For Christmas, Tom’s mom and dad gave our little buddy a gift certificate for a dogsledding adventure.
We picked him up from school on Friday and headed north about four hours to Ely, MN.
It was -33 degrees F on Friday and that’s not taking into account the windchill. Brrrr. Thankfully it warmed up to -2 degrees F before we embarked on our adventure Saturday morning.
Upon arriving at Chilly Dogs, lead musher and guide Jake greeted us as we drove in. He directed us on where to park and then led us inside the lodge.
First things first, we learned “how to dress warm” for the ride.
People get cold, not because of the temperature outside, but because of insufficient clothing to keep them warm.
Donna Hway, Chilly Dogs
Prior to our arrival, I received an email with a list of recommended gear to bring which included an insulated jacket, snow pants, hat, boots, mittens, along with goggles, gator, and hand/toe warmers.
Jake and Donna checked out our gear to make sure it was going to be warm enough and then we suited up and headed outside to meet the dogs.
After meeting the dogs, we learned about the sleds and how they work and then all chaos ensued.
Alaskan Huskies love to run and pull. It’s what they are born to do. In fact, they may run further in their lifetime than any other animal on the planet.
As the sleds were lined up and loaded, their excitement was uncontainable.
As soon as all the dogs were on their leads and all the sleds were ready to go, we were off on our adventure through the scenic and beautiful trails of the Superior National Forest.
We covered about 16 miles in two hours, only stopping to switch mushers. Our group had two other couples plus the three of us and two guides. Oh, and 30 Alaskan Huskies.
Tom and Asher shared a sled and I shared a sled with a guide named Brenna. Asher is not quite heavy enough to guide a sled (need to be at least 100 lbs.), so Tom did all of the mushing. However, Brenna and I took turns mushing.
After our ride was finished, we headed into the lodge and warmed up by the fire. We enjoyed hot chocolate and listened to stories about the dogs and other dogsledding adventures.
It was an amazing experience we will all fondly remember. Dare I say, it was un-fur-gettable.
“Let the trees of the forest sing, let them sing for joy before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth.” ~1 Chronicles 16:33
