News
Once the ski race finished and the sun was setting, there was quite a crew of mushers and canines enjoying Unalakleet hospitality. As the sky grew dark the temperature fell and the winds grew calm. The population of mushers and canines rose and fell in Unalakleet from sunset on Monday to sunrise on Tuesday. If …
For a while today Jessica Hendricks was the only musher parked on the frozen snow covered slough at the checkpoint. Then just before 14:00 Matt Failor arrived followed by Linwood Fiedler, Curt Perano, Kelly Maixner, Wade Marrs, Aaron Peck, Allen Moore and Paige Drobney. Fourteen other mushers have departed Kaltag to make their way along …
Lots of action on the slough over night and there’s plenty more to come today. As of breakfast on Monday, 25 teams have made the coast. Temperatures in the single digits below zero this morning are more typical of Iditarod. Unusual for the coast, the winds are rather light. Visibility is listed at ten miles …
How good it is to be where the action is! Mitch Seavey and Aaron Burmeister rolled into Unalakleet ahead of the afternoon deluge. Citizens of Unalakleet gathered on the slough in windy but not overly cold weather. They had cameras in hand to snap pictures and while waiting for the next team to arrive they …
Still waiting in McGrath for air transport to Unalakleet. My name is on the list for departure early this afternoon. Once again, the cooks and Wi-Fi are our best friends. Up far ahead of where I am, the front of the race is rather crowded. A musher should claim the Gold Coast Award before noon. …
Cindy Abbott parked her dog team yesterday at a quarter to eight in the morning. She intended to stay for a short rest then head to Takotna for her long layover. As her planned departure grew closer Cindy re-evaluated and decided to stay in McGrath. There could have been many factors that played into changing …
Consider the dichotomy – following the mushers by Ion Earth GPS Tracker, assuming arrival is imminent then heading outside to greet a human traveling by dog team. On one hand it’s the newest and greatest technology on the other it’s a form of travel dating further back than the beginning of time in Alaska. Last …
Wednesday turns into Thursday and plenty is happening at McGrath. Teams are inbound and teams are outbound. Some are staying for a 24-hour rest and start differential adjustment. Some are staying for a short rest and moving eighteen miles up the trail to Takotna for their long rest. Cindy Abbot made McGrath this morning at …
A tall fellow was jogging with a handsome Siberian around the McGrath Checkpoint. It was Mike Ellis who was taking his 24-hour rest and having a little fun with his canine companions. Ellis looked good but his dog, Eliza looked great. Ellis has the fastest ever Siberian time for the Yukon Quest and hopes to …
The leaders of the race have all climbed through Rainy Pass and have descended through the Dalzell River Gorge. The other Iditarod contestants are on the trail either on Puntilla Lake or climbing through Rainy Pass. Backing up to the first night of the race, it was a mad house at the Yentna Station Roadhouse …
