+++ Alaska TV +++ »Im Bann des Yukon« on 3Sat

It's considered the toughest sled dog race in the world – the Yukon Quest. Following an old mail route into the gold rush country of North America, the trail stretches from Canada to Alaska. The race covers 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) through lonely forests, over frozen rivers and across mountain passes – in temperatures as low as minus 50 degrees Celsius (-58°F). The route runs from Whitehorse in Canada all the way to Fairbanks, Alaska.

In »Im Bann des Yukon« (Under the Spell of the Yukon), adventure reporter and US correspondent Klaus Scherer follows two of the race favorites. Among them is William Kleedehn, a native of Lower Saxony, Germany, who emigrated to the Yukon as a teenager.

Airing: Friday, March 11, at 15.00, parts 1 and 2 on 3Sat