Degree Days
149
Higher = more cooling needed
Warmest Month
July
Coldest Month
December
Nationwide similar cities
Other rankable U.S. places outside CO closest to Sheep Mtn on two NOAA annual-normal axes (mean temperature and annual precipitation). Chip rows use distinct link sets.
Closest by average temperature
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual mean temperature (46°F here).
- Bradford, PA 46°F · 0.0°F off
- Elkader, IA 46°F · 0.0°F off
- Milan, MN 46°F · 0.0°F off
- New Ulm, MN 46°F · 0.0°F off
Closest by annual precipitation
Nearest out-of-state peers by annual precipitation (13.6" here), excluding temperature-peer places.
- Maeser, UT 13.6" · 0.0" off
- Torrance, CA 13.6" · 0.0" off
- Fort Stockton, TX 13.7" · 0.0" off
- Grandfalls, TX 13.7" · 0.0" off
Snow and freeze rhythm
When cold and snow define Sheep Mtn
heating led · dry · mid swing
Sheep Mtn's energy balance leans toward cold weather: 7,092 annual heating degree days against 149 for cooling. Its 37.4°F seasonal range still makes the monthly rows more useful than the annual average alone.
Only about 121 days are frost-free in a normal year. That short interval is consistent with the cold-season signal, but the measure does not predict the exact first or last freeze in any one year.
-
1. Sheep Mtn coldest normal
December
The monthly mean of 29°F (-2°C) sits near freezing, so cold nights and above-freezing afternoons share the same month.
-
2. Sheep Mtn typical freeze period
January through December
The station reports average freezing days from January through December.
-
3. Sheep Mtn snow peak
November
Sheep Mtn averages 51.2 inches of snow a year, with November the snowiest month on the normals.
Questions about Sheep Mtn's climate
How much snow does Sheep Mtn get? ▼
How cold does Sheep Mtn get in winter? ▼
How much energy does heating and cooling require in Sheep Mtn? ▼
Data Sources
Data source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals v1.0.1 (1991-2020). All figures on this page are from Sheep Mtn's primary station: SHEEP MTN (USC00057572). For informational purposes only.
Place identity: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer places. The conservative exact name-and-state crosswalk finds no Census place match, so PlainClimate treats this as a station-mapped location and does not claim it is a municipality. No exact Gazetteer row for Sheep Mtn; facility counts that depend on place identity are therefore an upper bound, not a municipal census.
On this page every temperature, precipitation, and derived score for Sheep Mtn comes from its primary NOAA station record. No figure on this page is typed in by an editor - each value is rendered from NOAA 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 1991–2020 normals.