Three Lakes, MN climate
Three Lakes has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. A typical July afternoon reaches 83°, a January night drops to 6°, and about 44 inches of snow falls in a normal winter.
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals Updated once a decadeWhat a year in Three Lakes feels like
Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall
Three Lakes weather by month
Average highs, lows, rain and snow for every month, from NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals.
| Month | High | Low | Rain + melt | Snow | Wet days | Snow on ground | 30-yr range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23° | 6° | 0.6" | 7.1" | 5 | 22 | 2° – 27° |
| February | 28° | 10° | 0.7" | 9.3" | 5 | 17 | 7° – 32° |
| March | 40° | 23° | 1.5" | 8.9" | 6 | 13 | 22° – 47° |
| April | 56° | 35° | 2.8" | 3.9" | 8 | 2 | 33° – 54° |
| May | 70° | 47° | 3.8" | 0.1" | 11 | 0 | 53° – 65° |
| June | 79° | 58° | 4.8" | 0 | 10 | 0 | 64° – 73° |
| July | 83° | 61° | 3.7" | 0 | 8 | 0 | 64° – 78° |
| August | 80° | 59° | 4.1" | 0 | 8 | 0 | 64° – 74° |
| September | 74° | 50° | 3.1" | 0 | 7 | 0 | 55° – 67° |
| October | 59° | 38° | 2.3" | 0.5" | 7 | 0 | 41° – 54° |
| November | 42° | 24° | 1.3" | 4.4" | 5 | 2 | 22° – 45° |
| December | 28° | 12° | 0.9" | 9.4" | 5 | 15 | 5° – 28° |
| Year | 55° | 35° | 29.5" | 43.6" | 84 | 71 |
“Wet days” have at least 0.01" of rain or melted snow. “Snow on ground” counts days with 1" or more. The 30-year range is the coldest and warmest that month’s average temperature got between 1991 and 2020.
Rain and snow in Three Lakes
Three Lakes gets 30 inches of rain and melted snow a year. June is the wettest month and January the driest. Rain or snow falls on about 84 days a year. Snow covers the ground about 71 days of the year.
About 157 frost-free days a year
In half of years the last 32° night comes by April 30 and the first one by October 4. That leaves about 157 frost-free days for gardens, shorter than 74% of U.S. towns.
Heating and cooling a home in Three Lakes
Engineers use “degree days” to estimate how hard a furnace or air conditioner works. In Three Lakes, 92% of that work is heating and 8% is cooling, so the furnace matters far more than the air conditioner.
Degree days measure how far each day’s average temperature falls below or rises above 65°, added up over a year. Source: NOAA station normals.
Three Lakes and its neighbors
Three Lakes borders 4 towns with climate data. January nights across them vary by 0.1°. Paxton has both the coldest January nights (6°) and the hottest July afternoons (83°). Three Lakes’s January low is 6° and its July high 83°.
Temperatures and rain come from NOAA’s 5 km grid, so each town gets its own value.
How Three Lakes compares
Compared with every U.S. town and city on TownTapestry, each counted once.
Warmer than it used to be
The last 30 years in Three Lakes averaged 1.0° warmer than the 1900s. The biggest change is in January (+3.0°). The shift is smaller than in 67% of U.S. towns.
Change by month1991–2020 average minus 1901–2000 average, at Three Lakes’s spot on NOAA’s grid
How much a month can swing
A normal is an average, and real years wander around it. February swings the most: between 1991 and 2020 its average temperature ranged from 7° to 32°. June is the most reliable, staying within 9°.
Common questions about Three Lakes’s climate
What is the coldest month in Three Lakes?
January, with a typical high of 23° and a low of 6°.
What is the hottest month in Three Lakes?
July, with a typical high of 83° and a low of 61°. About 16 days a year reach 90°.
How much snow does Three Lakes get?
About 44 inches in a normal winter, most of it in December.
When is the first frost in Three Lakes?
In half of years the first 32° night comes by October 4, and the last spring frost by April 30.
What is the rainiest month in Three Lakes?
June, with 4.8 inches of rain and melted snow. The year totals 30 inches.
Temperatures and rainfall come from NOAA’s gridded climate normals for Three Lakes itself (about a 3-mile square). Snow, frost dates and day counts come from NOAA’s weather station at Redwood Falls, MN (9 mi, snow) and Redwood Falls Municipal Airport, MN (9 mi, frost, heat and degree days). Normals are 30-year averages, not a forecast. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 and 1901–2000.