When to go & weather

Weather

The land seems to ripple in the Yukon. Unlike the broad plains of the NWT to the east, the Yukon consists of a series of mountain ranges separated by wide valleys. The iconic Yukon River links the two main population centers, Whitehorse and Dawson. The real drama is in the southeast where the St Elias Mountains span the territory. Canada’s five tallest mountains are here as are the world’s largest icefields below the Arctic, all within Kluane National Park.

Summers, spanning June, July and August, are short but warm, even hot, with occasional thunderstorms. Many places are only open from May to September because, outside of these months, visitors are few, winters are long, dark and cold and many summer residents head south.

On average there are 19 hours of daylight each day in Whitehorse during July, and only six in January.