Twin Lakes, Colorado climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Twin Lakes's normal year runs from 5°F January nights to 74°F July afternoons, with 10.3 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 3.2°C, January lows of −15°C, July highs of 24°C, 262 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationTwin Lakes Reservoir
- Station IDUSC00058501
- Location39.09°N 106.35°W
- Elevation9,236 ft (2,815 m)
- Population (census place)504
On October 14, the normal high in Twin Lakes is 54°F and the normal low 27°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 17%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Twin Lakes.
- Jan 34° 5°
- Feb 35° 5°
- Mar 41° 13°
- Apr 46° 21°
- May 58° 30°
- Jun 70° 37°
- Jul 74° 43°
- Aug 71° 42°
- Sep 65° 35°
- Oct 53° 26°
- Nov 42° 17°
- Dec 34° 8°
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 Twin Lakes each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 74°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of 5°F. The most precipitation falls in July (1.67 in), the least in January (0.44 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34°F | 5°F | 19.4°F | 0.44 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 40 min |
| February | 35°F | 5°F | 20.0°F | 0.57 | 5 | <1 | 28 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 41°F | 13°F | 27.3°F | 0.70 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 46°F | 21°F | 33.8°F | 0.83 | 6 | <1 | 29 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 58°F | 30°F | 43.7°F | 0.92 | 8 | <1 | 22 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 70°F | 37°F | 53.1°F | 0.72 | 7 | <1 | 5 | 14 h 50 min |
| July | 74°F | 43°F | 58.6°F | 1.67 | 12 | <1 | <1 | 14 h 40 min |
| August | 71°F | 42°F | 56.5°F | 1.56 | 12 | <1 | <1 | 13 h 40 min |
| September | 65°F | 35°F | 49.9°F | 1.13 | 7 | <1 | 8 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 53°F | 26°F | 39.9°F | 0.82 | 5 | <1 | 26 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 42°F | 17°F | 29.5°F | 0.46 | 4 | <1 | 29 | 10 h |
| December | 34°F | 8°F | 20.7°F | 0.49 | 4 | <1 | 31 | 9 h 30 min |
| Year (annual) | 52°F | 24°F | 37.7°F | 10.31 | 80 | <1 | 240 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1°C | −15°C | −7.0°C | 11 mm |
| February | 2°C | −15°C | −6.7°C | 14 mm |
| March | 5°C | −10°C | −2.6°C | 18 mm |
| April | 8°C | −6°C | 1.0°C | 21 mm |
| May | 14°C | −1°C | 6.5°C | 23 mm |
| June | 21°C | 3°C | 11.7°C | 18 mm |
| July | 24°C | 6°C | 14.8°C | 42 mm |
| August | 22°C | 5°C | 13.6°C | 40 mm |
| September | 18°C | 2°C | 9.9°C | 29 mm |
| October | 12°C | −3°C | 4.4°C | 21 mm |
| November | 6°C | −8°C | −1.4°C | 12 mm |
| December | 1°C | −14°C | −6.3°C | 12 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Leadville (10 miles away), gets 157 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00058501; 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 Twin Lakes?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July and August. Of those, June has the fewest days with rain (7).
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 USC00058501.
When is the last frost in Twin Lakes?
In Twin Lakes, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after June 16 in half of years and after June 29 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 10 in half of years and before August 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
- June 161 year in 10 after June 29; 9 in 10 after June 3
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 101 year in 10 before August 24; 9 in 10 before September 23
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 85 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 112 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after June 2 in half of springs and before September 23 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Twin Lakes in zone 5a in ZIP code 81228, the nearest ZIP area. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Twin Lakes's NOAA station is in zone 5a: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −18°F (18 complete years).
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Colorado · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00058501; 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 Twin Lakes?
In a normal year in Twin Lakes, a 90°F day is rare, 240 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 80 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
- 240a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 51high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 80a normal year
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00058501.
How sunny is Twin Lakes?
Over a year 77% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Twin Lakes, 4.8 kWh per square metre a day. March is the sunniest month (81%) and May the cloudiest (70%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 79% | 2.7 |
| February | 78% | 3.7 |
| March | 81% | 5.2 |
| April | 74% | 5.8 |
| May | 70% | 6.3 |
| June | 81% | 7.5 |
| July | 77% | 6.7 |
| August | 76% | 5.9 |
| September | 80% | 5.2 |
| October | 76% | 3.8 |
| November | 75% | 2.8 |
| December | 74% | 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 Twin Lakes need?
A normal year in Twin Lakes brings 9,935 heating degree days, 85% more than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 2 cooling degree days, 100% fewer than the median (908). Ten months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 674 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 1,414 | 0 |
| February | 1,260 | 0 |
| March | 1,170 | 0 |
| April | 936 | 0 |
| May | 660 | 0 |
| June | 357 | 0 |
| July | 200 | 2 |
| August | 265 | 0 |
| September | 455 | 0 |
| October | 780 | 0 |
| November | 1,065 | 0 |
| December | 1,373 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 9,935 | 2 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00058501. 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 Twin Lakes been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 40.7°F, 3.0°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 37.7°F. 4 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 40.6°F | +2.9°F | – |
| 2022 | 39.3°F | +1.6°F | – |
| 2023 | 38.4°F | +0.7°F | – |
| 2025 | 40.7°F | +3.0°F | – |
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USC00058501. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Twin Lakes's climate compare?
Twin Lakes is warmer than 8 of the other 124 places with their own NOAA record in Colorado, and wetter than 13. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 37.7°F is warmer than 3%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Twin Lakes is Dfc: continental, no dry season, cool 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 Twin Lakes's climate
What is the coldest month in Twin Lakes?
January, with a normal high of 34°F and a normal low of 5°F. The warmest is July (74°F by day, 43°F at night).
Does it snow in Twin Lakes?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for Twin Lakes's NOAA station; the nearest record that keeps one, Leadville (10 miles away), records 157 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month in Twin Lakes?
July, with 1.67 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is January with 0.44 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Twin Lakes in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Twin Lakes in zone 5a in ZIP code 81228, the nearest ZIP area. By the same method at Twin Lakes's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −18°F (18 years, 1991-2020): zone 5a.
How late can frost come in Twin Lakes?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after June 16; in one year in ten it comes after June 29. Waiting until June 29 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Colorado climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Leadville, CO9 miles from this station, 34.6°F a year
- Sugarloaf Reservoir, CO11 miles from this station, 35.2°F a year
- Climax, CO21 miles from this station, 32.2°F a year
- Fairplay, CO21 miles from this station, 36.7°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made