Cañon City weather in December

In December, Cañon City sees average daytime highs of 37°F and overnight lows near 13°F, with 0.6 in of precipitation across 4.2 wet days and about 9.4 hours of daylight. It is the 11th-warmest and 12th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 39°F in the first days to 36°F by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 62% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 30 min at the start of December to 9 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Cañon City's 2nd-clearest and 2nd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Cañon City's year-round climate.

Daytime high
37°
11th warmest
Overnight low
13°
2nd coldest
Precipitation
0.6 in
4.2 wet days
Daylight
9 h 18 min
7:17 AM – 4:37 PM
Cloud cover
35%
2nd clearest
Wind
5 mph
2nd windiest
Solar energy
2.8 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Cañon City is city in and county seat of Fremont County, Colorado, United States.

Density
506/km²
people per km²
Founded
1860

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 39°F in the first days to 36°F by the end.

A typical December day in Cañon City reaches about 37°F in the afternoon and slips back to 13°F overnight — a 24°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 24°F and 49°F. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 10°F cooler than November and on par with January.

20°40°60°151015202531
Avg high (°F)Avg low (°F)
14017
24016
33916
43916
53915
63815
73815
83815
93814
103714
113714
123714
133713
143713
153713
163613
173613
183612
193612
203612
213612
223612
233612
243612
253512
263512
273512
283612
293612
303612
313612

How December really feels in Cañon City

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 31 that feel at or below 32°F — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ 32°F
31
31 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

The story in December is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Cañon City weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 11th-warmest and 12th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°F)Rainfall (inches)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan37° / 13°0.74.54.89.60.0
Feb40° / 15°0.755.210.50.0
Mar48° / 22°1.57.16.411.71.9
Apr54° / 28°2.29.46133.4
May64° / 38°2.512.71.614.15.4
Jun75° / 47°2.011.2014.66.8
Jul80° / 52°2.913.8014.46.1
Aug77° / 51°2.614.5013.56.4
Sep71° / 44°1.37.20.412.37.3
Oct60° / 33°1.25.22.5115.6
Nov46° / 22°0.84.64.39.91.6
Dec37° / 13°0.64.24.79.40.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 62% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 13% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 25%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
17327
27327
37327
47327
57426
67426
77426
87426
97426
107525
117525
127525
137426
147525
157525
167525
177624
187624
197624
207624
217624
227624
237525
247525
257624
267624
277624
287624
297624
307525
317525

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Cañon City gets around 0.6 in of rain and snow over 4.2 wet days in December, the driest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 14% and peaks near 15% on the wettest days, and about 5 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
11516
21516
31516
41516
51515
61415
71415
81415
91415
101415
111415
121415
131415
141315
151314
161314
171314
181314
191314
201315
211315
221315
231315
241315
251315
261315
271315
281315
291315
301315
311315

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of December feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, December lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in December

Winds average 5 mph in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 5 mph on the calmest days to 5 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (mph)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
115calm
125calm
135calm
145calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
245calm
255calm
265calm
275calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 30 min at the start of December to 9 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 6 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 7:05 AM to 7:24 AM, and sunset from 4:36 PM to 4:45 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
19.57:054:36
29.57:064:36
39.57:074:36
49.57:084:36
59.47:094:36
69.47:104:36
79.47:114:36
89.47:114:36
99.47:124:36
109.47:134:36
119.47:144:36
129.47:144:36
139.47:154:36
149.37:164:37
159.37:174:37
169.37:174:37
179.37:184:37
189.37:184:38
199.37:194:38
209.37:194:39
219.37:204:39
229.37:204:39
239.37:214:40
249.37:214:40
259.37:224:41
269.37:224:42
279.37:224:42
289.37:234:43
299.37:234:43
309.37:234:44
319.47:244:45

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 2.8 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.8 kWh/m² to a high of 7.6 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 2.8 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

0123151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
12.9Moderate
22.9Moderate
32.9Moderate
42.8Moderate
52.8Moderate
62.8Moderate
72.8Moderate
82.8Moderate
92.8Moderate
102.8Moderate
112.8Moderate
122.8Moderate
132.8Moderate
142.8Moderate
152.8Moderate
162.8Moderate
172.8Moderate
182.8Moderate
192.8Moderate
202.8Moderate
212.8Moderate
222.8Moderate
232.8Moderate
242.8Moderate
252.8Moderate
262.8Moderate
272.8Moderate
282.9Moderate
292.9Moderate
302.9Moderate
312.9Moderate
Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Cañon City?

Our two travel scores rate December for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

0.0
Sightseeing
10th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
9th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Cañon City.

What to pack for Cañon City in December

From December's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In December, Cañon City sees daytime highs around 37°F and nights near 13°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 4 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

UV index in Cañon City in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 3. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Cañon City peaks around July 13 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 21 at about 3 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 13UV 11Dec 21UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb5Moderate
Mar8Very high
Apr6High
May9Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul11Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov4Moderate
Dec3Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Cañon City?

Cañon City sits at 38.4°N, 105.2°W, 5,351 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Pueblo West, 29 mi away.

Topography around Cañon City

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Cañon City.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Cañon City has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,804 ft around an average of 5,522 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,531 ft; within 50 miles, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 9,583 ft.

The land around Cañon City is covered by grassland (41%), artificial surfaces (27%) and trees (23%) within 2 miles, trees (48%) and grassland (46%) within 10 miles, and grassland (54%) and trees (39%) within 50 miles.

2 miles
1,804 ft
10 miles
4,531 ft
50 miles
9,583 ft
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
December weather nearby: Pueblo West 29 mi · Fountain 34 mi · Colorado Springs 35 mi · Security-Widefield 35 mi · Pueblo 37 mi · Cimarron Hills 41 mi · Castle Rock 68 mi · Highlands Ranch 78 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 100% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$90,027
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
5.8
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
Religion
Protestant 47%unaffiliated 23%Roman Catholic 21%Jewish 2%

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 Cañon City (38.441°, -105.2425°, elevation 5,351 ft), 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. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).