Sylvan Lake in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Sylvan Lake sees average daytime highs around -4°C and overnight lows near -14°C, with 43 mm of precipitation over about 13 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around -4°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Sylvan Lake's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Sylvan Lake's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- -4°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -14°C
- Precipitation
- 43 mm
- 13 wet days
- Avg wind
- 11 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Sylvan Lake in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around -4°C.
A typical winter day in Sylvan Lake reaches about -4°C and drops to -14°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Sylvan Lake
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 90 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Sylvan Lake weather by month
How the three winter months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | -5° / -15° | 17 | 4.9 | 5.9 | 8 | 0.0 |
| Feb | -3° / -13° | 11 | 3.3 | 4.5 | 9.5 | 0.0 |
| Mar | 2° / -8° | 20 | 5.5 | 5.4 | 11.5 | 0.0 |
| Apr | 10° / -2° | 33 | 7.4 | 4 | 13.6 | 2.1 |
| May | 16° / 4° | 63 | 10.1 | 1.8 | 15.4 | 4.7 |
| Jun | 19° / 8° | 91 | 14.3 | 0 | 16.4 | 5.4 |
| Jul | 22° / 10° | 84 | 13.2 | 0 | 16 | 6.2 |
| Aug | 21° / 9° | 68 | 10.3 | 0 | 14.5 | 6.6 |
| Sep | 17° / 5° | 43 | 8.4 | 0.7 | 12.4 | 5.4 |
| Oct | 9° / -1° | 25 | 6 | 2.5 | 10.3 | 2.1 |
| Nov | 1° / -8° | 21 | 5.5 | 5.3 | 8.5 | 0.0 |
| Dec | -4° / -13° | 15 | 4.7 | 5.5 | 7.5 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Sylvan Lake gets around 43 mm of rain and snow over 13 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 11 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 7 h 48 min in early December to 10 h 24 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 1.5 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Sylvan Lake?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Sylvan Lake.
What to pack for Sylvan Lake in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Sylvan Lake sees daytime highs around -4°C and nights near -14°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 13 days see rain.
UV index in Sylvan Lake in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Sylvan Lake peaks around July 15 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 1 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 6 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Level | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | High | Very high | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Low | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | Low |
| Feb | 1 | Low |
| Mar | 3 | Moderate |
| Apr | 4 | Moderate |
| May | 5 | High |
| Jun | 6 | High |
| Jul | 7 | Very high |
| Aug | 5 | Moderate |
| Sep | 3 | Moderate |
| Oct | 2 | Moderate |
| Nov | 1 | Low |
| Dec | 1 | Low |
Air quality in Sylvan Lake in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Sylvan Lake is worst in August — around 19 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.5× the cleanest month (October, 7 µg/m³).
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 11 | 8 | 11 | 9 | 12 | 11 | 17 | 19 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 8 |
| Level | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Good |
| Feb | 8 | Good |
| Mar | 11 | Good |
| Apr | 9 | Good |
| May | 12 | Good |
| Jun | 11 | Good |
| Jul | 17 | Moderate |
| Aug | 19 | Moderate |
| Sep | 11 | Good |
| Oct | 7 | Good |
| Nov | 8 | Good |
| Dec | 8 | Good |
Where is Sylvan Lake?
Sylvan Lake sits at 52.3°N, 114.1°W, 940 m above sea level, in Canada. The nearest listed city is Red Deer, 20 km away.
Topography around Sylvan Lake
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Sylvan Lake.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Sylvan Lake has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 69 m around an average of 950 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 186 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 645 m.
The land around Sylvan Lake is covered by grassland (31%) and water (24%) within 3 km, cropland (51%) and grassland (31%) within 16 km, and grassland (37%), cropland (36%) and trees (24%) within 80 km.
Canada travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 1
- Exercise Normal Precautions
- Power plugs
- Type A / B
- 120 V · 60 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 83% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $55,698
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.7 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 97%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 2
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 5.3
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
- Religion
Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.
Data sources
Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Sylvan Lake (52.311°, -114.0837°, elevation 940 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.