It sounds like a total myth. You’re sitting there in July, sweat dripping down your neck, wondering if the AC is about to give out, and the idea of a snowflake feels like a fever dream. But honestly, the answer to has it ever snowed in the summer isn't just a "yes"—it's a "yes, and it was actually kind of a disaster."
Weather is chaotic.
Nature doesn't always follow the calendar. While most of us associate June, July, and August with beach trips and heat waves, history is littered with moments where the atmosphere decided to throw a freezing curveball. We aren't just talking about a little dusting on top of Mount Everest, either. We’re talking about sea-level cities getting hit with whiteouts while the flowers were still in bloom.
The year that summer just... disappeared
If you want the most dramatic answer to has it ever snowed in the summer, you have to look at 1816. People literally called it "Eighteen Hundred and Froze to Death."
It wasn't just a weird cold snap. It was a global climate anomaly caused by the massive eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia the year before. The volcano shot so much ash and particulate matter into the stratosphere that it basically acted like a giant sunshade for the entire planet. The Earth cooled down significantly. In New England and parts of Europe, June arrived, but the heat didn't.
On June 6, 1816, a massive snowstorm hit the Northeastern United States. Imagine being a farmer in Vermont, having just planted your corn, only to wake up to a foot of snow. People were wearing mittens in July. Birds were literally freezing and falling out of the trees. It’s hard to wrap your head around, but that year, the frost never actually stopped. It killed crops, led to widespread famine, and changed the course of history. Mary Shelley was stuck inside during a cold, rainy "summer" in Switzerland that same year, which is why she ended up writing Frankenstein. If it hadn't been so miserable out, we might not have one of the greatest horror novels ever written.
High altitudes and the summer snow rule
Of course, for some places, summer snow isn't a historical freak accident; it’s just Tuesday.
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If you go high enough, the rules change. In the Rockies, the Sierra Nevada, or the Swiss Alps, seeing a dusting of white in July is pretty standard. I've been hiking in Glacier National Park in late July and had to trek through three-foot drifts. It’s a trip. You’re wearing shorts because it’s 70 degrees at the trailhead, but by the time you hit the pass, you’re shivering and wishing you’d packed a parka.
Places like Beartooth Pass in Montana/Wyoming are famous for this. They often don't even open the road until Memorial Day because there’s too much snow, and it’s not uncommon for a Fourth of July parade to get sidelined by a sudden flurry. The atmospheric lapse rate—basically the way temperature drops as you go up—means that for every 1,000 feet of elevation, you lose about 3.5 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit.
Do the math. If it’s 80 degrees in Denver, it could easily be freezing at the top of a 14,000-foot peak.
Why does it happen in "normal" places?
So, how does it happen in places that aren't at the top of a mountain?
It usually comes down to something called an "upper-level low." Basically, a pocket of incredibly cold air from the Arctic gets cut off from the main jet stream and wanders south. If the timing is right and there’s enough moisture, you get snow.
Take July 2015, for example. Parts of southern Alberta, Canada, got hammered with several inches of the white stuff. People were literally posting photos of their blooming summer gardens buried under heavy, wet slush. It was a mess. Trees were snapping because they still had all their leaves, which catch the snow like a sail.
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Then you have the "Year of the Summer Snow" in parts of the UK. In July 1888, a cricket match in Norfolk had to be abandoned because of a snowstorm. A cricket match! That’s basically the most "summer" activity possible, and it got cancelled because of winter weather.
A few times the world went white in the heat:
- August 1992, Montana: A massive storm dumped nearly a foot of snow in some areas, causing chaos for campers and livestock.
- July 2010, China: In the Gansu province, a sudden summer blizzard surprised locals, though this was largely due to the high plateau elevation.
- June 1974, Russia: Moscow saw snowflakes falling in the middle of the month, which is exceptionally rare for a city that usually sees sweltering June temps.
- December (Summer in the Southern Hemisphere): In places like Tasmania or the South Island of New Zealand, it’s actually not that rare to see "summer" snow because they are so close to the Southern Ocean's icy winds.
The role of "Groat" and Graupel
Sometimes, when people ask has it ever snowed in the summer, they might actually be seeing graupel.
Graupel is weird. It’s not quite hail, and it’s not quite snow. It’s often called "soft hail" or "snow pellets." It happens when supercooled water droplets freeze onto a falling snowflake. The result is a little white ball that looks like a piece of Styrofoam.
I’ve seen this happen in the middle of a thunderstorm in July in the Midwest. One minute it’s 90 degrees, a storm rolls in, the temperature plummets 30 degrees in ten minutes, and suddenly the ground is covered in what looks like snow. Technically, it’s graupel, but if you’re standing there looking at a white lawn in July, you aren't really worried about the technicalities of meteorology. You’re just confused.
Climate Change and the Paradox of Cold Extremes
You’d think that as the planet warms up, the answer to has it ever snowed in the summer would eventually become a hard "no." But it’s actually more complicated than that.
Climate change is making the jet stream "wavy." Think of the jet stream like a rubber band that holds the cold Arctic air up north. As the Arctic warms, that rubber band gets loose and floppy. It starts dipping way further south than it used to. These dips bring "polar vortex" events. While we usually see this in winter, these atmospheric wobbles can happen at any time.
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A warmer atmosphere also holds more moisture. So, if a weird cold snap does happen in June or August, there’s often more "fuel" (water vapor) to turn into heavy snow. It’s a paradox: a warming world can actually lead to more intense, localized snow events in places they don't belong.
What to do if you're caught in a summer blizzard
If you're a traveler or a hiker, you need to take this seriously. Summer snow is actually more dangerous than winter snow in some ways because nobody is prepared for it.
Hypothermia doesn't care that the calendar says August. If you're wearing a cotton T-shirt and it starts snowing, you’re in trouble. Cotton is a death fabric in the cold because once it gets wet, it stays wet and sucks the heat right out of your body.
Always pack layers. Even if you’re hiking in the middle of July, if you're going into the mountains, bring a synthetic or wool base layer and a waterproof shell. Check the "mountain forecasts," not just the local city weather. Sites like Mountain-Forecast.com give you the temps at the summit, which are usually wildly different from the trailhead.
Actionable insights for the weather-wary:
- Check the Elevation: If you're traveling above 5,000 feet, keep an eye on the "lows" at night, even in July.
- Watch the Jet Stream: Use apps like Windy.com to see if a "trough" of cold air is dipping down toward your location.
- Understand the "Wet Bulb" Temp: If the humidity is high and the temperature drops rapidly during a storm, "evaporational cooling" can turn rain into snow surprisingly fast.
- Garden Prep: If you live in a high-latitude or high-altitude area, keep some frost blankets handy even in the summer. A single night of freak snow can kill an entire season's worth of vegetables.
Ultimately, summer snow is a reminder that we don't control the planet as much as we think we do. It’s rare, sure, but it’s a documented reality that has shaped history, ruined vacations, and created some of the most surreal landscapes you’ll ever see. So next time someone asks you has it ever snowed in the summer, you can tell them about the farmers in 1816 who were wearing heavy coats while trying to save their frozen corn. Nature is unpredictable, and that's honestly what makes it so fascinating.
Keep your jacket in the trunk of the car. You just never know.