Spring (April–May) and autumn (September–October) are by far the best. Days are warm, evenings cool, and the mountains north of the city are green or — in autumn — bronze with oak leaves. Wildflowers cover the slopes around the dam in April.
Summer (June–August) is hot and dry: 40°C in the city, and the air over the dam reservoir is the only respite. Winter brings cold rain to Duhok and snow to the higher passes around Amadiya; roads can close briefly during storms. Newroz, the Kurdish new year on 21 March, is celebrated with bonfires on every hilltop and is one of the year's high points if you can catch it.