Avalanche forecast

Yukon

Dec 24 – 25, 2025Avalanche Canada
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Avalanche danger

Fri
Sat
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
No rating
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Highlights

Even small avalanches can have serious consequences in extreme cold.

Carefully assess or avoid steep, wind-loaded slopes.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    1–2

    Wind slabs may be slow to bond as cold temperatures continue to facet the snowpack.

Confidence

Moderate

  • Uncertainty is due to the limited number of field observations.

Avalanche Summary

Observations are limited due to extreme cold. On Monday, a size 2 wind slab occurred on a south aspect near Tutshi Lake, indicating that ongoing outflow winds are continuing to build wind slabs.

Snowpack Summary

The upper snowpack is heavily wind affected, with widespread sastrugi and hard wind slabs in open terrain. Cold temperatures are faceting the snowpack, allowing wind slabs to persist longer than usual.

Surface facets are forming and will probably bond poorly to the snow arriving this weekend.

Snowpack depths vary widely due to wind, but average around 100 cm across the region.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night
Clear skies. 60 km/h northeast wind. Treeline temperature -32 °C.

Wednesday
Sunny. 40 km/h northeast wind. Treeline temperature -28 °C.

Thursday
Mix of sun and clouds. 50 km/h northeast wind. Treeline temperature -30 °C.

Friday
Mostly sunny. 20 km/h east ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -30 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Use ridges or ribs to avoid areas of wind-loaded snow.
  • Watch for areas of hard wind slab on alpine features.

Regions covered