YUKON · 2026

▲ T-MINUS TO LAUNCH ▲

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Whitehorse → Dawson.

736 km down the mighty Yukon. Put-in August 9, 2026.

SCROLL FOR THE FIELD GUIDE▼
Aerial view of the Yukon River braiding through boreal forest at golden hour

§ 01 — THE WATER

Two weeks. One river. No road out.

From Whitehorse to Dawson, the Yukon carves 736 kilometres of braided channels, gravel bars, and gold rush ghosts. The current does the work. The wilderness does the rest.

§ 02 — THE ROUTE

The path of the Klondike.

Tap a waypoint to jump to that day's log entry. The river doesn't rush — neither will we.

N0~370 kmWHITEHORSELAKE LABERGETHIRTYMILETESLIN CONFLUENCECARMACKSFIVE FINGER RAPIDSFORT SELKIRKPELLY JUNCTIONDAWSON CITY

Hover a pin — 9 stops from put-in to take-out. Click to jump to the day.

§ 04 — COUNTDOWN CHECKPOINTS

The road to launch, and the ride home.

Prep-and-bookend logistics only — paperwork, flights, prep day, put-in, take-out, shuttle, and the flight home. The on-water day-by-day lives in The Log below.

TRIP PROGRESS
0%
DAYS TO LAUNCH
—
RIVER KM
736
DAYS ON WATER
12
T-6 MOFeb 9, 2026

Paperwork & Gear Audit

Yukon fishing licenses lined up. Non-Resident Firearm Declaration prepped (personal, optional). Every barrel weighed.

01 / 09

§ — THE WEATHER

Pack for the wetter, colder end.

Monthly climate normals for August — not a live forecast. We're on the water Aug 9–20; late-month conditions trend toward the cooler and wetter end of the range.

Whitehorse

NEAR PUT-IN · DAY 1 (AUG 9)
AVG HIGH
18°C / 64°F
AVG LOW
6°C / 43°F
RAINFALL
40–60 mm
RAIN DAYS
12–13 rain days

Highs slide from ~high-60s°F early August to ~high-50s°F by month's end.

Dawson City

NEAR TAKE-OUT · DAY 12 (AUG 20)
AVG HIGH
16–18°C / 61–64°F
AVG LOW
5–6°C / 41–43°F
RAINFALL
55–60 mm
RAIN DAYS
10–13 rain days

Highs ease from 18°C early month to ~16°C by late August.

Five Finger Rapids — basalt pillars splitting the Yukon River

§ 02 — FIVE FINGER

Scout right. Run right of center.

Halfway to Dawson the river funnels between four basalt columns. Read the water. Pick your line. Commit.

§ 03 — THE LOG

12 days on the river.

~736

TOTAL KM

12

PADDLE DAYS

0

LAYOVERS

60–64° N

LATITUDE

  1. DAY 01Aug 9
    35 KM4.5–5 hCLEAR

    Launch — Whitehorse → Lake Laberge Inlet

    Put in ~9 AM below the dam. Easy shakedown, current-assisted. Camp near the Lower Laberge channel inlet.

    FISHGrayling in outflows, pike in eddies.
    CAMPSheltered inlet — stage before the lake.
    ☀ 7:16☾ 8:37
  2. DAY 02Aug 10
    30 KM6–7 hCLEAR

    Lake Laberge — Day 1 of 2

    First-light launch to catch morning glass. This is still the trip's main weather risk — splitting the lake across two days is our deliberate slack for wind. Shore choice matters: the east/right shore is shorter and more direct (the Whitehorse-outfitter pick in fair weather); the west/left shore is longer but has far more shelter and bail-out points if wind comes up. West/left is the more conservative default — decide at the put-in based on the forecast.

    FISHTroll spoons for lake trout along drop-offs.
    CAMPSheltered point ~30 km in — side of the lake chosen that morning based on wind.
    ☀ 7:18☾ 8:33
  3. DAY 03Aug 11
    20 KM4–5 hCLEAR

    Lake Laberge — Day 2 of 2

    Finish the crossing at an easy pace. Short day by design — buffer against a windbound morning, breathing room before the fast water returns.

    FISHJig deep near the outlet for lake trout.
    CAMPLower Laberge outlet, staged for tomorrow's push.
    ☀ 7:20☾ 8:29
  4. DAY 04Aug 12
    59 KM7–7.5 hCLEAR

    Laberge Outlet → Thirtymile → Teslin Confluence

    Current returns hard as you exit Laberge. Heritage river section with steep clear banks. Teslin merges at the end of the day and the water darkens.

    FISHGrayling and pike at tributary mouths.
    CAMPSandy point downstream of the Teslin confluence.
    ☀ 7:22☾ 8:25
  5. DAY 05Aug 13
    60 KM6.5 hCLEAR→TEA-STAINED

    Toward Big Salmon

    Current strengthening. Sandbars and submerged logs common through braided sections — bow paddler on watch.

    FISHHeavier spoons in eddies.
    CAMPMid-river gravel bar.
    ☀ 7:24☾ 8:21
  6. DAY 06Aug 14
    60 KM6–6.5 hTEA-STAINED

    Past Big Salmon

    Steady tea-stained water, big wide bends. Old cabin sites on the banks.

    FISHPike in slack water; grayling in clear side creeks.
    CAMPHigh gravel bar.
    ☀ 7:26☾ 8:17
  7. DAY 07Aug 15
    56 KM6 hTEA-STAINED

    Carmacks

    Only town / road access on the whole route (Whitehorse→Carmacks = 320 km, matches published mile markers). Quick stop only — carrying all 12 days of food from the start. Continue by early afternoon.

    FISHPike and burbot in side channels.
    CAMPCamp below town.
    ☀ 7:28☾ 8:13
  8. DAY 08Aug 16
    85 KM~8 hTEA-STAINED

    Five Finger & Rink Rapids

    Easy current out of the Carmacks camp for the first ~38–40 km — Five Finger doesn't arrive until roughly mid-morning. Pull out river-right above it and scout from the bluff. Run right of the center island. Rink Rapids a few km below — flat safe channel river-right. Then push hard on the fast water past both, banking km while the current is with us.

    FISHGrayling in calm back-eddies below the rapids.
    CAMPCamp well downstream of Rink, on a gravel bar.
    ☀ 7:30☾ 8:09
  9. DAY 09Aug 17
    90 KM~8.5 hTEA-STAINED

    Fort Selkirk

    Historic site — old NWMP and First Nations settlement, river-left. Worth a walk-through. Current is fast now — big push day either side of the stop.

    FISHBig pike in eddies below the site.
    CAMPWooded point past Selkirk.
    ☀ 7:32☾ 8:05
  10. DAY 10Aug 18
    100 KM~9–9.5 hTEA-STAINED

    Past Pelly Junction

    Pelly River roughly doubles the flow. Fastest water of the trip and our longest day so far — the current does most of the work if we stay on it.

    FISHBig pike below the confluence.
    CAMPWillow point camp.
    ☀ 7:34☾ 8:01
  11. DAY 11Aug 19
    105 KM~9.5–10 hTEA-STAINED

    Staging Camp Near Dawson

    White River has joined too — current at its peak. Biggest push day of the trip. Sets up a short final morning and guarantees an unhurried arrival before the early Aug 21 pickup.

    FISHLast real fishing water — grayling in clear tributaries.
    CAMPGravel bar within easy striking distance of Dawson.
    ☀ 7:36☾ 7:57
  12. DAY 12Aug 20
    36 KM4–5 hTEA-STAINEDARRIVAL

    Final Push to Dawson

    Deliberately short arrival day — the buffer that guarantees we're packed and ready for the early Aug 21 pickup, not still paddling. Take-out at Dawson.

    FISHGrayling in clear tributaries.
    CAMPDawson City. Sourtoe cocktail optional.
    ☀ 7:38☾ 7:53

§ 04 — THE MANIFEST

Everything we haul.

Two barrels, one canoe, and a stamped ledger. Tap a category to unpack it.

Group Gear

49 ITEMS
    • 1 canoe — Esquif Miramichi 20' (T-Formex, rented from Up North Adventures)
    • 1 spare paddle
    • PFDs, paddles, safety kit, sponge & bailer included in rental — don't duplicate
    • Bow/stern lines
    • Repair kit

Personal Gear

54 ITEMS
    • PFD (from rental)
    • River knife
    • Polarized sunglasses
    • Buff (synthetic)
    • Ball cap
    • Sunscreen & lip balm
    • Personal Nalgene
WHISKEY / FLASKGOLD PANCRIBBAGE BOARDSOURTOE ENTRY TICKET

§ 05 — THE TACKLE BOX

Fish the confluences.

SPECIES 01

Arctic Grayling

Ultralight rod. Small Mepps, Blue Fox #1–2, dry flies. Clear tributary mouths.

SPECIES 02

Northern Pike

30 lb braid + wire leaders. 4–5" spoons, paddle tails. Eddies below confluences.

SPECIES 03

Lake Trout

¾ oz spoons trolled deep across Laberge drop-offs. Slow and heavy.

— LURE INVENTORY —

Mepps Aglia #1–#3Rooster Tail 1/8–1/4 ozBlue Fox Vibrax #2–#3Dardevle SpoonJohnson Silver MinnowLittle CleoPaddle tails 3–4″ (white / chartreuse / black)Jig heads 1/4 & 3/8 oz
Aurora borealis over a canvas tent on the Yukon

§ 03 — NORTHERN LIGHTS

The reward for staying up late.

August nights this far north are already dark enough for aurora. A slow river. A driftwood fire. A sky that will not sit still.

§ 05 — DUSK & BACKCOUNTRY

A field of view from up there.

Frames from the Yukon at the hour when the sky burns. Full bleed, no crop, no polish. Just what the river looks like when the day lets go.

Yukon River valley from a high ridge at sunset
THE VALLEY
Ember light spilling down the Yukon River corridor.
Morning mist on Lake Laberge
LAKE LABERGE
Glass water at 5am. Fifty kilometres to cross.
Arctic grayling lifted from a clear tributary
GRAYLING
The sail-finned prize of every clear side stream.
Abandoned gold rush log cabins on the riverbank
GOLD RUSH RUINS
1898 stampeder cabins, slowly returning to willow.
Wet river stones on a gravel bar at dusk
GRAVEL BAR
Camp is wherever the river gives you flat rock.
Driftwood campfire on the Yukon at twilight
DRIFTWOOD FIRE
Sparks up. Aurora on standby.

§ 06 — TRAIL WISDOM

“Mail a duffel to yourself in Dawson for a clean shirt before the saloon.”
“Bring a gold pan. You'll want to say you tried.”
“Camp on gravel bars. Strain dishwater. Respect the ruins.”
“The current carries you. The wind is what you fight.”
“Cold water = dry layers ready.”