About the Yukon River

The Yukon River was called Kweek-puk (Great River) by the Alaskan Inupiat, and Kwitchpak by the exploring Russians. In the Yukon Territory it is Takambo (Wide Open Waters Place) to the Kwanlin Dun at Whitehorse and Tage Cho Ge to the Selkirk people at Pelly Crossing/Fort Selkirk. Robert Campbell, a trader for the Hudson's Bay Company (H.B.Co.), travelled to what he called the “Lewes” River in 1843 via the Liard and Pelly rivers. John Bell, also of the H.B.Co., first saw the “Youcon” River in 1845 when he explored the western Mackenzie drainage and travelled down the Porcupine River. In 1862 Campbell confirmed that his “Lewes” and Bell's “Youcon” were the same river. At various times the source of the Yukon was thought to be the Teslin, the Lewes or the Pelly rivers. After the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897-98, the riverboat pilots distinguished parts of the river by name, such as the Fiftymile from Marsh Lake to Lake Laberge, and the Thirtymile from Lake Laberge to the Teslin. In 1964 “Yukon River” was applied to the entire watercourse from Marsh Lake in the Yukon Territory to the Bering Sea at the Alaska coast. By whatever name, the Yukon has been a major transportation route and a bountiful source of food since the last Ice Age.– from the Yukon Territorial Government sign at the Yukon River bridge on the Alaska Highway, near where the river begins at Marsh Lake

History of the Yukon River Quest
'The race to the midnight sun'

By JEFF BRADY
Yukon River Marathon Paddlers Association
Race finisher: 1999, 2005

The longest annual canoe and kayak marathon in the world had its beginnings during the Klondike Gold Rush Centennial years. Here's our history with some highlights from each YRQ race year.

How it all began...
Dyea to Dawson Centennial Race to the Klondike, 1997-98

The Yukon River Quest had its birth in the Dyea to Dawson Centennial Race to the Klondike.

In 1997 and 1998, up to 50 two-person teams hiked over the 33-mile Chilkoot Trail from Dyea, Alaska to Lake Bennett, and then got in their canoes and paddled 100 miles of headwater lakes to the beginning of the Yukon River in Whitehorse, where they continued on for another 460 miles to Dawson City.

The event was a tremendous success, drawing adventure athletes from around the world, but the best teams were always the best paddlers. The 1997 event was won by the Fairbanks, Alaska team of Jim Lokken and Art Ward, and the 1998 event was won by the international team of Solomon Carriere of Cumberland House, Sask. and Steve Landick of Marquette, Mich.

The event was held only during those Klondike Gold Rush centennial years because its length made it a two-week event and difficult logistically to manage year after year, but there was tremendous interest among racers in continuing part of the event.

1999 - Inaugural Yukon River Quest
Carriere-Lokken win first event.

Firth solicited the help of a core group of volunteers who had helped with the Dyea to Dawson events, and the first Yukon River Quest began with a running LeMans-style start at noon on June 9th, 1999.

Sixteen teams of two ran to their canoes on the shore near Rotary Park in Whitehorse and started the 460 mile journey to Dawson.

Aside from an eight hour layover at Minto, teams carried on nonstop to Dawson.

First in at a time of 56 hours, nine minutes was the elite pair of Solomon Carriere and Jim Lokken, a combined team of Dyea to Dawson winners. Mark Bayard and John Roberts of British Columbia and Alberta were three hours behind, and the Yukon team of Mike Onesi and Jason Murphy took third.

The first women’s team was Laura Cabott and Danusia Kanachowski of Whitehorse in 71 hours, 20 minutes, and the top mixed team was Roger Hanberg of Dawson City and Pauline Frost of Old Crow in 75 hours, 56 minutes. There were four scratches and the last team in was Jeff and Dorothy

Brady, in 106 hours, prompting race officials to set time limits for future races.

2000 - Year Two
Carriere breaks own record with Solie.

The event moved to the last week in June to take advantage of more daylight, more water in the river, and to give teachers a chance to enter after school let out. It also was expanded to include kayaks, and three of them entered along with 14 canoes. A two-hour layover was added at Carmacks, and the Minto layover was reduced to six hours.

Carriere returned to break his own record, this time with a different Fairbanks paddler, Daniel Solie. They finished in 53 hours, 35 minutes, an hour ahead of the Wenatchee, Wash. team of Tom Feil and Jeff Mettler. Solo kayaker Yannick Bedard, 18, of Dawson City was the first Yukoner to reach the finish in 61 hours, 15 minutes, a full day faster than the next solo kayak. Heather Birchard and Tara Waddle were the top women’s team at a time of 82 hours, 13 minutes, and the fastest mixed team was Bob Vincent and Gwyn Hayman of London, Ont. in a time of 60 hours, 57 minutes, Alaskans Greg and Jane Tibbetts were the first double kayak in a time of 79 hours, 40 minutes.

Several Wenonah Jensen 181 canoes were purchased for the Yukon River Quest and sold by the Yukon Quest International as a fund-raiser. This guaranteed a fleet of fast recreation canoes for visitors to use in future races.

2001 - Year Three
Landick returns to set new record

For the third straight year, records were broken, this year by two teams. Steve Landick and Mark Churchill of Michigan, using the same Landick-designed canoe that won the 1998 Dyea to Dawson race, won the River Quest in a total time of 52 hours, nine minutes (elapsed time 44:09). Not far behind were Feil and Mettler in 53:08 (45:08 elapsed). Protests were filed about the Landick canoe, because of its odd bend in the middle, and the Washington canoe, which had a hydration system.

The race marshals concluded that for this race, the boats would be allowed and both records would stand, but that rules would be tightened up for future races to allow no modifications to any stock canoes or kayaks.

In third place, setting a mixed record, was the Manitoba team of Clifford Grieves and Leslie Baker in 57:52. Veteran Yukon canoeist Yvonne Harris and Sue DeForest of Whitehorse were the top women’s canoe team at 71:16.

Michael Rodinger led an Austrian contingent and won the solo kayak race in a record 60:30. The fastest tandem kayak team in 68:31 was Travis Holmes and Christopher Read of Alberta. Linda Bourassa of Whitehorse was the top woman solo kayaker in 85:40.

Twenty-four teams entered the race, including the first voyageur team, Paddlers Abreast, a team of Yukon breast cancer survivors, which finished in just under 86 hours.

2002 - Year Four
“The Old Guys” lead the way

A record 36 teams entered the event, and for the first half of the race, it appeared that a tandem kayak would win for the first time. But a broken rudder at the Minto checkpoint slowed down the team of Brandon Nelson and John Weed of Lotus, Calif. They were passed by “The Old Guys”, Bob Vincent of Dorchester, Ont. and Bob Bradford of Lapeer, Mich., two veteran marathon paddlers in their 60s. The image of these two paddling into the midnight sunset near Minto has been a fixture on race posters and brochures, and they won the event in 55:22. Nelson and Weed set the tandem kayak record in 56:23 (48:23 elapsed), and in third place was the Yukon canoe team of Marcus Waterreus and Jonathan Kerr in 60:13, followed 30 seconds later by Yukoners Tim Hodsgon and Paul Pageau. In fifth was the top mixed team of Hank Timm of Tok, Alaska and Colleen Raney of Whitehorse in 60:59.

Other records were broken. The women’s canoe record was blitzed by Yvonne Harris and Pat McKenna, finishing in 67:14 (59:15 elapsed), and Whitehorse’s Ingrid Wilcox set the women’s solo kayak record in 72:29 (64:29 elapsed). Top male solo kayaker was Rick Amschler of Spruce Grove, Alberta in 65:40. A fun group of Voyageurs from Quesnel, B.C., “Cariboo to the Klondike”, challenged the “Paddlers Abreast” but finished just a minute behind the Yukon women, who broke their previous record in 79:26. The field also included England’s Debra Veal, who won international acclaim for rowing solo across the Atlantic Ocean, and a BBC documentary team followed her and teammate Bruce Parry of London in the Yukon River Quest.

After the 2002 race, the event was taken over from the sled dog organization by a group of Yukon and Alaska paddlers, who formed the Yukon River Marathon Paddlers Association.

2003 - Year Five
Vincent couple wins River Quest

Setting a new mixed record was the winning team of Mike and Fiona Vincent in 55 hours, two minutes (47:02 elapsed). Mike is the son of Bob Vincent, and his wife Fiona had competed with him on a winning Texas Water Safari team in 2002. The Regina, Sask. couple came north in 2003 and kept it in the family.

Tied for second place in 56:54 were new solo kayak record holder Jerome Truran, and the canoe team of Ken Stanick and Dave Ross, all of N. Vancouver, B.C. The Yukon-Ontario team of Tim Hodgson and Paul Pageau took fourth, followed by the “Maine Yahoos to the Yukon,” setting a rowdy voyageur record in 64:13 (56:13 elapsed).

A mixed tandem kayak record of 65:01 (57:01 elapsed) also was set by Jeff Raymond and Katja Rademacher of Vancouver. Ingrid Wilcox was the top female solo kayaker again in 76:09. Jessica Reynolds and David Nash won the red lantern with a time of 93:36

Thirty-three teams competed in the event, which featured the largest international field yet with participants from England, Austria, Germany, Scotland, the Guernsey Channel Islands, and Guam. Because of limited facilities in Minto for the growing race, the race’s mid-river checkpoint was moved to the Coal Mine Campground at Carmacks.

2004 - Year Six
Record field of 51 sees new checkpoints, prize structure, 30� temps, high water, and forest fires as Landick-Barton, others break six records

Many racers had requested a second rest stop later in the race, so for the 2004 event, the Carmacks layover was reduced to seven hours, and a three-hour layover was added at Kirkman Creek. With the race now going to 10 hours of layovers, all official times in the future will be based on elapsed time on the river, and the records have been changed to reflect this.

Speaking of records, six category records were broken in the 2004 event, which saw a huge increase in the number of participants and a new prize structure. A record 51 teams started on a hot 30� C day in downtown Whitehorse with a TV crew from the BBC filming high overhead from a helicopter. An English team entered as part of the BBC Challenge reality TV show, but it was Team Michigan that set the pace. Two-time winner Steve Landick returned with Bruce Barton as partner and led from start to finish. They were on pace to set a new overall record, but were slowed down by smoky conditions for the last third of the race. The hot, dry summer resulted in the costliest fire season ever in the Yukon, and our racers passed several fires along the river. Instead of t-shirts this year, the race gave Buffs to racers, and they came in handy for both cooling off and protecting faces from smoke. The river was high and Landick’s and Barton’s winning time of 44:27 still set the stock canoe record. The best photo finish came a few hours later as the Yukon-Manitoba team of Tim Hodgson and Chris Gerwing dueled with solo kayaker Steve Mooney of Whitehorse. The canoe won bragging rights by five seconds, but Mooney shattered the men’s solo kayak record with his time of 47:58. In fourth was the Yukon team of Francis Roy and Jean-Francois Latour in 48:54, followed by another solo kayaker, Joe Bishop of Whitehorse in 49:26. The BBC mixed kayak team of Jason Merron and Charmian Gradwell came in eighth overall in a record time of 51:13. All women’s records were shattered: Ingrid Wilcox broke her own women’s solo kayak record in 56:46, Yvonne Harris and Pat McKenna broke their women’s canoe record in 57:22, and Amy Byers and Denise Kimball broke the women’s tandem kayak record in 67:04.

The new prize structure, modified after other North American marathon paddling races, awarded a top prize of $3,000 plus entry in the 2005 race. The rest of the top 10, regardless of boat class, also won money, and bonus money was awarded to the top three in several categories. All total, there was a potential payout of about $15,000.

Once again the Paddlers Abreast voyageur team raised money for breast cancer research, and their RCMP counterparts raised money to battle diabetes, getting a rousing welcome and $1,000 check from the Tr’ondek Hwech’in First Nation of Dawson City. Teams from England and Scotland also raised money for children’s charities in their homelands. Finally, not content with completing the longest paddling race in the world, the Australian team of Terry Bolland and Edgar Vaneer continued on to the Bering Sea.

2005 – Year Seven
Records shattered as two kayaks share spotlight
The YRMPA announced a new partnership with Kanoe People/Clipper Canoes which enabled the purchase of seven Clipper Jensens to replace the aging Wenonah rental fleet. The 2005 event saw more high water from an early snowmelt. A record field of 66 teams started the race on a cool, drizzly afternoon. Fifty teams finished and eight records were broken. Less then two minutes separated the three leading teams after 20 straight hours of paddling as they arrived into Carmacks. Two tandem kayak teams paddled by Yukoners Stephen Mooney and Greg McHale and American marathon racers Chris Swan and Sean Brennan of California and New Jersey worked hard to stay ahead of a canoe paddled by defending YRQ champion Steve Landick of Michigan and Texas Water Safari multi-champ Fred Mynar of Texas. As they approached the finish line, the two kayaks rafted together for a winning time of by 42 hours and 51 minutes, shattering the course record. Landick also broke his own open canoe record in 43:10, and there were new records set for solo kayak by David Kelly in 45:22, women’s canoe by Tunde Fulop and Danielle Boisvert in 55:18, Mixed Tandem Kayak by Heather and Brandon Nelson in 45:22, Women's Tandem Kayak by Danise Kimball / Amy Byers in 59:31, and Voyageur Canoe by RCMP Scarlet Fever in 55:50. After the race, the YRMPA board decided to change the prize structure to reward all classes and divisions equally, as a way of promoting more competition within classes.

2006 – Year Eight
Course record shattered again by kayak ‘super team’ – voyageurs getting popular, faster
Heavy rains at the start made for cool temperatures but a fast river, and the elite teams took advantage of it. First overall with a new course record of 40:37:05 was the tandem kayak “super team” of David Kelly and Brandon Nelson from California and Washington. The voyageur class continued to grow. As a continuation of its partnership with Kanoe People/Clipper, the YRMPA jointly purchased a new Clipper Langley Voyageur Canoe to be reserved for rental by teams coming in from outside the Yukon. During the first year, it was paddled by the False Creek Women of Vancouver, British Columbia. Five other voyageur teams entered the 2006 race, including the Yukon’s Paddlers Abreast team, which was being filmed for the National Film Board production, “River of Life”, and Kissynew from Saskatchewan which shattered the old dragon boat record and finished second overall in 42:56:13. The men’s and women’s solo kayak records also were broken by Carter Johnson and Heather Nelson respectively, and Yukoner Pauline Frost-Hanberg and Viki Cirkvencic broke the women’s canoe record (see records page). Veteran Steve Landick and Gregg Nelson of Michigan took the men’s canoe division, and Veronica Wisniewski and Edoh Amiran of Washington won in mixed canoe. Seventy-three teams started the event, thanks in part to a dozen entries from Great Britain, including two kayak teams from the British Army finished strong behind Kelly and Nelson. Racers were able to benefit from a new travel deal reached by the YRMPA with Yukon carrier Air North. However, the rainy and cool conditions kept safety boats busy early in the race, as 13 teams scratched before even reaching Carmacks. After the race, officials decided to add more items to the mandatory gear list for 2007, so teams are better prepared if they have to stop for a while and warm up. The YRMPA board also opened up the canoe division to allow standard class canoes, as well as solo canoes for 2007.

2007 – Year Nine
Voyageurs take top four spots as race grows to 85 teams, “River of Life” inspires thousands

This was the year the voyageurs broke through to the top, and where one team’s quest inspired everyone associated with the YRQ. Ten of the big boats were on the starting line for the event, and five landed in the top 10 overall. Coureur des Bayou, a team of mostly Texas Water Safari veterans, built a Kevlar voyageur for the Yukon and sparred early on for the lead with Team Kissynew in another canoe built especially for the YRQ. The Texas team finished first in 41:15, about an hour ahead of Team Kissynew which settled for second for the second straight year. A second Kissynew Skookum Asphalt team with Yukon and Saskatchewan paddlers took third, followed by the Saint Lawrence Valley Paddlers from New York. The top K2 team in the event, Evil Geezers Philippe Blouin and Richard Steppe,  finished fifth overall in 47:23. They were followed by the top solo kayak, Andrew Jillings of New York in 47:37. Next in were three Australian kayak teams, and rounding out the top 10 was voyageur team Pipe It Up from Prince Rupert, BC.

The tandem canoe class was led by VT Express, Veronica Wisniewski and Thom Prichard, in 50:13. Desnedhe Dene, Norbert Wolverine and Lionel Campbell, were the top men’s canoe, and Yukon Water Women Two, Patricia McKenna and Elizabeth Bosely, were the top women’s team. The top solo kayak woman was The Girl from Oz, Liz Winn of Australia. Rounding out the entire field with the first entry in a new solo canoe class, was Team Bumbazer, Joe Evans, in a “record” time of 77:23.

A crowning moment during this year’s event was premiere of the film “River of Life” about the Paddlers Abreast team of breast cancer survivors. The film played for racers before the start in Whitehorse and again after the finish in Dawson City. The film would play several festivals throughout the year and inspire thousands.

2008 - Year Ten

Kisseynew wins duel with Texans, sets new course record

The 10 anniversary race of the YRQ produced many special moments. For starters, registrations actually hit the maximum 100 teams at one point, and a record 89 teams from a dozen countries started the race. This included 15 voyageur teams. The event started on a beautiful day in Whitehorse, and the weather remained calm for paddlers all the way across Lake Laberge. This set the stage for some record-setting performances. The battle for first again was between Team Kisseynew and the Texans. Amazingly they jousted for much of the first half of the race and came into Carmacks just one second apart after 200 miles. Having Yukoner Tim Hodgson in the boat gave the Canadian team some local river knowledge this year, and that may have been the difference as they stretched out a wider lead over the second half of the race. Kisseynew became the first team to break the 40-hour mark with a new course record of 39:32:43. The third time was the charm for Kisseynew team captain and boat builder Martin Bernardin. The Texans finished second in 40:05:00, beating their winning time from the previous year. Third went to a First Nations voyageur team from Hatchet Lake, Saskatchewan, who were serenaded with drum beats. Fourth overall and breaking the long-standing mixed canoe record were Gloria Wesley and Gary Aprea from upstate New York and Massachusetts in 44:13, just a minute ahead of the new solo kayak record holder, Brad Pennington of Houston, Texas who won his own duel with past K1 champion Steven Mooney of Whitehorse. Others in the top 10 overall were the Adirondack Voyageurs from New York, the mixed canoe team of Yukoner Jane Vincent and Bodo Lenitschek of Australia, K2 men's champ Robert Cassin and Carl Clinton from the Channel Islands of Great Britain, and men's canoe champ Steve Wallick and Jim Bates from Kelowna, B.C. . Breaking the solo canoe record was Kevin Mellis in 53:03. The women's kayak record also fell as the Incredigirls team of Lisa McGee of Alberta and Kim Petherick of Australia finished in 53:55 Other champions were the Yukon Water Women (Liz Bosely and Pat McKenna) in women's canoe, Ingrid Wilcox or Whitehorse in women's solo kayak, and the Danish team of Peter Mygil and Vibe Sandberg in mixed kayak.

2009 - Year Eleven

Texans recover from spill with Team Dene's help, carry on to reclaim top prize; women's C2 and K2 records fall

The 11th annual Yukon River Quest saw the kind of sportsmanship that the race has become famous for – and this time involved the two most competitive teams in the event. After 10 years of starting on Main Street, the starting line was moved to Rotary Peace Park to relieve congestion in the downtown area and give paddlers a straight run down to their boats. It worked magnificently, as 73 teams started the event on a glorious day, with the SS Klondike looming behind them. Like the previous year, there was a very close race between the top two voyageur teams, as the Texans and Team Dene from Saskatchewan battled for first place on a calm Lake Laberge. The Texans led by a minute when the two teams reached Carmacks, and were holding on until “the mother of all boils” swamped their boat just before Minto. The team managed to get their boat and everyone to shore, said Texas captain Richard Ameen, and then Team Dene stopped and remained for several minutes to make sure the Texas paddlers were all right. This act of sportsmanship earned Team Dene captain Charlie Tssessaze and crew the Spirit of the Yukon Award. The Texans eventually caught back up with Saskatchewan team and they jostled for the lead all the way to Kirkman Creek, arriving at the same time. But the Texans got a jump when Team Dene got a late start out of Kirkman, and widened their lead all the way to Dawson. The Texans? winning time was 40 hours, 52 minutes, for their second overall title in three years. Team Dene arrived 50 minutes later to loud drumbeats from their wonderful community of supporters. In third place overall was veteran solo kayak champ Carter Johnson of California in 44:52. Next in was K1 runner-up Shaun Thrower of Great Britain in 47 hours, and then the top tandem canoe teams: the mixed Yukon team of Jane Vincent and Tim Hodgson in 47:22; the top men's canoe with Gaetan Plourde of Ontario and Aaron Hachey of Whitehorse in 47:32; and the top women's canoe with Veronica Wisiniewski of Washington and Whitehorse's Liz Bosely, breaking a new record in 48:53. The women's tandem kayak record also was broken by “Oxford Hopefuls” Lou Maurice and Hilary Greaves of the UK in 51:29. Other champions were: Yukoner-Albertan Kevin Mellis for the second straight year in solo canoe; Darrell Wiebe and Jennifer Allen of Calgary in mixed K2; Peter Budden and Dave Townsend of the UK in men's K2; and “Yukon Wildflower” Ingrid Wilcox in women's K1. Some of the best racers in the field were bested by various ailments and a rain storm in the middle of the race, but 56 teams finished. The YRQ field was smaller, probably due to the world's economic woes, but it was still the third largest field on record. The race due several media from Australia and all over North America, and was featured on NBC-TV's Jeep World of Adventure.