Best time to visit Fort Donelson National Battlefield
October and November are the best balance at Fort Donelson National Battlefield: mild and dry for the park (average highs 60° to 71°F), with crowds from busy to very busy. May is busiest, with about 17,000 visitors. December is the quietest, with highs near 50°F.
- Quiet
- Moderate
- Busy
- Very busy
- Few or no visits (may be closed)
- Best months
Month by month
- Station
- Dover 1 W, TN USC00402589
- Lat / lon
- 36.48, -87.86
- Elevation
- 475 ft
- From park center
- 0.3 mi
- Normals
- 1991–2020
- Visits
- 2023–2025
| Field | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Octbest | Novbest | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High, °F | 46° | 51° | 60° | 70° | 77° | 84° | 88° | 88° | 82° | 71° | 60° | 50° | 69° |
| Low, °F | 27° | 30° | 38° | 47° | 57° | 66° | 69° | 68° | 60° | 48° | 38° | 31° | 48° |
| Precipitation, in | 4.2 | 4.8 | 5.2 | 5.7 | 6.0 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 54.8 |
| Snow, in | 1.3 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 3.8 |
| Daylight, h:mm | 9:55 | 10:48 | 11:51 | 13:04 | 14:05 | 14:38 | 14:25 | 13:33 | 12:22 | 11:12 | 10:10 | 9:41 | |
| Visitors, thousands | 10 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 166 |
| Crowds | Busy | Busy | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Very busy | Busy | Busy | |
| Weather | Cool | Cool | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Mild, wet | Hot | Hot | Hot | Hot | Mild | Mild | Cool |
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip., in | Snow, in | Daylight | Visitors | Crowds | Weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 46° | 27° | 4.2 | 1.3 | 9:55 | 10,000 | Busy | Cool |
| February | 51° | 30° | 4.8 | 1.3 | 10:48 | 12,000 | Busy | Cool |
| March | 60° | 38° | 5.2 | 0.4 | 11:51 | 15,000 | Very busy | Mild, wet |
| April | 70° | 47° | 5.7 | 0 | 13:04 | 15,000 | Very busy | Mild, wet |
| May | 77° | 57° | 6.0 | 0 | 14:05 | 17,000 | Very busy | Mild, wet |
| June | 84° | 66° | 4.5 | 0 | 14:38 | 15,000 | Very busy | Hot |
| July | 88° | 69° | 4.3 | 0 | 14:25 | 16,000 | Very busy | Hot |
| August | 88° | 68° | 3.8 | 0 | 13:33 | 17,000 | Very busy | Hot |
| September | 82° | 60° | 3.6 | 0 | 12:22 | 15,000 | Very busy | Hot |
| Octoberbest | 71° | 48° | 3.8 | 0 | 11:12 | 14,000 | Very busy | Mild |
| Novemberbest | 60° | 38° | 4.3 | 0.1 | 10:10 | 11,000 | Busy | Mild |
| December | 50° | 31° | 4.6 | 0.7 | 9:41 | 10,000 | Busy | Cool |
| Year | 69° | 48° | 54.8 | 3.8 | 166,000 | |||
Year: average high and low, total precipitation and snowfall, total visitors. T = trace (under 0.05 in). – = not measured at this station. Updated .
- Hottest July, average high 88°F
- Coldest nights January, average low 27°F
- Source NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information; National Park Service
- Visitors a year about 166,000 (2023–2025 average)
- State Tennessee
Closures, reservations and alerts: Fort Donelson National Battlefield on nps.gov
Nearby
- Stones River National BattlefieldBest: Apr, Oct and Nov · Tennessee
- Shiloh National Military ParkBest: Oct and Nov · Tennessee
- Mammoth Cave National ParkBest: Oct and Nov · Kentucky
- Lincoln Boyhood National MemorialBest: Oct · Indiana