Whiskeytown Reservoir, California climate: Climate normals at a NOAA weather station
Whiskeytown Reservoir's normal year runs from 39°F December nights to 99°F July afternoons, with 62.9 inches of precipitation a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of 17.2°C, December lows of 4°C, July highs of 37°C, 1,598 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationWhiskeytown Reservoir
- Station IDUSC00049621
- Location40.61°N 122.53°W
- Elevation1,295 ft (395 m)
On October 23, the normal high in Whiskeytown Reservoir is 74°F and the normal low 50°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 19%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Whiskeytown Reservoir.
- Jan 54° 39°
- Feb 58° 41°
- Mar 63° 43°
- Apr 70° 47°
- May 79° 55°
- Jun 89° 62°
- Jul 99° 67°
- Aug 98° 65°
- Sep 92° 61°
- Oct 78° 52°
- Nov 62° 44°
- Dec 54° 39°
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 Whiskeytown Reservoir each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 99°F; December the coldest, with normal lows of 39°F. The most precipitation falls in February (11.58 in), the least in August (0.10 in).
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 54°F | 39°F | 46.7°F | 10.74 | 14 | <1 | 6 | 9 h 30 min |
| February | 58°F | 41°F | 49.5°F | 11.58 | 12 | <1 | 4 | 10 h 40 min |
| March | 63°F | 43°F | 53.3°F | 9.90 | 13 | <1 | 1 | 11 h 50 min |
| April | 70°F | 47°F | 58.5°F | 4.97 | 10 | 1 | <1 | 13 h 10 min |
| May | 79°F | 55°F | 67.1°F | 3.10 | 7 | 5 | <1 | 14 h 20 min |
| June | 89°F | 62°F | 75.3°F | 1.33 | 3 | 15 | <1 | 15 h |
| July | 99°F | 67°F | 82.6°F | 0.15 | 1 | 27 | <1 | 14 h 50 min |
| August | 98°F | 65°F | 81.3°F | 0.10 | 1 | 28 | <1 | 13 h 50 min |
| September | 92°F | 61°F | 76.3°F | 0.46 | 2 | 19 | <1 | 12 h 30 min |
| October | 78°F | 52°F | 65.0°F | 2.81 | 5 | 3 | <1 | 11 h 10 min |
| November | 62°F | 44°F | 52.8°F | 6.31 | 10 | <1 | 2 | 10 h |
| December | 54°F | 39°F | 46.0°F | 11.47 | 14 | <1 | 7 | 9 h 20 min |
| Year (annual) | 75°F | 51°F | 62.9°F | 62.92 | 91 | 98 | 20 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 12°C | 4°C | 8.2°C | 273 mm |
| February | 15°C | 5°C | 9.7°C | 294 mm |
| March | 17°C | 6°C | 11.8°C | 251 mm |
| April | 21°C | 8°C | 14.7°C | 126 mm |
| May | 26°C | 13°C | 19.5°C | 79 mm |
| June | 32°C | 17°C | 24.1°C | 34 mm |
| July | 37°C | 19°C | 28.1°C | 4 mm |
| August | 37°C | 18°C | 27.4°C | 3 mm |
| September | 33°C | 16°C | 24.6°C | 12 mm |
| October | 25°C | 11°C | 18.3°C | 71 mm |
| November | 17°C | 7°C | 11.6°C | 160 mm |
| December | 12°C | 4°C | 7.8°C | 291 mm |
NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for this station. The nearest record that keeps one, Redding (14 miles away), gets 3 inches of snow in a normal year; elevation and distance can change that.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00049621; 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 Whiskeytown Reservoir?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in April, May and October. Of those, October has the fewest days with rain (5).
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 USC00049621.
When is the last frost at Whiskeytown Reservoir?
In Whiskeytown Reservoir, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after February 13 in half of years and after March 25 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before December 13 in half of years and before November 20 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
- February 131 year in 10 after March 25; 9 in 10 after December 30
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- December 131 year in 10 before November 20; 9 in 10 before January 19
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 304 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 365 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after January 3 in half of springs and before December 25 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Whiskeytown Reservoir in zone 9a in ZIP code 96087, the nearest ZIP area.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in California · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USC00049621; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026. 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 Whiskeytown Reservoir?
In a normal year in Whiskeytown Reservoir, 98 days a year reach 90°F (36 of them 100°F or more), 20 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 91 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- 98a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- 36a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 20a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- fewer than 1high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 91a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1960) is 120°F, on September 6, 1988; the lowest is 11°F, on December 22, 1990.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 1983, with 132.56 in; the snowiest season is 1981–82, with 59.6 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USC00049621; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USC00049621. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How sunny is it at Whiskeytown Reservoir?
Over a year 85% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds at Whiskeytown Reservoir, 5.0 kWh per square metre a day. July is the sunniest month (96%) and December the cloudiest (66%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 69% | 2.0 |
| February | 73% | 3.0 |
| March | 73% | 4.2 |
| April | 80% | 5.8 |
| May | 85% | 7.1 |
| June | 92% | 8.1 |
| July | 96% | 8.2 |
| August | 96% | 7.2 |
| September | 94% | 5.8 |
| October | 87% | 4.0 |
| November | 76% | 2.4 |
| December | 66% | 1.7 |
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 Whiskeytown Reservoir record?
A normal year at Whiskeytown Reservoir brings 2,752 heating degree days, 49% fewer than the median U.S. place (5,373), and 2,006 cooling degree days, 2.2 times the median (908). Five months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 5,188 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 567 | 0 |
| February | 434 | 0 |
| March | 367 | 4 |
| April | 223 | 28 |
| May | 79 | 144 |
| June | 18 | 326 |
| July | 1 | 546 |
| August | 0 | 507 |
| September | 7 | 348 |
| October | 100 | 100 |
| November | 369 | 3 |
| December | 587 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 2,752 | 2,006 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USC00049621. 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 Whiskeytown Reservoir been warmer than normal?
Over 37 complete years from 1965 to 2017, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.4°F per century (+0.24°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Whiskeytown Reservoir's climate compare?
Whiskeytown Reservoir is warmer than 144 of the 219 places with their own NOAA record in California, and wetter than 209. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 62.9°F is warmer than 82%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Whiskeytown Reservoir is Csa: temperate, dry-summer, hot 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 Whiskeytown Reservoir share this climate record?
4 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.
- Centerville, CA2,065 people · 6 mi SE
- Keswick, CA171 people · 4 mi E
- Igo, CA109 people · 8 mi S
- Ono, CA22 people · 11 mi SW
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 Whiskeytown Reservoir's climate
What is the coldest month at Whiskeytown Reservoir?
December, with a normal high of 54°F and a normal low of 39°F. The warmest is July (99°F by day, 67°F at night).
Does it snow at Whiskeytown Reservoir?
Yes. NOAA publishes no 1991-2020 snowfall normal for the station; the nearest record that keeps one, Redding (14 miles away), records 3 inches of snow in a normal year.
What is the rainiest month at Whiskeytown Reservoir?
February, with 11.58 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is August with 0.10 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Whiskeytown Reservoir in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Whiskeytown Reservoir in zone 9a in ZIP code 96087, the nearest ZIP area.
How late can frost come at Whiskeytown Reservoir?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after February 13; in one year in ten it comes after March 25. Waiting until March 25 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- California climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Shasta, CA9 miles from this station, 63.5°F a year
- Redding, CA14 miles from this station, 63.4°F a year
- Trinity River Hatchery, CA16 miles from this station, 56.2°F a year
- Weaverville, CA23 miles from this station, 55.0°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made