EAGLE, Alaska - Fairbanks musher Julie Estey has scratched from the Yukon Quest at Slaven's Cabin.

She will have to charter a flight into the remote cabin to bring her to Dawson City.

Estey drew some of the loudest cheers from the crowd when she left the starting chute of the Quest last Saturday.

The musher hurt her knee going through jumble ice on a section of trail, Patty Imus, one of the race judges, told reporters at the Eagle checkpoint Tuesday night.

Estey arrived at the cabin at around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. While she appeared to be better this morning, she still wasn't stable.

"She's pretty much one-legged," said Imus, who saw Estey at Slaven's.

Estey believes she tore a ligament in her knee, having dealt with the same injury in her other knee in a number of years ago.

"She's pretty upset. It was very hard to quit," Imus said.

Estey was working on getting a charter out of Slaven's for herself, her dogs and sled.

Her dogs were looking good and Estey had a good attitude throughout the race, even about things she was nervous about.

"She's always had a great attitude," said Imus, who ran the 1985 Quest.

Estey had been the Quest's executive director.

This isn't the first time a musher has scratched at a remote cabin on the trail. Imus recalled a couple years ago teams having to charter a flight out of Scroggie Creek, where they had scratched in the race.

There are still parks officials, a veterinarian, volunteer and a few others at Slaven's Cabin with Estey.

Her scratch brings the number of competitors down to 16 after five scratches at Mile 101, veteran Frank Turner's early decision to quit and race marshal Doug Grilliot withdrawing Don Smidt from the race.