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Heidi Sloan 2018 Teacher on the Trail
Paws Along the Trail with Weather If you are following the GPS Tracker on Iditarod.com, you may have seen me in Unalakleet ahead of all the mushers before I flew to Anvik, and now here again behind many mushers. What determines where I am is weather and airplaine availability. For this year’s race, there have …
Paws Along the Trail with Booties One of the favorite aspects of watching the dog teams come in and leave is the dog booties. Mushers put cloth booties on the dogs’ feet to prevent the wet snow from gathering between their toes and then freezing. A bootie is just a little bag with Velcro that …
Paws Along the Trail with Poetry I was so excited to receive an email from my class highlighting some of their poetry written while I’ve been away. The poetry form of Haiku is based on syllables per line. Reading some of my students’ Haiku poetry, there are activities you can do. Determine the pattern with …
Paws Along the Trail Preserving the Iditarod Trail and reviving the Alaskan tradition of sled dogs were the driving forces behind starting the Iditarod Race in 1973. In the 45 years since it’s beginning there have been a few changes, but the Iditarod Trail Committee still considers it “The Last Great Race” for its challenges. …
Paws Along the Trail with Champions in Unalakleet The village of Unalakleet on Norton Sound has driftwood sticking out of the snow on the windblown beaches. As we walked around this larger village which has the Igloo and Brown’s Lodge burger places and the well-known Peace on Earth Pizza establishment, we came across what I …
Paws Along the Trail at Night Volunteers and mushers were bleary-eyed this morning when I got up early to come out and help. It’s been a steady night of mushers coming into the Anvik checkpoint. Here’s how it worked on the first morning of Daylight Savings Time. The checker met the teams, recording their arrival …
Paws Along the Trail with Oral History While in Nikolai, I met the chief of the village. He shared with me words of wisdom: “When people tell their stories, listen. That is the way to become smart.” I have tried to put that into practice on the Iditarod Trail as I’ve met many people and …
Paws Along the Trail with Stops Being at the checkpoints, seeing the teams arrive and leave is a great inside view. Some of the things mushers do when they stop in a checkpoint follows: Take off their dogs’ booties Spread out straw for the dogs to rest upon Talk with the vet as he/she checks …
Paws Along the Trail with Food Prices Mushers carry snacks and food for dogs and themselves on their sleds. In the smaller villages, residents plan fundraisers with meals, t-shirt sales, hats, jewelry, and more. It’s a good idea to bring some cash on the trail. Mushers and volunteers might want a hot meal or a …
Paws Along the Trail with a Welcome The Iditarod hasn’t come through the southern route since 2013. Villages along the route are very excited to have the mushers, volunteers, and dogs come through. In the villages I’ve visited so far, the children are also enjoying helping in various ways. It’s a big deal in a …