Yukon Territory Events and Festivals

2/01/2009 - 2/28/2009Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race

Through the depths of the Arctic winter, teams of 14 dogs and a human "musher" race sledges from Fairbanks in Alaska to Whitehorse in Yukon. Over 1,000 miles of frozen rivers, open water, weak ice and four mountain ranges separate the two towns, a journey made more hazardous by temperatures plummeting to -40 °C and winds rising to 100mph. It is a stern test of endurance and teamwork, of understanding between man, dog and terrain, that takes about two weeks to complete. The Yukon Quest is, without doubt, the "Toughest Sled Dog Race in the World." The route follows historic Gold Rush and mail delivery routes from the turn of the 20th century. The teams must proceed without help, each musher with his own sledge-full of equipment, food and supplies, calling in at 10 checkpoints along the trail, some of them more than 200 miles apart. Even as a spectator sport, this one is challenging in the extreme