Dog Song Rising
The Yukon Quest was previously 1,000 miles and is now split into two lengths, one on the American side and the other on the Canadian side.
Dog Mushing
Dog Song Rising
Over the holidays I had the opportunity to interview Jess Sears, a dog musher based in the Whitehorse area.
Vibing High with Sled Dogs Under a Winter Night Sky
Winter camping! Natalie wasn’t comfortable dogsledding trails melted into slick iceShe offered an alternative. “We can take the Skandic!”
The Percy DeWolfe Memorial Race kicks off March 3, 2022
He defied death. He raced against time. What better way to honour the “Iron Man of the North” than The Percy DeWolf Memorial Race.
The Bookshelf: Seeking Redemption on the Yukon Quest Trail
Journey of 1000 Miles chronicles Hank DeBruin and Tanya McCready-DeBruin’s attempts at the Iditarod and the Yukon Quest.
Togo
On a cold day, cuddled up under blankets, this is the perfect escapism to enjoy with some loved ones.
The Percy DeWolfe committee is ready for its last race, but the event will carry on
In its present form, the Percy DeWolfe Memorial Mail Race is a 210 mile (338 km) run from Dawson to Eagle, Alaska, and back. If you can do that, then you can try your hand at the Yukon Quest or the Iditarod.
Here come the mushers
The Yukon Quest has been described as the hardest sled dog race in the world. Luckily the Yukon Quest organizers have created a series of events so the public can get involved with this iconic event without the risk of frostbite or sleep deprivation.
New Kate Weekes CD reflects singer-songwriter’s growth as a musician
When Kate Weekes plays in Whitehorse on May 2, the audience will hear something new and maybe surprising, even if they’re already fans. Having lived in the territory from 2003 to 2014, the singer-songwriter still spends several months here each year. Many Yukoners are familiar with her work. However, her new CD, Taken By Surprise, serves …
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Dogsleds: Driverless cars, ‘all that and a bag of chips’
What people don’t know is that we’ve had driverless transport here in the North for eons. It’s called a dogsled.
Dog Culture – Natalya Keller
I have a recreational dog team. My dogs are not racing dogs or Quest dogs but touring/trekking dogs. We used to go on sledding trips in the winter and hiking trips in the summer and I liked to take pictures of them. [box] Meet our dogs, they live for us, we live for them, the …
Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays the Percy deWolfe race
The Percy deWolfe race is a 210 mile (338 km) run from Dawson to Eagle, Alaska, and back, and is a qualifying race for those hoping to run the Yukon Quest or the Iditarod.
Already Six Weeks
Forty-five days ago, I placed my feet on Canadian soil, with the goal of changing my life completely. Things are going pretty well!
Planes, Trains and Automobiles
The history of how we move is full of wild and wondrous stories about survival, romance, perseverance and everyday life. It’s also a great lens through which we can explore science and technology. Two new summer programs at the Yukon Transportation Museum will explore stories and science with kids and seniors to celebrate Canada 150 …
Yukon’s Best Friend: DOG CULTURE, Natalya Keller
DOG CULTURE: Submitted by Natalya Keller I had a recreational dog team for the past 12 years. My dogs are not racing dogs or Quest dogs but touring/trekking dogs. We used to (most of them are old now) go on sledding trips in the winter and hiking trips in the summer and I liked to …
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Brave and Bold
Jessie Royer Kennel: The J Team Age: 40 Nationality: American (Fairbanks, AK) Experience: Rookie
Yukon Stories
Arctic Secrets Directed by Allan Code, a Whitehorse based filmmaker, Arctic Secrets is a symphony of immensely strong and surprisingly fragile elements that comprise the wilderness of the Yukon Territory. Stunning imagery abounds in this visual adventure through its waters, mountains, and forests. Focusing mainly on the more arctic regions of the territory, Code and …
Mush Rush 2017
The Yukon Quest … is so much more than just a race. It’s an opportunity as a community event, for businesses and people to come together,”
Volunteering with the Yukon Quest
We’ve followed the Yukon Quest over the internet for several years. When we came to Whitehorse a year ago, it was clear that we wanted to be part of this great race. We signed up as volunteers to experience this unique event up close, and we got closer to the race than we had ever …
Heading Out? Check it Out!
For many Yukoners, enjoying the backcountry is an integral part of their lifestyle whether they love to ski, snow machine, snowshoe or run sled dogs. They rely on their own experiences and common sense to keep themselves safe. Some have tuned into avalanche forecasts that have been available since 2011 on the Canadian Avalanche website …
Dog Culture – Natalya Keller
I read that you are looking for dog pictures for your Dog Culture exhibition. I had a recreational dog team for the past 12 years. My dogs are not racing dogs or Quest dogs but touring/ trekking dogs. Here is a picture of the team tired after a sledding tour. [box] Meet our dogs, they …
Yukon’s Best Friend: DOG CULTURE, Natalya Keller
DOG CULTURE: Submitted by Natalya Keller I read that you are looking for dog pictures for your Dog Culture exhibition. I had a recreational dog team for the past 12 years. My dogs are not racing dogs or Quest dogs but touring/ trekking dogs. Here is a picture of the team tired after a sledding tour. What’s Up Yukon is pleased to partner with the …
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Pop-Up Drive-In
Movie lovers have a chance this weekend to experience a rare venue for viewing in the north – a pop-up drive-in movie night is set for October 1 at The Cut Off Restaurant and Pub parking lot. The latest creative entry in the fine Yukon tradition of making our own fun, the event is the …
The Human North
Three photo-based shows currently on exhibit at the Yukon Arts Centre all aspire to convey something of the experience of living in the North. Of course there is no “the” when it comes to north; there are many norths. In my opinion, the exhibits were most successful where they conveyed a particular place, inhabited by …
It’s 40 years of mushing on the Percy DeWolfe Trail
Anna Claxton and the rest of the Percy DeWolfe Race Committee were hugely relieved to be able to announce that the “really hard working, amazing, dedicated trail crew” had managed to push a trail through a total of about five miles of jumble ice, and find ways around the various open leads in the river. …
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Didee & Didoo: RED LANTERN
YOUR TEAM IS NEVER IN THE LEAD ‘CAUSE THEY DON’T HAVE THE SPEED. THEY’RE ALWAYS LAST ‘CAUSE THEY’RE NOT FAST. YOU’RE THE LAST TO THE FINISH LINE ‘CAUSE YOU’RE ALWAYS WAY BEHIND. YOU’RE NOT IN A HURRY AND YOU DON’T WORRY. YOU KNOW HOW TO MUSH BUT YOU DON’T LIKE TO RUSH. EVEN IF YOU …
‘Neff Said
Hugh Neff and his lead dog George Costanza have won the 2016 Yukon Quest. Photographer Josh O’brien was there to capture the action at the finish line in Whitehorse, YT. Here are some shots taken just moments after Neff’s win.
Didee & Didoo: MY GYM
WHEN I MENTION MY GYM IT DOESN’T HAVE A BASKETBALL RIM. MY GYM IS THE GREAT OUTDOORS I SHARE IT WITH ANIMALS ON ALL FOURS. I SHARE MY GYM WITH THE BEAR WHERE THERE’S LOTS OF FRESH AIR. I SHARE MY GYM WITH THE PORCUPINE WHERE THERE’S LOTS OF SUNSHINE. I SHARE MY GYM WITH …
Books for Armchair Mushers
Mushing season has begun. While waiting for the Yukon Quest or the Iditarod, here are some suggestions for armchair mushers. Racing Toward Recovery by Mike Williams and Lew Freedman This book is a set of four true stories from the North. The main story, “Dog Team to Dawson,” is about the author’s sled dog trip …
Mush It Forward
Marathon runners spend a lot of time and dedication working towards being the best runner they can be. Countless hours are spent in the gym, running on a track, doing specific exercises designed to enhance their performance. With sled dogs who race it’s no different. The Yukon Quest is a very long race and as …
Didee & Didoo: Peter Norberg
THEY DIDN’T EXPECT HIM TO WIN FIRST PRIZE BUT THEY WERE IN FOR A SURPRISE. HE CAME FOR THE BIG DOG RACE HE WASN’T EXPECTED TO GET FIRST PLACE. HE WASN’T RACING FOR THE RED LAMP THIS MUSHER WAS RACING TO BE THE CHAMP. PETER NORBERG CAME ALL THE WAY FROM TUK AND HE HAD …
A Handler’s Tale
When I showcased my subpar dog handling skills in a race for the first time, it was the 2006 Yukon Quest. But I was no stranger to the Quest, because I had covered it five times before that as a reporter for the Yukon News. I figured I knew a thing or two (or three, …
The Dedicated Volunteers of the Yukon Quest
Judy Beaumont talks about the early days volunteering in the Yukon Quest office. The cramped space was shared with the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous in the (former) Regina hotel. “The office was in behind the bar, this little crappy office in the back,” she says. “We had to go through the kitchen and a plumbing room …
Red Lantern Pups
The first time out with my new 6-dog team was amazing; everyone acted like they knew exactly what they were doing.
The Percy de Wolfe Race is Ready To Go
If the buzz around this year’s Percy de Wolfe Memorial Mail Race is any indication, this years’s event may be one to watch. Just how many teams will run is never known until the night before, at the mushers’ meeting, but society president Anna Claxton says she has heard interest is high. Last year 14 …
The Lives of Retired Athletes
What happens to Yukon Quest dogs after they retire? Many live out their lives at the kennel they were raised in, enjoying the perks of retirement: running loose, puppy training and wrangling, and the lucky task of cleaning up spilled kibble, or fish and meat scraps. Some dogs though, get to go to their own …
The Yukon Quest takes care of the Winter Blues
The Yukon Quest is an annual event in the North that can banish your winter doldrums, lift your spirits, and get you cheering. The Quest, a 1,000-mile (1,609-kilometre) dog sled race, takes place every year in February, bringing people out of their houses and cabins, not only to run the race, but also to volunteer, …
Season of Being Pulled Around by Dogs Ramps Up
DPSAY started with the goal of promoting dog powered sports and providing a regular race series for mushers, skijorers and those with dogs.
Yukon Quest is anybody’s race
Although the number of sled dog teams is down this year to 21, and the reigning champion is not returning, Stephen Reynolds thinks these factors will add up to a very interesting Yukon Quest 1,000-Mile International Sled Dog Race. The manager of the Canadian half of the “toughest sled dog race in the world,” says …
A Trip Through Dog Mushing Past and Present: Dawson area resident runs year-round dog mushing museum
Kyia Bouchard was in her mid-50s when she discovered dog mushing. One year later, she left her life in New York City behind and relocated to the Dawson City area to learn everything she could about it. Now, at almost 60-years old, Bouchard is training to run the Yukon Quest, and the dogs have taken …
Copper Haul Twister League Finale
With longer sunny days and mercury rising above zero, thoughts are turning to the restful, lazy days of summer when dogs bask in the sun and snap at mosquitoes, while mushers repair gear and swap race and trail stories that grow evermore exciting and unbelievable as summer winds to next season. “Next season” is when …
Hot Dogs
We know what competitive sled dogs like to do in the winter, but what happens to them in the summer? Brian Wilmshurst of B-Line Racing Kennels has run the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race twice in the five years he has owned sled dogs. He says his 40 dogs are on holiday during the …
Didee & Didoo – Poem “Wilfred Charlie”
Wilfred Charlie is his name, and dog mushing is his game. He comes from Carmacks, where you’ll see his dog team tracks. Behind his dog team he ran, so they called him “Iron Man”. His dogs are part wolf breed, that’s why he’s always in the lead. Wilfred’s dogs only number six, but he knows …
Dogging It, Yukon-Style
“To mush my own dog team under the crisp moonlight …” The words of the newspaper ad came to mind again during the 20-minute drive up Fish Lake Road. Earlier in the week, those words had matched up nicely with the approaching full moon indicated on the wall calendar in the kitchen. A few phone …
He followed the Quest to Whitehorse
Alex Olesen has been around dogs his whole life. Growing up in Fairbanks, his family owned a team of sled dogs. “I remember sitting in the basket getting peppered by the snow and ice off their feet and hoping they didn’t crap on the fly.” His father, Lee Olesen, was one of the first judges …
Sharing the Yukon With Seven Sled Dogs
BY CAROLIN FISCHER Being an exchange student in the Yukon is fantastic! When I arrived in August 2008, I had read lots about the Territory and its nature. Now I know that there is no book and no picture that can explain and show the beauty of this place on Earth. Since I was very …
Musher and Dog, Racing as One
It all started with a group of friends at a bar; in the North, it often starts that way. The Iditarod was considered the longest and toughest race in the world. And it probably was at the time. But somehow it all seemed a bit commercial and really just, well, just a race. They thought …
Fond Memories of Those Dog-Mushing Days
I have fond memories of our dogs competing in the races during the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous, and of socializing with our fellow mushers once the dogs were in off the trail, fed and bedded down for the night, resting for the next day of competition. We spent several months, in advance, training the dogs and …
The Marvelous Tale of Musher McHugh
There are strange things done on the Percy run when the mushers hit the trail. There are tales that are told of the ice and cold that make novice mushers quail. But the strangest story we’ve heard of late is the tale of Matthew McHugh, how he stopped on the jog, just to check his …
Travelling hearts
What is it that keeps a heart going? Well, aside from the obvious flesh-and-blood answers, it’s spirit … spirit that lives on when loved ones have passed on. And that is why a former Yukon Quest musher, Michelle Phillips, is preparing, once again, to carry Feelie Hearts in her sled basket as she races for …
From Father to Son: Hooked on Dog Mushing
I work in the summertime and race sled dogs in the winter. This is the snow hook from my old dog sled. This was my first snow hook. I have other more modern ones now, which are also way lighter. A snow hook works like a ship’s anchor for a dog sled. I don’t use …
World of Words: From Dryland to Northland: One Musher’s Tale
According to John Firth’s new book One Mush, Jamaicans hate dogs. So what was Caribbean musher Newton Marshall doing on the Yukon Quest in 2009? One Mush, self-published jointly by Firth and the Jamaica Dogsled Team, tells that story. “I thought it was a great story because of the cultural gap between the beaches of …
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Dog Teams and River Walkers Make the Crossing
It’s that season when Dawsonites don’t quite know what to use to get around. As a case in point, I came out of the General Store the other day to find both a bicycle and a snowmobile parked beside the Old CIBC building across the street. At this point, given the lack of a bike …
Dog Sledders Hope To Get Students Mushy About The Sport
“It is so important for kids to be outside and to connect with nature,” says Karin Grenier. “And one way to do that is for them to interact with dogs and dog sledding.” Grenier and her partner Normand Casavant run Casaventures, a dog sledding operation with 39 dogs (and two cats) on the Annie Lake …
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Remembering the Iron Man
Percy deWolfe, known as the Iron Man Mail Carrier, faced many unpredictable moments during his 38 years (1910-1949) on the trail between Dawson and Eagle. He did it all year round, so there were different factors every season. But sticking to the so-called “spring” when the Percy DeWolfe Memorial Mail Race is run, Percy would …
Sweating at -30
A chance encounter with the Yukon Quest nine years ago changed Gaëtan Pierrard’s life. “I made a first trip in 2002 and saw the Yukon Quest just by accident,” says the 34-year-old native of Belgium. “And that was on my mind when I was back in Europe.” Three years ago, he moved to the Yukon …
Lots of Surprises for a Vet on the trail of the Yukon Quest
A friend gave me a newspaper from Finland a couple weeks ago, and there was a two-page spread on The Yukon Quest. No idea what it said, but it does show how well the race is known around the world. And with the first signs of snow, perhaps it’s time to look at the sport …
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World of Words: Concierge at a wilderness dog camp
I haven’t seen a Yukon Quest or Arctic Ultra race start in seven years now because, along with my husband Mike, I’m usually deep in the wilderness at a remote checkpoint. We initially honed our skills with the Arctic Ultra race at a wall tent camp at Dog Grave Lake, 40 miles south of Braeburn, …
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Mass Confusion at the Percy Junior Race
There are two types of starting line for the annual Percy DeWolfe Memorial Mail Race events. The first one is a timed individual start on King Street beside the Old Post Office. The ghost of Percy DeWolfe leaves at 10 a.m. on the dot, followed by the rest at two minute intervals. When there are …
Checkpoint checklist
As I stand behind the counter of the Dawson City Visitor Information Centre, I look at the eight people sitting in a semicircle around me. They have pens, notepads and wear expectant looks on their faces. We are at the volunteer meeting for the Yukon Quest 1,000 Mile International Sled Dog Race and everyone is …
A dog musher’s dream
Brian Wilmshurst has a dream – a big one. The Dawson City area dog musher is running the Yukon Quest, which is considered the toughest sled dog race in the world. The Quest starts this year in Fairbanks Alaska on February 4, 2012 and ends in Whitehorse, Yukon. Why would an easygoing dog man want …
Hero for a day
On a sunny, chilly Saturday this winter, local trapper and wildfire fighter Guy Couture didn’t realize he was about to become a hero. He was simply helping his friends offer a local dog musher an extraordinary birthday gift – a ride with the longest dog team in Dawson! The idea was this: bring together as …