Frost Dates for 81435 — Telluride, Colorado

Half of springs at Placerville, CO see their last 32°F night by May 26; only one in ten is past it by May 14, and one in ten still has one after June 6. Planting tender crops after May 31 leaves a 30% risk of a frost on them, after June 3 20%, and after June 6 10%. The 11 days between the even-odds date and the one-in-ten date is narrower than at 97% of the 110 Colorado stations behind this site's ZIP pages.

In fall the first 32°F night comes by September 29 in half of years, as early as September 17 one year in ten, and holds off past October 10 one year in ten. A hard freeze of 28°F follows 7 days later, around October 6; in spring the one-in-ten date for 28°F is May 26, 11 days before the 32°F one. The freeze-free season lasts 125 days in a typical year, shorter than at 63% of the 110 Colorado stations; it reaches 142 days one year in ten and falls short of 107 one year in ten. On average 202 nights a year drop to 32°F or below. Nights of 36°F, when frost can still settle on leaves in low, open spots, continue 9 days longer, to about June 4, and return around September 20. Severe cold of 16°F or below comes every winter, usually between November 1 and March 31.

July is the warmest month at Placerville, CO, averaging 83°F by day and 50°F at night; January is the coldest at 40°F and 13°F. A freezing night is all but certain in every month from October to May (a 90% chance or more). From July to August the chance of a 32°F night stays under 10% each month. In spring, June still brings one in 29% of years.

Warmth for growing adds up to 1,781 growing degree days a year (base 50°F), fewer than at 70% of the 110 Colorado stations. 29% of them (518) have built up by the end of June, and July adds the most, 516.

The nearest other station, Ridgway, CO, 17 miles northeast of Telluride and 334 feet lower, has a last frost 16 days later (June 11), a first frost 16 days earlier (September 13), a season 33 days shorter.

The first measurable snow (0.1 inch or more) in Telluride usually arrives around October 11, and the last of the season around May 10. Those are the middle dates across the winters of 1991–2020 at Telluride 4WNW, CO, 1.4 miles away: half of years saw snow earlier, half later. Every one of those winters saw snow. The last 32°F night of spring typically comes 16 days after the last snow.

ZIP 81435 is 11 miles from Placerville, CO, which stands at 7,383 feet, the nearest NOAA station that publishes freeze probabilities for 1991–2020. The 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map lists ZIP 81435 in zone 5b, the band where the coldest night of the year averaged -15 to -10°F (-26.1 to -23.3°C) over 1991–2020; a zone describes winter lows, not frost dates.