Dozens of boats set off for Dawson as Yukon River Quest kicks offf

Wednesday’s rainy weather did little to dampen the energy as the 2026 Yukon River Quest set off from Rotary Park in Whitehorse.

At 9 a.m., more than 60 teams dashed for their boats and set off down the Yukon River to Dawson City—more than 700 kilometres away.

The gruelling three-day race will see some teams paddling for over 24 hours straight with the only organized stop for rest in Carmacks. Along the way, teams must check in at way points before predetermined cutoff times, with all teams required to reach Carmacks for a mandatory 10‑hour break no more than 36 hours after starting the race.

The annual event is the second longest paddling race in the world, and draws teams of elite athletes and amateurs alike who travel from across the globe to participate in the event.

Several categories of watercraft can be entered into the race, from six- to 10-person voyageur canoes, to tandem or single kayaks. This year even saw a sole racer paddling atop a stand-up paddleboard.

The race began Wednesday morning with a mad-dash and chaotic launch from Rotary Park in Whitehorse. From there, teams enjoyed some easy miles down the Yukon River until coming to the south end of Lake Laberge.

Well known for its fickle weather and unpredictable winds, traversing teams had to battle dozens of kilometres of bumpy water while paddling northward to re-enter the Yukon River at the lake’s northern exit. Along the way volunteers stationed at several checkpoints offered words of encouragement as they recorded team numbers and times, ensuring that all boats had passed their stations before their respective cut-off times.

At the front of the pack, team number 53—Balanced and Blistered—a four-person canoe from Canada, put power to the paddle, gaining a nearly two-kilometre-long lead on the next closest boat. Balanced and Blistered cleared Lake Laberge shortly after 5 p.m., about eight hours and 15 minutes after hitting the water.

As of 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, the quest’s online race tracker showed most teams now stopped down in Carmacks with just over half a dozen teams still upriver of the rest stop. The race will conclude sometime on Friday night.

Contact Noah Korver at noah.korver@yukon-news.com

By Noah Korver, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Original Published on Jul 03, 2026 at 12:08