Since the entire park is located at medium to high elevations, the park generally has cool-cold winters and warm summers below . Above this elevation, the climate is harsh and cold, with cool summer temperatures. Precipitation within the park is high to very high due to a lack of a rain shadow from the Coast Ranges. The park gets more precipitation than anywhere else in the Cascades south of the Three Sisters. Snowfall at the new visitor center near the southwest entrance at is around despite facing east. Up around Lake Helen, at the snowfall is around , making it probably the snowiest place in California. In addition, Lake Helen gets more average snow accumulation than any other recording station located near a volcano in the Cascade range, with a maximum of . Snowbanks persist year-round.