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Sanka W. Dog
Take a close look at the eyes of these dog. You’ll see the iris is mostly blue but there is some brown pigment mixed with the blue. It’s not unusual for a dog to have one blue eye and one brown eye. Those dogs a referred to as “bi-colored.” When a single eye has both …
A short distance from the checkpoint is the hub for dropped dogs. Dogs dropped at smaller checkpoints are flown to this hub via bush plane. From here the dropped dogs are loaded onto a larger plane and flown to Anchorage. Currently there are about 130 canine athletes waiting to show their boarding pass for the …
McGrath is located where the Kuskokwim and Takotna rivers meet. The population of the village is roughly 400. There are two stores along with a restaurant. The school in McGrath has nearly 50 students. The village has a public library, a regional health clinic and an air strip. A person traveling to or from McGrath would go …
Cindy Abbott booted her athletes chatting with every dog, offering praise and a little preview of the next part of the trail. Her reward was often a cool wet canine nose nudge and just as often, a big canine, too quick to dodge lick across the face. These dogs are affectionate and don’t mind showing …
It’s the harness that connects the dog power to the sled and there are a variety of harnesses out there. Mikhail Telpin uses a harness called the half harness. It’s really a musher, dog choice as to what harness is used. This style harness is good for preventing harness rub. It’s also sometimes used for …
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 …
James Volek had a speedy run from Nikolai to McGrath. His young dogs came in with smiles under their whiskers, curiosity in their eyes and tails held high. His puppies are happy. James will rest two hours longer than his run time and then go on to Takotna for his long rest. Volek told a …
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 …
Parked just around the corner from McGrath Checkpoint’s front door is Rudy Demoski. It’s been 28 years since Rudy last stood on the runners for an Iditarod. He’s experienced three very different eras of Iditarod. In the late 70’s Iditarod was a camping trip compared to the race we know today. He ran in 1985 …
There’s a saying out there, “You can learn a lot from a bunch of sled dogs.” Kids all over the world experience science, math and literacy through the Iditarod and its canine athletes. Perhaps you’d like to meet some of the marathoners heading to Nome who also happen to be some of the best teachers …