Alpine Region

• At 8,000 to 11,000 feet, the dry climate produces a lot of powder snow. Sunrise Park Resort gets more than 200 inches of snow per year. Average minimum/maximum temperatures at Sunrise and nearby alpine lakes are 15/40 degrees during the December-March ski season---often dipping below zero degrees Fahrenheit---and 40/70 degrees in summer. Precipitation is 1 to 5 inches monthly, the driest period from April to June, and 10 to 50 inches of snow per month from November to March.
  
  

Northern Edge

• Reaching from Show Low to Springerville and the New Mexico border, most towns are situated from 6,000 to 7,000 feet. Average minimum/maximum temperatures are 20/48 degrees from December to March and 50/82 in summer. Precipitation is less than 2 inches per month, except during the July-August monsoons, with around 3 inches.
  
  

Southern Highlands

• The dramatic Salt River drains much of the White Mountains rangeSalt River Canyon image by mavrick from Fotolia.com
  
  Whiteriver and Fort Apache Junction, at about 5,300 feet, average less than 2 inches of rain per month, except during the July-August monsoons, with around 3 inches. Average minimum/maximum temperatures for this arid region run 25/55 degrees in winter and 55/88 degrees in summer. Lower elevations along the Salt River Canyon to the southwest produce a more desert-like climate that reaches up to 100 degrees in summer.