The Yukon 1,000 challenge

“More people have been up Everest than have been beyond Dawson City.” This is one measure of the epic canoeing challenge as described on the Yukon 1000 website.

It’s certainly not for the fainthearted! Participants have to paddle 18 hours per day and sleep where they stop in the wilderness, as they travel along the mighty Yukon river from Canada to Alaska in a maximum of 10 days.

Long-standing friends Charlie Stanley-Evans and Justin Wateridge completed the Devizes to Westminster canoe race together in 2009 but the Yukon challenge was a different order of magnitude. Recognising that, their tagline for the event was a quote from T S Elliot: “Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.”

Wilderness birthday

Fortunately, the ‘risk’ paid off, and they completed the extraordinary journey in just over eight days, finishing in the early hours of Charlie’s birthday. “We celebrated over a couple of drinks in Alaska,” Charlie said. “It was certainly a very special birthday, one that I won’t forget in a while!”

There were other highlights along the way. For Charlie, it was after they had paddled 25 miles along Lake Laberge: “It was really tough, with no flow and a big swell, so getting back onto the river was a big high. It was a beautiful evening with clear skies, and, for the first time, we were able to really appreciate where we were.”

For Justin, the evenings were a special time. He said: “After each day, the evenings were calm and tranquil. I enjoyed the wilderness and finding somewhere to camp.”

Row, row, row your boat!

The days, of course, were long and hard, so what kept them going? They listened to podcasts and a playlist that their families had created. Justin’s daughter had included ‘Row, row, row your boat’, which made them both laugh (much needed). They also tried to focus on small goals, rather than thinking ahead too much.

“We took strength from one another,” said Justin. “When I was struggling, I’d look at Charlie in front and be impressed with how he was still going; and that would push me on.”

Supporting mental health

The pair were raising money for two charities that support those facing mental health challenges. Justin had heard about the Trust through his friends and said: “My children have friends who struggle with their mental health, and it felt right to support a charity that helps young people.”

To date, they have raised almost £10,000 for the Trust.