Author: Teacher on the Trail (590 posts)


More Teams Arrive

Aily Zirkle came in about an hour after Jeff King.  She and Jeff are sleeping now after getting their dogs settled and having a quick snack for themselves.  It sounds like she had a rough run.  Someone chewed through two ganglines and Quito got loose and took off after Jeff’s team.  She obviously got Quito …

Jeff King Arrives in White Mountain

Jeff King has arrived in White Mountain, and Aily ZIrkle shouldn’t be too far behind. Jeff’s checkpoint routine is precise.  He doesn’t waste much time or energy in taking care of his chores. I’ve often heard that races are won or lost in checkpoints, which I think may be true.  Someone told me the other …

Waiting in White Mountain

It’s about six below, crisp and clear, no wind…. First musher due in to White Mountain in around one hour! Just waiting…..

Setting Up White Mountain

I left the beach town of Unalakleet and  arrived in White Mountain, flying in on a nine seat plane.  I really enjoyed Unalakleet.  I felt so comfortable there. Maybe it was the beach… maybe it was the people… maybe it was the pizza!  My only regret is that I didn’t have time to go back …

Staying by the Sea

Last night three friends and I decided to take a walk to the local pizza place to have dinner and use the wifi – hence my two posts five minutes away from each other last night!  We were treated to an absolutely amazing sunset over the Bering Sea.  The sun was bright orange and the …

On To Unalakleet!

I’m in the lead again! I’ve beaten everyone to Unalakleet and my average speed was about 150 miles an hour. I actually got to cross two things off my Bucket List in one trip! Flying in to Unalakleet was breathtaking.  There were trees- lots and lots of trees and then we ended up on the …

Overnight in Galena

The hospitality of Galena has been wonderfully amazing, especially given their recent history.  About nine months ago the worst flood in a hundred years severely damaged the town. I’ve talked to a few people about the rebuilding of the community and most seemed to say things are getting back to normal.  One thing that has …

Glorious Galena

Flying to Galena with pilot Wes was a glorious adventure. It was my longest bush plane flight yet, forty-five minutes.  The land is just amazing. It’s so big – and there’s just nothing there… no buildings, no animals… just miles and miles of frozen rivers and mountains and hills.  It is so hard to believe …

What’s an Average Leg?

Meanwhile Back at School:  This week we have been exploring mean, median, mode, and range.  It’s a great way to review the basic operations and it’s essential to understand some of the data that comes out of the Iditarod. So, this week we have been analyzing data galore.  We have calculated the mean, median, mode, …

Off Into the Sunrise

It’s 8:20 am here in Takotna. The temperature is -28 degrees Fahrenheit. The sunrise is incredible and the air is crisp. And according to the tracker, I am now the Red Lantern! Our last musher, Marcelle Fressineau, has come and gone. Watching her arrive was unbelievably beautiful  Usually what happens is that someone comes into …