Have you thought about coming to Alaska for dog mushing or dog sledding? Dog mushing has recently become an essential travel experience in Alaska. Dog sleds have always been an important method of transportation throughout the history of Alaska. It’s the best way to get from place to place when the landscape is covered with ice and snow. Now there are a number of sled dog kennels providing this experience to visitors. Our Glacier Dogsled Tour is unique because you can do it during summer on actual snow!
Be an Iditarod Sled Dog musher for the day
The Iditarod Sled Dog Race is the most famous All-Alaskan event. It originated to honor the most famous event in the history of Alaskan mushing, the 1925 serum run to Nome, also known as the "Great Race of Mercy." Historically, dog sleds have been an important transportation method and for this occasion, a relay dog sled run of 674 miles delivered the serum safely to Nome. The Iditarod race officially started in 1973 and currently, the official Iditarod route is roughly 1,000 miles.
Being with the dogs on a snowfield will provide an opportunity for you to experience what it’s like to be a dog musher for the day. The dog camp is surrounded by mountain peaks and snow, far away from civilization. And that’s kind of like what it’s like to be on the Iditarod Trail. When you’re on the sled, imagine you’re the dog musher, heading to Nome, just the dogs and you!
Winter activity in summer
Dog sledding (mushing) is a quintessential Alaskan winter sport and you can experience it even if you’re visiting in summer. Mushers have to train their dogs year-round, but it’s hot for the dogs during the summer months. Their bodies are designed to live and run in cold temperatures. To continue training, the mushers often station on the top of the glacier, and that’s where we come in. We visit one of the most celebrated dog musher Dallas Seavey’s dog camp for this exciting adventure and run with his champion athletes. Yes, it’s possible to experience Alaska’s winter in summer!
Tranquility
In this busy world, it’s sometimes hard to find tranquility. You can, up in the dog camp. It’s loud for a while, when all the dogs are eager to run. But once they are off, there’s nothing but mountains, snow, and hard-breathing dogs. The dogs are so content doing what they were born to do. They know where to go, listen carefully to their musher, and enjoy being out there as much as we do. Find a piece of tranquility and feel the grand nature around you. There’s no better place for it.
Puppies!
There are also puppies. The husky puppies are usually born in early summer and grow up in summer watching their seniors train. They are cute, energetic, and ready to run! It’s really important for the puppies to meet different people in order to socialize them, so puppy smooches are required! Everyone will get a chance to spend some time with the future champions after the tour.
Add a lower glacier landing
The view of the dog camp is stunning. We fly over glaciers and glacial lakes to get up there. That’s where we land for our other helicopter tours that involve glacier landings. Our guests often regret not adding the lower glacier landing to their glacier dogsled tours, because they are just right there. The blue melt pools look so inviting! Although the dog camp is technically on a glacier, it’s a completely different experience to land right on the glacier ice next to blue melt pools. If your budget and time allow, make sure to add a lower glacier landing to make once in a lifetime experience even more special!
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