The Call of the Wild

In the morning I'm off to prospect in the vast Canadian province of Yukon. It's an early flight with 4 legs in 4 cities but by evening, I should be settling in for the night in the heart of Klondike land.

But it's not gold that I'll be chasing, rather the anticipated winner of the longest canoe and kayak race in the world at the annual Yukon River Quest. The 460-mile route retraces the historic gold rush route from Whitehorse to Dawson City and this year 79 teams from all over the world are competing.

The race kicks off this Wednesday morning racing under a midnight sun that never sets. The Yukon river can exceed two-miles in width and the current varies dramatically depending on the route. Paddlers can expect to maintain a stroke rate of nearly 75 per minute or fall behind quickly. This is not a race for novices.

Light chop, strong headwinds and even white water rapids make up this wilderness experience of a lifetime. Past winners like solo kayak competitor Brad Pennington want not only to win this year but to break the 24-hour paddling world record.

Will he do it? Check back often to find out...