Whitehorse had its wettest winter on record this season, receiving over two-and-a-half times the normal amount of precipitation, as reported by Environment Canada. This winter in Yukon saw several records broken due to unusually cold and snowy conditions. The Whitehorse airport recorded 139.8 millimetres of precipitation from December 1 to February 28, significantly higher than the seasonal average of 52.1 millimetres. It was also the 24th coldest winter for the city since records began in 1941.
Environment Canada Meteorologist Brian Proctor noted that Whitehorse experienced a mean temperature of -16.9 C during December, January, and February, which was 3.6 degrees colder than the usual -13.3 C. The winter of 2025 to 2026 was colder than normal across most of the Yukon, attributed to a prolonged ridge of Arctic high pressure that lingered over the territory.
While the three-month period did not break overall temperature records, many communities saw record low minimum temperatures on specific days. Faro set 13 low minimum temperature records in December, with a low of -45.6 C on December 11, the lowest since 1966. Other locations like Burwash Landing, Kluane Lake, Carmacks, Beaver Lake, Teslin, Watson Lake, and Whitehorse also broke low minimum temperature records multiple times in December.
Some areas experienced a wetter-than-average winter, with Dawson ranking as the second wettest on record since 1902 and Watson Lake as the second wettest since 1939. Benoit Turcotte, a senior researcher at Yukon University, highlighted the prolonged stretch of temperatures below -20 C, lasting for 34 consecutive days. Concerns were raised about the potential impact of a rapid snowmelt in the spring, with a significant snowpack observed in Whitehorse compared to the previous year.
The abundance of snow in Whitehorse raised worries about potential property damage if the snow were to melt quickly. Turcotte emphasized the need for caution given the current snow accumulation on properties and streets.