The weather of the Chiricahua "Sky Island" is influenced by a number of climatic factors. The winters are cool with some snow at lower as well as the higher elevations with moisture brought in from Pacific-Northwest storms that move eastward. During the summer months torrential rain and thunderstorms produced when warm moist air masses from the Gulf of Mexico move up from the south in Mexico and are uplifted by warmer, drier air in the deserts of northern Mexico and southern Arizona. These air masses form towering Cumulonimbus clouds which can produce violent localized thunderstorms and downpours of heavy rain accompanied by strong gusty winds. This weather pattern occurs during the monsoon season, late June through mid-September. In the foothills and surrounding deserts temperatures can reach 100+ degrees during the summer months and below freezing in the winter. At the higher elevations temperatures are milder in the summer but colder during the winter months. In the higher elevations of the mountains there is an increase in precipitation throughout the year. Average yearly rainfall amounts can be 10-16 inches in the lower elevation desert areas to over 25 inches in the higher mountain elevations. About half the yearly rainfall occurs during the summer monsoon season. Typically April, May and June are the driest months and May and June are also the warmest. Below are summaries of temperatures and rainfall for Portal, AZ at the entrance to Cave Creek Canyon on the east side of the Chiricahuas:
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