Været i Victoria, BC (Victoria) i mai

May is garden month here - rhododendrons, magnolias, everything lush - and the packing advice is the Pacific Northwest standard: layers, a waterproof shell with a hood, spare shoes so the wet pair can dry. Our row suggests they are being more careful than they need to be. Where one regular remembers about eleven rainy days, the column has 4.7 and only 22.7mm, against Vancouver's 51.1mm across 7.6 days on the other side of the water - this city sits in the lee of the Olympic Mountains and takes under half its neighbour's May rain. The catch is temperature rather than water: 16C reading as 15C, nights at 9.5C feeling 7C, and a brisk 16.2 kph wind doing the cooling. The sea is 10.9C. The record: humidity 78 percent, 11.8 hours of sun and AQI 44.

Regulars are specific that this city and much of Vancouver Island run noticeably drier than Vancouver itself at the same time of year, a real factor for anyone splitting a BC trip between the mainland and the island. Our row backs that mild, still-showery read, 12.7C over 6.7C nights feeling 3C, with 36.8mm of rain across 7.4 days and a trace of very late snow, 0.2cm. Regulars are consistent Butchart Gardens and the streets lining the city are already full of flowers by this point, with April specifically named as more pleasant overall than March despite the blooms starting even earlier. Layers and a light waterproof jacket remain the standard advice given how quickly sun, cloud and drizzle can trade places within one day. The sea sits at a cold 8.5C. The record: humidity 78 percent, 9.6 hours of sun, a 16 kph wind and AQI 40.

Regulars here describe a summer most people do not associate with the Pacific Northwest: July to September is the dry stretch, with water restrictions, parched grass and campfire bans, and mid-September usually still shorts weather thanks to a reliable Indian summer. Our row supports the dryness at 36.3mm across 6.5 days, and puts the average day at 17.4C over 11.1C - their mid-to-upper 70s are the good days rather than the norm. The hinge is Labour Day: after that weekend the tourist places quieten, off-season rates begin and some attractions cut their hours. The record: humidity 82 percent, 9.8 hours of sun, a 12.8C sea and AQI 34.

June in Victoria improves as it runs, and locals have a name for the first half of it: Juneuary. Early June can be cool and grey, the back end is the warmer bet, and the whole month is unpredictable enough that rain gear travels regardless - though our row is kinder than the reputation at 20.3mm across 3.5 precipitation days. Their figures of 20C and 9C sit close to our 18C and 11.1C. The trade-off inside the month is crowds: early June is quieter and more tranquil, while the Canada Day long weekend at the start of July is very busy, the ferries especially. Gardens are the reason to come now. The record: 12.7 hours of sun, humidity 76 percent and a 12.6C sea.

The Victoria forum sells July as mild and never humid rather than as a heatwave: warm-ish days that can swing from the 20s to a cool overcast teens with a sprinkle, and evenings that cool off reliably enough that regulars tell you to have long sleeves with you. July, August and September are the stretch they rate above May or June for dependable weather, and July is named among the driest months of the year here - dry enough that the season brings water restrictions, parched grass and campfire bans, though a slim chance of a shower never quite goes away. The record is at the extreme end of that: 20.5C days, 12.7C nights, 1.4 precipitation days and 6.3mm for the whole month, 13.5 hours of sun a day, a 13.6C sea, AQI 32.