BLM Cabin That Serves as the Checkpoint at Rohn (Photo: Iditarod Media)
Some teams have been checkpoint hoping and others have been trail camping. It’s all about preference. The only time a musher MUST stay in a checkpoint is for the mandatory rests. The 24-hour rest is coming soon – probably between McGrath, Tokotna, Ophir and Cripple. Then there is a required 8-hour rest on the Yukon River and another one at White Mountain.
Strategies for run/rest vary as some folks like to camp outside checkpoints, then fellow competitors only know they’ve gone on through. Some like the peace and quiet outside of checkpoints for better rest. Others, prefer to take advantage of the comfort and convenience checkpoints offer.
Trail Goes On and On Through the Farewell Burn to Nikolai (Photo: Terrie Hanke 2006)
As of early Tuesday morning, there are five rookie teams in the Dalzell Gorge, eight rookie teams and one veteran in Rohn celebrating the accomplishment of the Dalzell Gorge. That puts twenty-two teams, including three rookies on the way to Nikolai, spread out through the Buffalo Tunnels, Post Glacier and the Farewell Burn. Looking forward to their comments about this run as typically it’s a tough go. If there has been snow, the incessant winds have blown it from the trail leaving an icy rocky punishing run. If it’s currently snowing, the trail could be soft and slow. If snow has fallen and winds have left it in place, the trail could be good – but that’s extremely rare.
Tracker shows re-rookie Gabe Dunham camping within a mile of veterans Amanda Otto, Anna Berington and Matthew Failor at mile 218, thirty miles beyond Rohn with 45 ahead to Nikolai. They’ve passed Egypt Mountain an unmistakable landmark outside of Rohn.
Egypt Mountain out of Rohn on the Way to Nikolai (Photo: Terrie Hanke)
Gabe Dunham attempted the race in 2020 but scratched in Unalakleet. So when asked about a part of the trail she was most excited to see it was anything beyond UNK – otherwise known as the coast. Dunham, raised in Fairbanks went to school in Oregon and holds a degree in Wildlife Management. She had a small team of dogs and operated her own sled dog touring business, Evermore Adventures in Montana. Gabe participated in Race to the Sky, Eagle Cap Extreme and has the distinction of being the first woman to finish the Rocky Mountain Triple Crown. She moved back to Alaska with her adventuring huskies and is happy to be back on the trail. Gabe was happy with her team when interviewed by Insider at Rainy Pass. The run from Finger Lake was soft, slow and punchy so she planned to rest an extra hour before heading up Rainy Pass.
Amanda Otto looked forward to a bright future playing post collegiate soccer until a serious knee injury pointed her in another direction – mushing. She grew up in Idaho and was introduced to mushing when 8 years old. Otto moved to Alaska in 2016 and began handling for Jeff King in 2020. She completed 800 miles of Iditarod qualifying races the next year. She ran her rookie Iditarod in 2022, finishing in 27th place with a time of 11 days, 1 hours and 57 min. Amanda placed second in the 2023 Yukon Quest 550. Quest honored her with the vet’s choice award.
Anna Berington and identical twin sister, Kristy grew up in northern Wisconsin. In her 12 previous Iditarod runs, Kristy has been on the rail with Anna. This year, they came to the conclusion that with the size of their kennel and the cost of racing, it would be better for one of the twins to do Iditarod. It’s Anna’s turn while Kristy runs a few other races but both were involved with training the team. The twins got started mushing back in Wisconsin through a neighbor who had sprint dogs. After serving in the military, the twins moved to Alaska and worked with veteran mushers Dean Osmar, Paul Gebhardt and Scott Janssen. Anna engages in marathons and triathlons when not working at their landscaping business or training dogs. Her best Iditarod finish is 17th in 2019. Her best time came in 2017 – 10 days, 2 hours and 30 min.
Matthew Failor rounds out the quartet resting trailside near the Farewell Burn. Failor, his wife Liz and their son Theo operate 17th Dog Kennel and Alaskan Husky Adventures off the Hatcher Pass Road in Willow. Matthew was a Martin Buser apprentice and made his first trip to Nome in 2012. His Iditarod career includes twelve starts and eleven finishes. His best finish and best time came in 2023 – 8th place in 9 days, 9 hours and 20 minutes. His grand goal for 2024 would be to break into the top five. He has ten veteran dogs on his team and says the front end is very strong. To shore up his kennel, Failor purchased some dogs from Richie Diehl of Aniak who says he’s retiring. Richie was the third member of the Alaska Native trifecta of Redington, Kaiser and Diehl in 2023.
That’s a quick look at the action that’s centered between Rainy Pass and Rohn. Come back later to hear what the mushers had to say about the Gorge and the Farewell Burn. Reaching Nikolai puts the technical portions of the trail in the rearview mirror. Now we’ll see how rest strategies play out.
