Presentation of the BES 2023 expedition to the Yukon

1. BES 2023 Yukon Expedition

2. A bit about myself and
why I chose to go on
expedition
- Grown up in rural East Anglia, surrounded by history
and beautiful country
- Always outdoors as a child, still mucking around in
the woods now
- Schooled at king’s, very fortunate to be somewhere
so steeped in heritage
- Lake district is my second home, spend several
summers dragging my mother up mountains and on
long walks
- Completed Hadrian’s wall last year, currently
undertaking the greater ridgeway (Norfolk to Dorset)
- Love for archaeology, taking BA at Exeter starting
this September
- Introduced to BES by my friend in geography class –
agreed to go to Canada if he would go to Kyrgyzstan
– yet to fulfil his side of the deal.
- Attracted by the thrill of adventure, prospect of true
wilderness + learning about first nations

3. • Founded by George Murray Levick in
1932 following participation in Captain
Scott’s final expedition to the Antarctic
1910-13
• Although ill-fated, Levick’s experiences
helped him to realise the benefits of
facing challenges in remote locations to
‘one’s character and sprit’
• Since then, BES has undertaken over
100 expeditions in all areas of the
globe, giving young people (16-25) the
opportunity to grow their confidence,
resilience, social and practical skills and
independence, as well as educating
them about the importance of the
natural world and our impact on it.
• Over 11,000 members have completed
expeditions in the past 91 years,
participants become members for life
following
• As a part of the Royal Geographical
society, BES has its headquarters in
Kensington

4. Training expedition
• Took place between 27-31st May in
Snowdonia national park
• Based between Harlech and Barmouth
at Llanbedr
• Got some experience in canoeing and
capsizing (on purpose, honestly!)
• Hiked in the Rhinogydd range – camped
at 2 lakes and climbed Dyiffwys – 750m
• First experience in wild camping and
using Trangier stoves
• Despite not being with my final fire
enjoyed getting to know other
participants
• Good opportunity to test out equipment
and work out what I needed/didn’t need
• Studied some ecology and geology

5. Kluane national park and
the Southern Tutchone
• Covered an area of 22,000 square miles when set
out for national park status in 1972
• After coming to an agreement with first nations
groups in 1993, 2,300 square miles became
national park, rest as reserve
• Mostly made up of the St Elias range, part of the
Pacific coastal ranges (83%)
• Contains Mt Logan, the largest mountain in Canada
(5,959m) and several of the country’s largest
glaciers
• Rest of the park is made up of forest, tundra and
lakes
• Named after Kluane Lake, the largest in the region
• Main settlement in the area is Haines Junction,
population of 613
• People have been living in the area for at least 12,000
years if not significantly longer, living a semi-nomadic
lifestyle
• Although trade had existed between Europeans via coastal
tribes, true contact did not occur until the late 19th century
• The area remained largely unchanged until the construction
of the Alaskan highway in 1942, which opened the region
to settlers
• Champagne and Aishihik suffered discrimination and forced
assimilation by the Canadian government
• The last residential school closed in 1996, eventually
gained the power to self-govern in 2005

6. Canoeing (24th-28th)
• Covered 90km, roughly 25km a day
• Paddled across Dezdeash lake and six-mile lake
for the first 2 days
• Dezdeash river for the 2nd half
• Ended route at the town of Champagne
• Saw plenty of wildlife: Moose, Beaver, Eagles,
hawks, Muskrat, kingfishers etc
• Great opportunity to develop paddling skills,
started fairly novice but very confident by the
end
• Great camping spots: ‘haunted’ cabin on night
3, swimming at night 2 camp, moose encounter
at 1st camp
• The Eric encounter on the last campsite –
highlighted ongoing tensions and
disagreements between first nations and the
government
• Finished with a visit to Haines Junction bakery
• Highlights: getting splashed by a surprised
Beaver, sailing on 6-mile lake, eating Grayling
caught by Ant and panning for ‘fools’ gold

11. Hiking the Auriol trail
(29th-31st)
• Around 15km in total, 7.5km and out
• Walked in late on the 29th and climbed up
to the rock glacier the next day
• Bushwhacked and climbed scree slopes to
get to the top, very fun
• Furthest point on the moraine was around
1400m, taller than anywhere in the UK
• Rock glacier was stunning, along with the
view into the valley
• Found a snowbank on the way back,
highlight was having a snowball fight in July!
• Shared camp with a couple from Whitehorse
and a French family – great company and
good trail suggestions
• Hiked back to the trailhead early next
morning headed for Kathleen lake

14. Kathleen Lake and the
St Elias trail (31st-5th)
• Spent 2 nights at Kathleen lake – attempted to climb
the king’s throne on the 1st and had a rest day on the
2nd
• Stunning views despite not making it to the top
• Saw some very fresh bear scat on the way up but no
sign of perpetrator – the trail was closed the next day
due to encounters with an especially indifferent bear
• Had to change plans so following the rest day left for
the St Elias trail
• Hiked 3.5km in on the 3rd and attempted to make it
to the secret lakes on the 4th – brush was ultimately
too thick and terrain too steep so had to turn back
• By far the most beautiful campsite and lake
• No larger wildlife but saw plenty of moose tracks and
set up camera traps near a beaver lodge
• Highlights: lighting a fire at the St Elias campsite and
the porcupine sniffing at the tent at 2am on the first
night

18. ‘Gopher’ Mountain
(5th-8th)
• Decided to challenge ourselves with the Gopher
mountain trek – 3 days and about 30km in total
• Day 1 hiked from the trailhead at an abandoned
homestead – saw bear, moose and possible wolf
tracks on the way
• Stayed at small campsite above an area of wetland
between 2 lakes – very buggy!
• Hiked across ‘rustic’ boardwalk next day and up
towards the summit – passed a derelict lake cabin
and followed ATV track to the tree line
• Arrived at first summit – absolutely breathtaking,
literally!
• Camped near 2 lakes bellow summit – slept very well
• Headed for the summit the next day, spent some time
on the peak (1500m) and with a Gopher before
returning to camp
• Headed all the way back down to the trailhead on the
final day

23. Quill Creek (10th-13th)
• Set out at 3 as had to resupply at basecamp
• No defined trail so had to bushwhack and walk
along riverbed
• Made it about 2.5km and set up camp in clearing
• Headed further upstream next day and made it
another 3km
• Decided to wait until next day to head for the
canyon – group 2 had attempted but made it no
further than the 2nd camp
• Set off to the canyon in the morning – only made
it to the mouth as weather was rough and a
crossing wasn’t possible – still very impressive
• Headed back to first camp and hiked out the next
day
• Returned to basecamp ready to leave for
Whitehorse on the 14th
• Highlights – having a campfire on the riverbank
and finding a walking pole in the woods

26. What Can we take away from
this Experience for the future?
Improved Self-confidence and self-esteem: knowing that you are
capable of much more than you think
Leadership skills: everyone had a turn at taking the lead and
understanding how to be responsible for yourself and others
Teamwork and organisation: the trip depended on our ability to
work well together and made the best decisions in planning and
in the field
Knowledge of the Yukon’s ecology and geology gives us a
better idea of how ecosystems operate and how they form,
making us aware of how we impact the environment and what
we can do to leave a positive impact
Bushcraft, survival and navigation gives us more confidence to
go into isolated regions and may save our lives one day!
Knowledge of the region’s history and cultural heritage helps us
to interpret other similar situations and broadens our
understanding of what it means to be human

27. Thank you!