In 2025 we – Kate and Steve Dawson – entered the Yukon 1000 for the third time. There’s a fairly extensive blog from 2024 that describes our approach to the race after withdrawing in 2023 and details our relatively conservative plan to finish in the … Continue reading 2025 Yukon 1000 Index
After the 2024 Yukon 1000 last year I spent some time writing about the experience. It was a big experience and the first draft ran to almost 28,000 words before I lost momentum. With some encouragement from Liz Swanton who is without a doubt my … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 Index
Start time: 5:27:00 Altitude: 113.7 metres Time Stopped: 6 hrs 40 mins It feels like the narrative of the last day should start with warm rays of sunshine beaming over the distant horizon or the soft golden glow of the early dawn, but we hadn’t … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 8 – Friday
Start time: 4:36:00 Altitude: 136.2 metres Time Stopped: 6 hrs 58 mins My recollection of the river on day seven is that the low expanses of gravel were giving way to bigger islands and channels with steep banks, viewed from a low vantage point on … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 7 – Thursday
Start time: 4:25:00 Altitude: 209.7 metres Time Stopped: 6 hrs 24 min Waking to our alarms, we were back on the water with a little more hustle, only 24 minutes late this day. Urged on a little by the wet mist that hung over the … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 6 – Wednesday
Start time: 3:57:00 Yukon Time Altitude: 289.0 metres Time Stopped: 7 hrs 51 mins The new day started with no sign of the shoulder problem from the previous day. I’d woken in the middle of the night and lain there considering an evacuation strategy for … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 5 – Tuesday
Start time: 04:39:00 Altitude: 354.8 metres ASL Time Stopped: 6 hrs 40 mins Kate woke first determined to be away on time. I was onboard with the idea too. We were feeling good, but I had a few things that needed attention. Firstly the batteries … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 4 – Monday
Start time: 5:29:00 Altitude: 455.7 metres ASL Time Stopped: 7 hrs 51 mins I’m not a morning person. I’m a night owl by nature. My working life has been spent in newspapers, working for organisations which only hit their stride in the afternoon and work … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 3 – Sunday
Start time: 05:03:00 Altitude: 586.7 metres ASL Time Stopped: 6 hrs 46 mins We woke to the alarms we’d set on our watches at the start of day two. We’d set redundant alarms in case one didn’t go off, or we turned them off without … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 2 – Saturday
The plan for day one is simple. Get through Lake Laberge and as far down the river beyond it as you can in a short day, with 15-16 hours of paddling time available after the 7:30 start. [note: there was a lot of activity and … Continue reading 2024 Yukon 1000 – Day 1 – Friday
Rivers of Dust and Ash 