Welcome to the official Yukon River Quest web site. The Yukon River Quest is an annual marathon paddling race. Paddlers come from around the world to test their endurance, racing day and night to the Klondike on one of North America’s great rivers. It is open to solo and tandem canoes and kayaks, solo stand-up paddle boards (SUP0, and bigger C4 and Voyageur canoes. Please fully explore our site for information on how to participate in this great event, whether as a racer, a member of a support crew, or as a volunteer. The Yukon River passes through Five First Nations on our race route: Kwanlin Dun, Ta’an Kwachan Council, Little Salmon/Carmacks, Selkirk, and Trondek Hwechin. Our race honours their culture and those who have lived off the river and nurtured it for centuries. For an in-depth account of Yukon First Peoples, read this ECHO (Ethnographic, Cultural, Historical Overview) handbook.

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN – Registration began on February 14, 2021 at 1400 MST (winter time in the Yukon). Regrettably, due to COVID-19 health mandates and travel restrictions, we currently can accept only Canadian teams for the 2021 race field.  Those teams will be accepted onto the race roster, and we will wait for “internationally mixed” teams composed of Canadians and paddlers from other countries to make necessary substitutions to remain in the field. All prospective teams from 2020 that are fully non-Canadian are being withdrawn and will receive an 85% refund of their entry fees.  However, we will give them the option of getting on our wait list to be added later if border restrictions go away this spring and we have space for them. In the meantime, new all-Canadian teams may now enter the race. This process will take a few days or weeks to sort out before a new race roster develops. We have a COVID plan before Yukon Health officials to run a safe race. There also will be a new Half Quest this year from Whitehorse to Carmacks. The Half Quest registration is built into the main race registration form as an option. Read more in our 2021 YRQ Press Release.

CURRENT COVID HEALTH & TRAVEL MANDATES: A lot of questions at a recent Zoom meeting with paddlers were related to health and travel mandates in the Yukon and Canada. Here are the links. Check them often as they can change weekly.

YUKON: https://yukon.ca/en/covid-19-information

 CANADA: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19.html

BE PREPARED – THIS IS A TOUGH WILDERNESS PADDLING RACE! READ RULES & RACER GUIDE: Become familiar with the full YRQ RULES. and the new HALF QUEST RULES. Note: These COVID Rules are subject to change as we get closer to the race. Read the Preamble about what you will experience out there, and how to prepare for this tough wilderness race.  Also check out the new RACER GUIDE and various items under the RULES & PREPARATION drop-down menu above, such as following best practices on the river and while camping, how much food and fluids are needed to sustain you in a long river race, and other essential tips to help you finish; racer and support crew briefings (they will be updated in spring); and our FAQs to learn more about navigation, insurance requirements, support at Carmacks, how to get back from Dawson, and more. Support crews need to become familiar with all of this information to help your team prepare and stay safe! Check out the SUPPORT link above.

PREVIOUS RACE REVIEW: RECORD FIELD IN 2019! – A record 117 teams started the 21st annual YRQ at noon on Wednesday, June 26, and 86 teams finished by 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 30.  A total of 31 teams (26.5%) scratched during the race (an additional team withdrew just before the start). Most of the scratches were in Carmacks, as several teams were fatigued and/or unable to make the cutoff time there on the evening of June 27. Only 3 teams scratched past Carmacks. Thirteen countries were represented: Canada, USA, New Zealand, Australia, Netherlands, Norway (new), United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany, Papua New Guinea (new), France, Austria, and Ireland. Pull up 2019 Results and replay the race on our RACE TRACKER page, courtesy of Yukon 1000 Software, and see photos in our GALLERY and posted on our YRQ FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM pages. Read our AWARDS PRESS RELEASE.  There was no race in 2020 due to COVID.

NEEDED: VOLUNTEERS – LIFEBLOOD OF THE YRQ:   More than 200 of you made our race shine under the Midnight Sun!  A Volunteer Appreciation Party was held in Whitehorse at Mt. MacIntyre and we gave out lots of Air North tickets and other door prizes. Thanks to those who donated! Also see our big THANK YOU AD from the Whitehorse Star.  Want to get involved for the 2021 race? Sign in on our new VOLUNTEER page and then view the different jobs available. It’s never to early to volunteer, and it’s fun! 

THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS – SUPPORT THE YRQ:  We have a lot of great sponsors who help us immensely in making this a great race. Please view our SPONSOR PAGE for a list of everyone big and small, including this past year’s BIB SPONSORS!  We have several sponsorship levels to show your support for the race. Our Sponsorship packet and provisions are currently under revision and should be available some time this winter.

BECOME A MEMBER OF YRMPA: Join the Yukon River Marathon Paddlers Association for just $20 a year (adults) or $10 a year (juniors 18 & under) by clicking on the Membership photo button above. Email the race office for details or attend our next AGM and consider joining the YRMPA Board to help us plan the race. Meetings are monthly most of the year, and more frequent the two months before the race. See our current board & executive and read our new Vision, Values and Mission statements on our ABOUT US page. 

YRMPA BOARD NEWS:  Our AGM was December 10, 2020 (see report below).  UPCOMING MEETINGS (via Zoom):  Race Operations Committee Wednesday, March 17 at 5:30 PM; Board Meeting Wednesday April 21 at 5:30 PM.

AGM REPORT: NEW BOARD ELECTED – Our AGM was December 10, 2020 via Zoom. More than 20 members were present via Zoom to approve a new set of Bylaws per updates required of all Yukon Societies this year, including the elimination of life memberships unfortunately (the board will notify previous ‘lifers’ re. how we will pro-rate their membership). The membership elected the following slate of 10 directors: Al Foster, Jeff Brady, Peter Coates, Spencer Edelman, Lidwein Hanrath, Deb Bartlette, Stephen Mooney, Anne Jessup, Christa Van Laerhoven, and Stan Fordyce. The year-end financial report was approved accounting for a move of registration income to the 2021 year since there was no race in 2020, and Coates gave a detailed president’s report on the state of the event and plans for next year (hopefully with COVID in the backwash, but we will be ready to deal with whatever its presence requires). Following the AGM, there was a brief regular board meeting to select the executive, which will remain the same four board members to maintain a smooth transition in this unusual year. Coates will serve a third year as President, and Hanreth will again be Treasurer. Switching offices are Edelman who will be the new Vice President and Bartlette who will be the new Secretary.

If you have questions for the board, email info@yukonriverquest.com.