--- title: "How bad is winter, and how do people cope? | Prince George" description: "Winters are long and cold, with snow on the ground from December to March. Good boots, layers, indoor walking and winter sports help." url: https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/surviving-winter/ markdown: https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/surviving-winter.md site: PG Pulse (https://princegeorgepulse.ca), The pulse of Prince George, British Columbia generated: 2026-10-16T15:49:52.658Z --- [Winter, weather and air](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/#weather) # How bad is winter, and how do people cope? Winters are long and cold: most snow falls from November to March, snow usually covers the ground from December to March, and December days are short. People cope with good boots and layers, indoor walking spots, and winter sports: cross-country skiing, skating and the local ski hills. Checked October 1, 2026. Numbers update on their own. January averages −7.8 °C and July 15.9 °C. Expect cold snaps below −20 °C on about 17 days in an average year, mostly December to February. Daylight today: 10.5 hours. - Dress in layers with a windproof shell, warm boots with grip, a hat and mitts. - Walk indoors at the malls or the Northern Sport Centre track when it is icy. - Get outside: Otway Nordic, Tabor Mountain, Hart Highlands, outdoor rinks and lit trails. - Many people use a light-therapy lamp in December and January. ## By the numbers, live - January average temperature −7.8 °C normals 1991–2020. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010). [More on january average temperature](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/) - July average temperature 15.9 °C normals 1991–2020. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010). [More on july average temperature](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/) - Snowfall in an average year 204 cm normals 1991–2020. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010). [More on snowfall in an average year](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/) - Daylight today 10.5 hours October 16, 2026. PG Pulse live board (Open-Meteo, ECCC, Water Survey of Canada, BC Wildfire Service, BC Hydro, DriveBC, NOAA SWPC). [More on daylight today](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/weather/) - Days below −20 °C in an average year 17 normals 1991–2020. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010). [More on days below −20 °c in an average year](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/) Still have a question? The assistant answers from all of our live data. [Ask the assistant](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/ask/?q=How%20bad%20is%20winter%2C%20and%20how%20do%20people%20cope%3F) ## On PG Pulse - [Climate](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/) - [Winter activities](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/visit/winter-activities/) - [Outdoor rinks map](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/maps/outdoor-rinks/) - [Weather](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/weather/) ## Official sources - [Environment Canada: Prince George forecast](https://weather.gc.ca/en/location/index.html?coords=53.917,-122.750) Link checked October 14, 2026 - [Canadian Climate Normals](https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/index_e.html) Link checked October 14, 2026 ## Related questions - [Do I need winter tires or a block heater?](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/winter-tires/) - [What is that smell, and which areas get it?](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/mill-smell/) - [Where is the smoke coming from, and why are there air advisories in winter?](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/smoke-air-advisories/) [All answers](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/) · [Report a problem](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/feedback/) ## More in Living here [See all in Living here](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/browse/#living) - [Moving here Costs, jobs, taxes, services](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/move/) - [Jobs Local openings, searchable](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/jobs/) - [Household costs Rent, power, gas, utilities, fuel](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/tools/household-costs/) - [Housing Rents, prices, new builds](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/housing/) - [Neighbourhoods 31 areas, mapped](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/neighbourhoods/) - [Schools Every K-12 school, college and university](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/schools/) ## Data Machine-readable data behind this page, from the free PG Pulse API (https://princegeorgepulse.ca/developers/). ### Answer Source: [Answers compiled from our own pages and the official sources linked in each answer; live values from our public API](https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/). Licence: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/); each answer links its official sources. Updated 2026-10-14T12:40:01.822Z. JSON: https://princegeorgepulse.ca/api/v1/answers/surviving-winter - **id**: surviving-winter - **theme**: 14 - **topic**: weather - **topicLabel**: Winter, weather and air - **question**: How bad is winter, and how do people cope? - **also**: Winter in Prince George, Where to walk in winter - **short**: Winters are long and cold: most snow falls from November to March, snow usually covers the ground from December to March, and December days are short. People cope with good boots and layers, indoor walking spots, and winter sports: cross-country skiing, skating and the local ski hills. - **answer**: January averages −7.8 °C and July 15.9 °C. Expect cold snaps below −20 °C on about 17 days in an average year, mostly December to February. Daylight today: 10.5 hours. - Dress in layers with a windproof shell, warm boots with grip, a hat and mitts. - Walk indoors at the malls or the Northern Sport Centre track when it is icy. - Get outside: Otway Nordic, Tabor Mountain, Hart Highlands, outdoor rinks and lit trails. - Many people use a light-therapy lamp in December and January. - **checked**: 2026-10-01 - **page**: #### facts | key | label | api | value | asOf | source | sourceUrl | href | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | janMean | January average temperature | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/api/v1/climate/normals | −7.8 °C | normals 1991–2020 | Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010) | https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/ | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/ | | julMean | July average temperature | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/api/v1/climate/normals | 15.9 °C | normals 1991–2020 | Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010) | https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/ | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/ | | snowYear | Snowfall in an average year | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/api/v1/climate/normals | 204 cm | normals 1991–2020 | Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010) | https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/ | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/ | | daylight | Daylight today | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/api/v1/now | 10.5 hours | October 16, 2026 | PG Pulse live board (Open-Meteo, ECCC, Water Survey of Canada, BC Wildfire Service, BC Hydro, DriveBC, NOAA SWPC) | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/ | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/weather/ | | coldDays | Days below −20 °C in an average year | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/api/v1/climate/normals | 17 | normals 1991–2020 | Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals (Prince George Airport 1991–2020; Prince George A 1981–2010) | https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/ | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/ | #### links | label | url | | --- | --- | | Climate | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/climate/ | | Winter activities | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/visit/winter-activities/ | | Outdoor rinks map | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/maps/outdoor-rinks/ | | Weather | https://princegeorgepulse.ca/dashboard/weather/ | #### official | label | url | linkOk | linkCheckedAt | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Environment Canada: Prince George forecast | https://weather.gc.ca/en/location/index.html?coords=53.917,-122.750 | true | 2026-10-14T12:40:01.822Z | | Canadian Climate Normals | https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_normals/index_e.html | true | 2026-10-14T12:40:01.822Z | --- Markdown version of https://princegeorgepulse.ca/answers/surviving-winter/. 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