Weather in Helmsdale

14-day forecast · updated today, Wednesday, October 28, at 10:59 pm (GMT)

Now · partly cloudy 50 °F

Feels like: 47 °F
Low / high: 47 / 53 °F
Rain: 55% · 0.15 in
Wind: 5 mph WSW

↗ 30.06 inHg · rising

Today in Helmsdale: light showers, 47 °F to 53 °F, with a 55% chance of rain (0.15 in) and a light breeze from the west-southwest (5 mph). Tomorrow, overcast, 48 °F to 56 °F and a 0% chance of rain. The warmest day of the week is Thursday 29, at 56 °F. Next likely rain: Friday 30 (11%).

Temperatures for the next 14 days

53° 47°
Today
56° 48°
Thu 29
54° 52°
Fri 30
56° 51°
Sat 31
51° 42°
Sun 1
53° 43°
Mon 2
51° 36°
Tue 3
48° 36°
Wed 4
48° 42°
Thu 5
44° 34°
Fri 6
44° 33°
Sat 7
44° 35°
Sun 8
48° 42°
Mon 9
51° 44°
Tue 10

Day by day

Day	Sky	Low / high	Rain	Max wind	Max wave	High tides	Model
Today · 28	Light showers	47 / 53 °F	55% · 0.15 in	17 mph WSW	2.8 ft	12:24 pm	ICON-EU
Thu 29	Overcast	48 / 56 °F	0%	5 mph SSW	1.2 ft	12:44 am · 1:06 pm	ICON-EU
Fri 30	Light rain	52 / 54 °F	11% · 0.06 in	9 mph SSW	1.6 ft	1:33 am · 1:52 pm	ICON-EU
Sat 31	Light rain	51 / 56 °F	37% · 0.21 in	7 mph NW	0.9 ft	2:28 am · 2:43 pm	ICON-EU
Sun 1	Overcast	42 / 51 °F	4%	7 mph WNW	0.3 ft	3:31 am · 3:43 pm	ICON-EU
Mon 2	Overcast	43 / 53 °F	0%	6 mph WNW	0.2 ft	4:44 am · 4:54 pm	ICON-EU + ECMWF
Tue 3	Overcast	36 / 51 °F	4%	6 mph W	0.1 ft	6:04 am · 6:12 pm	ECMWF
Wed 4	Overcast	36 / 48 °F	4%	6 mph WSW	0.2 ft	7:18 am · 7:24 pm	ECMWF
Thu 5	Partly cloudy	42 / 48 °F	10%	5 mph SW	0.2 ft	8:17 am · 8:24 pm	ECMWF
Fri 6	Overcast	34 / 44 °F	8%	5 mph SSW	0.3 ft	9:05 am · 9:15 pm	ECMWF
Sat 7	Overcast	33 / 44 °F	13%	3 mph W	0.4 ft	9:47 am · 10:00 pm	ECMWF
Sun 8	Overcast	35 / 44 °F	23%	9 mph SW	0.4 ft	10:25 am · 10:40 pm	ECMWF
Mon 9	Overcast	42 / 48 °F	29%	9 mph SSE	1.3 ft	11:00 am · 11:18 pm	ECMWF
Tue 10	Overcast	44 / 51 °F	25%	5 mph N	2.2 ft	11:34 am · 11:55 pm	ECMWF

Each hour comes from the best model for this spot: ICON-EU until Monday 2 7:00 pm; then ECMWF until Thursday 12 3:00 pm; then GFS.

Each day comes from the best model covering this spot: regional ones first (HRRR and NBM in the U.S., AROME, ICON-EU), then ECMWF; day 16, NOAA GFS. Waves: Météo-France up to day 10, then ECMWF WAM, coarser and further offshore. High tides: our own tide calculation.

Today, every 3 hours

Time	12:00 am	3:00 am	6:00 am	9:00 am	12:00 pm	3:00 pm	6:00 pm	9:00 pm
Sky	Light rain	Light rain	Light rain	Partly cloudy	Partly cloudy	Partly cloudy	Overcast	Partly cloudy
Temperature	47°	48°	48°	49°	52°	53°	52°	51°
Chance of rain	8%	41%	55%	14%	6%	0%	0%	0%
Rain	0.00 in	0.01 in	0.02 in	0.00 in	0.00 in	0.00 in	0.00 in	0.00 in
Wind (mph)	13 SSW	8 SW	4 SSW	14 WSW	16 W	13 WSW	9 WSW	6 WSW
Humidity	86%	90%	93%	86%	80%	76%	83%	81%
UV	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Model	ICON-EU	ICON-EU	ICON-EU	ICON-EU	ICON-EU	ICON-EU	ICON-EU	ICON-EU

Do the models agree?

Medium confidence

They broadly agree, but not quite on rain today: take it with some caution.

What 6 forecast models say for the next few days. The closer they are, the more reliable the forecast.

HighRainWind

Do the models agree? · High
High (°F)	Today	Thu 29	Fri 30	Sat 31	Sun 1	Mon 2	Tue 3
ECMWF	54°	55°	56°	55°	51°	54°	51°
AIFS	54°	57°	57°	56°	51°	52°	50°
GFS	53°	54°	53°	56°	51°	53°	53°
ICON	53°	56°	55°	56°	50°	53°	50°
ARPEGE	53°	53°	55°	52°	—	—	—
ICON-EU	53°	56°	54°	56°	51°	—	—
Confidence	high	high	high	high	high	high	high

Do the models agree? · Rain
Rain	Today	Thu 29	Fri 30	Sat 31	Sun 1	Mon 2	Tue 3
ECMWF	0.01 in	0	0	0.14 in	0	0	0
AIFS	0.05 in	0	0	0.12 in	0	0	0
GFS	0.17 in	0	0	0.09 in	0	0	0
ICON	0.11 in	0	0.06 in	0.23 in	0	0	0
ARPEGE	0.02 in	0	0	0.17 in	—	—	—
ICON-EU	0.15 in	0	0.06 in	0.21 in	0	—	—
Confidence	medium	high	medium	high	high	high	high

Do the models agree? · Wind
Wind (mph)	Today	Thu 29	Fri 30	Sat 31	Sun 1	Mon 2	Tue 3
ECMWF	1729	919	1323	1527	1223	1025	68
AIFS	17	10	12	10	9	6	6
GFS	2337	816	1119	617	1321	1221	33
ICON	1735	715	1023	919	919	513	410
ARPEGE	1429	715	917	611	—	—	—
ICON-EU	1734	516	924	717	716	—	—
Confidence	high	high	high	high	high	high	high

Chance of rain from the ensemble models

Model	Today	Thu 29	Fri 30	Sat 31	Sun 1	Mon 2	Tue 3
ECMWF (51 scenarios)	55%	0%	11%	37%	4%	0%	4%
GFS (GEFS, 31 scenarios)	94%	0%	0%	42%	6%	0%	0%

Each model's day runs midnight to midnight local time; models that reach fewer days are left blank. Rain: daily total. Wind: the day's highest average wind and, in small type, the strongest gust. Highlighted: values that stand out from the rest. The chance of rain comes from many runs of the same model with slightly different starting data.

Outlook

How the coming weeks and months compare with what is normal for the time of year. It is a trend, not a day-by-day forecast.

Next few weeks, compared with normal: normal temperatures, normal rain and a slightly warmer sea.

Next 6 weeks

When	TemperatureTemp.	Rain	Sea	Typical high / low
Nov 2 – Nov 8Nov 2–Nov 8	Normal −0.2 °F	Below −81%	A bit above +0.9 °F	—
Nov 9 – Nov 15Nov 9–Nov 15	Normal +0.2 °F	Normal	A bit above +1.1 °F	46° / 43°
Nov 16 – Nov 22Nov 16–Nov 22	Normal +0.7 °F	Normal	A bit above +1.1 °F	46° / 43°
Nov 23 – Nov 29Nov 23–Nov 29	Normal +0.4 °F	Normal	A bit above +0.9 °F	44° / 42°
Nov 30 – Dec 6Nov 30–Dec 6	Normal +0.2 °F	Normal	A bit above +0.7 °F	44° / 42°

Coming months

When	TemperatureTemp.	Rain	Sea
November	Normal +0.5 °F	Normal	A bit above +0.9 °F
December	A bit above +1.3 °F	Normal	A bit above +0.7 °F
January	A bit above +1.1 °F	Normal	A bit above +0.9 °F
February	Normal +0.5 °F	Normal	A bit above +0.9 °F
March	A bit above +0.9 °F	Normal	A bit above +0.9 °F

Weeks: ECMWF 46-day (average of its scenarios), against the normal of the last 20 years for those dates. Months: ECMWF SEAS5. Rain: total against normal. The further ahead, the closer it gets to normal and the less detail it can give.

Helmsdale climate by monthClimate by month

Normal weather for each month (1991–2020 averages)

The best time to visit Helmsdale is from July to August: highs of 63 °F, about 17 rainy days a month and 5 hours of sunshine a day.

44° 34°

JanJ
44° 34°

FebF
47° 36°

MarM
51° 38°

AprA
55° 42°

MayM
59° 47°

JunJ
63° 50°

JulJ
63° 50°

AugA
59° 47°

SepS
54° 43°

OctO
48° 38°

NovN
44° 34°

DecD

Highs and lows
Monthly rainfall
Best time

Month	High	Low	Rain	Rainy daysDays	Sun (h/day)	Water	Waves
JanuaryJan	44°	34°	3.33 in	16	1.0	45°	4.0 ft
FebruaryFeb	44°	34°	2.75 in	14	2.2	44°	3.6 ft
MarchMar	47°	36°	2.85 in	15	3.4	44°	3.3 ft
AprilApr	51°	38°	2.11 in	13	5.3	45°	2.6 ft
MayMay	55°	42°	2.48 in	14	6.2	49°	2.3 ft
JuneJun	59°	47°	2.58 in	15	5.1	53°	2.1 ft
JulyJul	63°	50°	2.56 in	17	4.8	56°	1.8 ft
AugustAug	63°	50°	3.26 in	16	4.4	57°	2.1 ft
SeptemberSep	59°	47°	3.04 in	14	3.8	56°	2.4 ft
OctoberOct	54°	43°	4.27 in	17	2.2	53°	3.4 ft
NovemberNov	48°	38°	3.77 in	16	1.4	50°	3.7 ft
DecemberDec	44°	34°	3.41 in	15	0.8	47°	3.8 ft

Month	Water	Waves
Jan	45°	4.0 ft
Feb	44°	3.6 ft
Mar	44°	3.3 ft
Apr	45°	2.6 ft
May	49°	2.3 ft
Jun	53°	2.1 ft
Jul	56°	1.8 ft
Aug	57°	2.1 ft
Sep	56°	2.4 ft
Oct	53°	3.4 ft
Nov	50°	3.7 ft
Dec	47°	3.8 ft

Days: rainy days in the month. Sun: hours a day.

A normal year brings 36.40 in of rain on about 181 days and about 1,250 hours of sunshine.

1991–2020 averages. Highs, lows and rainfall: TerraClimate; rainy days (0.04 in or more): NASA POWER (MERRA-2); sunshine hours: estimated from solar radiation; water: NOAA OISST; waves (average height): ERA5, 2011–2020. Normals are not a forecast: any given year can turn out very different. Sources and licenses

Temperature

Now50 °Ffeels like 47 °F

Tomorrow48 / 56 °F

It's 50 °F now (feels like 47 °F). Today, 47 °F to 53 °F; tomorrow, 48 °F to 56 °F.

Chance of rain

Today 55% 0.15 in
Thu 29 0%
Fri 30 11% 0.06 in
Sat 31 37% 0.21 in
Sun 1 4%
Mon 2 0%
Tue 3 4%

Today the chance of rain reaches 55%, with 0.15 in in total. The next day with likely rain is Friday 30: 11% and 0.06 in.

Recent rain: last 24 hours, 0.15 in; last 3 days, 0.45 in; last 7 days, 2.32 in.

Humidity and dew point

Humidity84%

Dew point46 °F

Humidity is 84% now and the dew point is 46 °F.

The dew point is the temperature at which the air becomes saturated: the higher it is, the heavier the air feels.

Visibility and fog

Now19 migood

Clouds63%

Visibility is good now (19 mi). No fog expected today.

The model gives visibility up to about 15 mi: beyond that, the horizon is clear.

UV index

Now0

Today's peak1low

Thu 29: 1 · Fri 30: 1 · Sat 31: 1

Index	Level	What to do
0–2	low	No special protection needed.
3–5	moderate	Hat, sunglasses and sunscreen around midday.
6–7	high	Sunscreen, hat and shade between 12 and 4 pm.
8–10	very high	Avoid the midday sun; reflection off the water adds to it.
11+	extreme	Avoid the sun between 11 am and 5 pm; protect yourself even if it is cloudy.

Reflection off water and sand adds radiation: protect yourself more on a boat or at the beach.

Barometric pressure

↗ Rising · now Anglers say fish bite less for a while
→ Steady Anglers expect normal activity
↘ Falling Anglers say fish feed more before the change

30.00 30.34

Rising now (+0.04 inHg in 3 hours). Over the next 48 hours: +0.29 inHg. Rising pressure: anglers say fish bite less for a while. Fast changes, either way, tend to affect fishing.

Air and pollen

Air qualityFair · 24

PollenNoneToday, at most none.

Pollen: Copernicus CAMS model (a rough guide, not a pollen trap). Levels use each type's usual thresholds.

Previous days

The weather over the last 30 days, as the models analyzed it. Tap a day to see it hour by hour.

Day	Sky	Low / high	Rain	Max wind
Tue 27	Drizzle	45 / 58 °F	0.13 in	32 mph SSW
Mon 26	Heavy drizzle	43 / 54 °F	0.26 in	24 mph S
Sun 25	Light rain	43 / 46 °F	1.09 in	33 mph W
Sat 24	Light rain	37 / 47 °F	0.38 in	31 mph S
Fri 23	Drizzle	41 / 48 °F	0.09 in	10 mph WSW
Thu 22	Light rain	43 / 48 °F	0.30 in	18 mph WNW
Wed 21	Light rain	47 / 51 °F	0.58 in	15 mph SSE

Show all 30 days

Day	Sky	Low / high	Rain	Max wind
Tue 20	Light drizzle	52 / 54 °F	0.07 in	21 mph SE
Mon 19	Overcast	42 / 52 °F	0	16 mph S
Sun 18	Overcast	42 / 51 °F	0	8 mph SSW
Sat 17	Overcast	42 / 53 °F	0	9 mph W
Fri 16	Overcast	43 / 52 °F	0	13 mph WNW
Thu 15	Light drizzle	47 / 55 °F	0.02 in	15 mph SW
Wed 14	Drizzle	47 / 59 °F	0.16 in	24 mph SSW
Tue 13	Light rain	48 / 59 °F	0.22 in	18 mph SW
Mon 12	Light drizzle	47 / 56 °F	0.12 in	15 mph SSE
Sun 11	Overcast	43 / 53 °F	0	10 mph WSW
Sat 10	Drizzle	45 / 52 °F	0.31 in	18 mph W
Fri 9	Light rain	46 / 55 °F	0.30 in	15 mph WSW
Thu 8	Drizzle	42 / 53 °F	0.11 in	16 mph WSW
Wed 7	Light drizzle	42 / 53 °F	0.05 in	13 mph W
Tue 6	Light drizzle	46 / 55 °F	0.01 in	11 mph WSW
Mon 5	Light drizzle	50 / 59 °F	0.02 in	21 mph WSW
Sun 4	Drizzle	53 / 60 °F	0.18 in	18 mph SW
Sat 3	Overcast	47 / 58 °F	0	14 mph SW
Fri 2	Light rain	53 / 61 °F	0.20 in	17 mph S
Thu 1	Partly cloudy	54 / 59 °F	0	15 mph S
Wed 30	Light rain	57 / 62 °F	0.42 in	23 mph SE
Tue 29	Light drizzle	49 / 57 °F	0.03 in	23 mph SE
Mon 28	Overcast	47 / 58 °F	0	15 mph SSW

These are the models at the start of each day (ECMWF and GFS; waves from Météo-France), not readings from a weather station: there can be differences at specific spots.

Questions about the weather in HelmsdaleQuestions

What's the weather like today in Helmsdale?

Light showers, from 47 °F to 53 °F, with a light breeze from the west-southwest (5 mph) and a 55% chance of rain.

Will it rain tomorrow in Helmsdale?

On Thursday 29 the chance of rain is 0% (0.00 in): overcast.

How warm will it be this week?

Between a low of 36 °F and a high of 56 °F; the warmest day, Thursday 29.

What's the UV index today?

It reaches 1 (low). No special protection needed.

Is the pressure rising or falling?

It's 30.06 inHg and rising: +0.46 inHg over the last 24 hours.

When is the best time to visit Helmsdale?

The best time to visit Helmsdale is from July to August: highs of 63 °F, about 17 rainy days a month and 5 hours of sunshine a day.

What is the weather like in Helmsdale in October?

In October, Helmsdale normally sees highs of 54 °F and lows of 43 °F, with about 17 rainy days (4.27 in for the month) and 2 hours of sunshine a day. The sea is around 53 °F. These are 1991–2020 averages.

What are the warmest and wettest months in Helmsdale?

The warmest is July, with average highs of 63 °F, and the coldest December, with lows of 34 °F. The wettest is October (4.27 in) and the driest, April.

More about Helmsdale today

Weather near Helmsdale

Only places with a different forecast: spots a few miles apart share the same model cell and wouldn't add anything.

Learn more

Weather: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0, with the best model for each spot and lead time (NOAA HRRR and NBM in the U.S., Météo-France AROME, DWD ICON-EU, ECMWF IFS and NOAA GFS); ECMWF grid point 11 mi away. The comparison also uses ICON (DWD), AIFS (ECMWF) and ARPEGE (Météo-France). Outlook: ECMWF 46-day and SEAS5. Chance of rain from ensemble models (ECMWF, GEFS and NBM). UV, air quality and pollen: CAMS (Copernicus).

Forecast from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0) with models from ECMWF, NOAA, Météo-France, DWD, Copernicus Marine and CAMS. Updated at 10:59 pm (local time).

Spotted a mistake? Tell us · Where the weather and sea data come from