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The climate of Canada is continental, the country is in fact largely exposed to the polar influences, this translates into a kind of cold climate, with long, harsh winters and short summers, while spring and autumn are very short.
The climate of Canada is not all that cold as is generally believed, in fact, the average winter temperatures are quite low, and there are usually several degrees below zero throughout the country, with the exception of the south-west coast (for be clear the area around Vancouver), where the climate is relatively mild.
The Rocky Mountains act as a barrier to mitigating influences from the Pacific Ocean, and only the area west of the Rocky Mountains (British Columbia) benefits from a relatively mild climate.
A SUB POLAR CLIMATE
The whole strip of land to the north of 60 ° and the peninsula of Labrador are within the sub-polar climate, and in these areas the average annual temperature is below freezing and snow is present throughout most of the year. In these areas the rainfall is rather scarce, most usually falls at the end of the summer, the annual average is around 450 mm. In the area beyond the Arctic Circle temperatures remain below freezing for more than 7 months of the year. Although located far to the south, the estuary of the St. Lawrence River remains under the grip of frost for 4 months a year. The coastal areas of the Atlantic Ocean, around the Gulf of St. Lawrence are characterized by high rainfall.
A CONTINENTAL TEMPERATE CLIMATE
The southern parts of Canada have a temperate continental climate with cold winters and hot summers. The rains are more intense towards the Atlantic coast and decrease inland going west, until reaching minimum values of 250 mm per year near the Rocky Mountains. During the summer months the southern areas of Canada experienced quite high temperatures that sometimes may even exceed 30 ° C. The seasonal temperature ranges are quite wide in most of the country, is an exception, once again, British Columbia, benefiting from the moderating effect of the warm currents from the Pacific Ocean.
The rains are quite high in western Canada and in the south-western region of Vancouver where there are around 1,200 mm od rain per year. In contrast, the inner regions of the prairies are quite dry with average annual rainfall ranging between 500 mm and 250 mm. During the winter the snow is abundant throughout the country.
WHEN TO GO TO CANADA
The best time to visit Canada are without a doubt the summer months between May / June and September, these months are characterized by warmer weather and longer days.
THE CLIMATE OF CANADA: CLIMATIC TABLES
CLIMATE TABLES: MONTREAL
| MONTREAL (83 meters) | ||||
| Month | Average low (°C) | Average high (°C) | Precip. (mm) | Precip. days (snowy days) |
| January | -16,5 | -6,5 | 87,9 | 4,4 (15,2) |
| February | -14,8 | -4,3 | 64,6 | 3,9 (12,1) |
| March | -8,5 | 1,3 | 70,4 | 6,4 (9,9) |
| April | 0,0 | 10,8 | 88,0 | 11,2 (4,0) |
| May | 6,3 | 18,5 | 86,8 | 13,7 (0,2) |
| June | 11,4 | 23,4 | 103,1 | 13,2 |
| July | 14,0 | 25,7 | 91,9 | 12,7 |
| August | 12,7 | 24,7 | 96,0 | 12,0 |
| September | 8,1 | 19,9 | 91,7 | 11,4 |
| October | 2,0 | 12,5 | 96,5 | 13,4 (1,1) |
| November | -3,4 | 4,7 | 103,2 | 11,5 (6,8) |
| December | -11,5 | -2,7 | 87,6 | 5,9 (14,0) |
| YEAR | 0,0 | 10,7 | 1067,7 | 119,6 (63,3) |
CLIMATE TABLES: CALGARY
| CALGARY (1099 meters) | ||||
| Month | Average low (°C) | Average high (°C) | Precip. (mm) | Precip. days (snowy days) |
| January | -13,2 | -0,9 | 9,4 | 0,2 (7,7) |
| February | -11,4 | 0,7 | 9,4 | 0,2 (7,4) |
| March | -7,5 | 4,4 | 17,8 | 1,3 (9,5) |
| April | -2,0 | 11,2 | 25,2 | 4,1 (6,4) |
| May | 3,1 | 16,3 | 56,8 | 10,1 (2,6) |
| June | 7,5 | 19,8 | 94,0 | 13,8 (0,1) |
| July | 9,8 | 23,2 | 65,5 | 13,0 |
| August | 8,8 | 22,8 | 57,0 | 10,5 (0,1) |
| September | 4,1 | 17,8 | 45,1 | 8,7 (1,3) |
| October | -1,4 | 11,7 | 15,3 | 4,2 (4,1) |
| November | -8,2 | 3,4 | 13,1 | 1,4 (7,4) |
| December | -12,8 | -0,8 | 10,2 | 0,4 (7,7) |
| YEAR | -1,9 | 10,8 | 418,8 | 67,9 (54,2) |
CLIMATE TABLES: VANCOUVER
| VANCOUVER (4 meters) | ||||
| Month | Average low (°C) | Average high (°C) | Precip. (mm) | Precip. days (snowy days) |
| January | 1,4 | 6,9 | 168,4 | 18,4 (2,6) |
| February | 1,6 | 8,2 | 104,6 | 14,7 (1,4) |
| March | 3,4 | 10,3 | 113,9 | 17,5 (0,9) |
| April | 5,6 | 13,2 | 88,5 | 14,8 (0,2) |
| May | 8,8 | 16,7 | 65,0 | 13,2 |
| June | 11,7 | 19,6 | 53,8 | 11,5 |
| July | 13,7 | 22,2 | 35,6 | 6,3 |
| August | 13,8 | 22,2 | 36,7 | 6,8 |
| September | 10,8 | 18,9 | 50,9 | 8,3 |
| October | 7,0 | 13,5 | 120,8 | 15,4 |
| November | 3,5 | 9,2 | 188,9 | 19,9 (0,8) |
| December | 0,8 | 6,3 | 161,9 | 18,4 (2,8) |
| YEAR | 6,8 | 13,9 | 1189 | 165,2 (8,7) |
CLIMATE TABLES: INUVIK
| INUVIK (68 meters) | ||||
| Month | Average low (°C) | Average high (°C) | Precip. (mm) | Precip. days (snowy days) |
| January | -31,0 | -22,8 | 12,5 | 0,1 (10,3) |
| February | -30,1 | -20,9 | 13,1 | 0,1 (11,6) |
| March | -27,7 | -16,8 | 11,9 | 0,1 (11,8) |
| April | -14,7 | -6,3 | 9,8 | 0,3 (8,0) |
| May | -4,5 | 5,2 | 17,3 | 2,5 (6,2) |
| June | 5,5 | 17,7 | 17,3 | 7,1 (1,4) |
| July | 8,6 | 19,5 | 35,0 | 10,8 (0,1) |
| August | 5,9 | 16,0 | 39,4 | 13,9 (1,3) |
| September | -0,1 | 7,9 | 29,3 | 8,9 (5,1) |
| October | -10,9 | -4,3 | 24,4 | 1,0 (14,1) |
| November | -25,0 | -17,1 | 16,0 | 0,0 (12,1) |
| December | -28,2 | -20,0 | 14,8 | 0,1 (11,2) |
| YEAR | -12,9 | -3,5 | 240,6 | 44,7 (93,0) |
