Climate

The atmospheric conditions in the Karkonosze are mostly determined by the altitude and size of the range, which give rise to a local alpine climate, mainly influenced by oceanic air masses. Air temperature changes along with altitude, by 0.6 ºC every 100 m.
The amount of precipitation is apparently determined by altitude. The highest amount is measured in July and August, the lowest in spring.
Snow cover in Karpacz and Szklarska Poręba lasts  for at least 100 days a year on average, while on Śnieżka it lasts 176 days. The most interesting element of winter landscape in the Karknosze is rime. In the top mountain zone it occurs from September till May, and short, sporadic occurences are recorded even during the summer months.
An interesting phenomenon is the so-called “foehn cloud bank”. Foehn wind most frequently occurs in spring and autumn. During wintertime the characteristic phenomenon is temperature inversion.
A specific feature of the Karkonosze are the most frequent fogs in Poland as well as a large number of cloudy days.