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 (SUPs, 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 Dün, Ta’an Kwäch’än Council, Little Salmon Carmacks, Selkirk, and Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in. Our race honours their culture and those who have lived off the river and nurtured it for centuries. To learn more about First Nations heritage on the river, see this River History from Yukon Schools. And for an in-depth account of Yukon First Peoples, read this ECHO (Ethnographic, Cultural, Historical Overview) handbook.

BE PREPARED – THIS IS A TOUGH WILDERNESS PADDLING RACE! READ RULES & RACER GUIDE: Become familiar with the YRQ RULES (2023 now posted). Read the Preamble about what you will experience out there, and how to prepare for this tough wilderness race.  Also check out the 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; and our FAQs to learn more about navigation, insurance requirements, how to support your team 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 CREWS link above. 

CURRENT COVID HEALTH & TRAVEL MANDATES:  YUKON: https://yukon.ca/en/covid-19-information CANADA: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19.html

VOLUNTEERS – LIFEBLOOD OF THE YRQ:   This race does not happen without our great volunteers, nearly 200 of them! Want to get involved for the 2024 race? Sign up on our VOLUNTEER page. Here are the different jobs available: Volunteer Needs/Duties. It’s never too early or too late to volunteer, and it’s fun!  If you do enough time with us, you will get a shirt, and see your name in our big THANK YOU AD (2023 now published) in the Whitehorse Star. And PLEASE THANK OUR VOLUNTEERS WHEN YOU SEE THEM. THEY ARE THERE TO HELP!

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 on the 3rd Wednesday of the month, and more frequently the two months before the race.

See our current board & executive and read our Vision, Values and Mission statements on our ABOUT US page, including draft minutes and president’s report from our 2023 AGM which was held on Dec. 7, 2022.