Yukon River Quest officials say only experienced paddlers should participate in this year's race

Yukon River Quest officials are leaving it to paddlers to decide whether they want to go on the 715-kilometre journey between Whitehorse and Dawson City on the Yukon River this year.

But officials want to make sure paddlers know what they're getting themselves into if they choose to participate in the race that starts June 22.

"Flow levels are very high," wrote race marshall Stephen Mooney, and Deb Bartlette, assistant race marshall and president of the Yukon River Quest, in a Facebook post Thursday. "This, along with the amount of debris, means that paddling conditions will be challenging."

The water level in the Yukon River is rising in many areas, including Carmacks, about a third of the way into the journey.

On June 14, the Yukon government issued a flood warning at Carmacks, which means the water had or will exceed the river's banks, and flooding in the area would start very soon.

"It is strongly recommended that only paddlers with significant skills and experience in fast-flowing water participate in the 2022 Yukon River Quest," Mooney and Bartlette wrote on Facebook that day.

"If you do not have strong paddling skills, wilderness experience and the ability to be completely self-sufficient for at least 24 hours, you should seriously reconsider paddling this year," they added Thursday.

'Game-time decision' for Inuvik family

Paddling skills are not what is going to keep Nichole McDonald and her husband and daughter, along with a family friend, from participating in this year's Yukon River Quest.

The Inuvik, N.W.T., resident said they've all done the race at least once, including her daughter.

She said she's heard the reports about the rising water level and feels she's being kept well informed by race organizers.

"Yukon River Quest has been very diligent in keeping us updated on any changes as far as where we can pull off for breaks and where mandatory stops are," she said.

She added the decision as to whether or not they'll go will be "a game-time decision on race day."

Cancelling race remains a possibility

The Yukon River Quest hasn't taken place since 2019. It was cancelled due to the pandemic in 2020, and in 2021, while the race was scheduled to go ahead, organizers pulled the plug the day before it was set to begin, citing the rising water level in the river and concerns for the safety of participants.

On Thursday morning, Bartlette said on CBC Radio's Yukon Morning that cancelling the event this year remains a possibility.

"It's always a possibility, but there are a number of different things that we look at," she said.

Bartlette added that race officials learned a lot last year and worked with a highly qualified risk assessment specialist to develop safety processes as a result.

She noted they've ramped up training for volunteers, stationed powerboats in Carmacks and Minto, and will have different start times for teams.

Bartlette explained that having the faster teams start a little later "creates more of a fleet, as we call it, to go down the river, and it helps to have people, teams closer together on the river."

"But we will continue to assess conditions as they change," she said.