#Alaskan Iditarod

[tonichelleak]

Veterinarian Jessica Klejka at the Ceremonial Start and ReStart of Iditarod 52. The veteran musher grew up in Bethel, Alaska and now spends her time practicing veterinary medicine in both Knik, AK and Bethel.

This year Klejka won Most Inspirational Musher voted on by her fellow Iditarod finishers after it was let slip that Jessica hadn't traveled the Iditarod alone with her dogs, she had a stowaway as she was close to 4 months pregnant while racing. Jessica would say at the awards banquet she does not recommend doing both. While not the first musher to run the race pregnant, she still managed to cause quite the stir in the mushing fandom with the news.

To view high quality photos, or purchase, click here.

For more see ReittersBlock.com

[darkwood-sleddog]

Been thinking a lot about our run yesterday and something that really stands out to me is how controllable the team was and it is mostly due to the fact that Slash is an adult dog now. For the past few years I’ve had a puppy as my main leader and I often forget that no matter how exceptional Slash is in harness that immaturity was present.

That’s one of the cons of small teams, ideally I wouldn’t have run an inexperienced baby dog in lead, especially when 1/3 of his teammates is a big lug that hates listening (Sigurd). I think I was just flabbergasted at how perfectly they behaved but it’s mostly bc I have a team of mature dogs now and I’m like wow. About it.

[naughtystiel]

DEANCAS AU FIC REC MASTERPOST

Although I loved all of these fics, the ones with stars next to them are my absolute favourites! Happy reading! ♡

One million fires burning ☆

Dean Winchester teaches three classes a day, tutors after school, and chairs the English Department for Lawrence High School. He does enough.

Unfortunately, his boss doesn't feel the same and informs him that he has a new job: co-coaching the school's trivia team. His co-coach? None other than the school's golden boy, Castiel Milton. Who Dean can't stand, for various reasons, all of which are valid, thank you very much. And the fact that Dean can't stop talking about the stick up Cas's, sorry, Milton's ass?

Completely irrelevant.

Should have just asked ☆

Despite their age gap and differing social circles, Castiel has struck up a warm friendship with Mary Winchester, a wealthy widowed socialite. When Castiel needs a place to stay, Mary invites him into her house, where there’s loads of spare room. Castiel’s aware that they make an odd pair, but he doesn’t fully realize how things look to outsiders, especially to Mary’s eldest son. All Dean Winchester sees is that his mom has apparently hooked up with a hot young guy (who is totally Dean’s type) and that makes things… weird.

Living in agony ☆

Dean Winchester's life is... well, it's not great. He's a gym teacher, he's in his thirties, and he can't seem to keep any part of his life straight. When the aftermath of a one-night stand goes awry, Dean is dragged kicking and screaming out of his cozy little closet and into the harsh light of reality.

Enter: Castiel Novak, the new history teacher, who knows full well that life gets crappy when you don't allow yourself to live it in the way it needs to be lived.

The last great race

There is a race that takes place every year in Alaska called the Iditarod, a thousand mile journey across the Alaskan wilderness by dog sled team that has come to be known as "The Last Great Race on Earth”. It is a test of endurance, of the relationship between dogs and their people, traversing mountain ranges, frozen rivers, forest and tundra.

When writer Castiel Milton is forced to spend two and a half months in Alaska at Winchester Kennels to cover the race preparations and the Iditarod itself, the only person more dismayed than he is Dean Winchester, one of his hosts. Castiel views his assignment as a punishment and is less than impressed by his surly host, and Dean distrusts the sheltered city-born writer who has invaded their home and their lives. But soon, as the Winchesters prepare for their race and Castiel learns about sled dogs and what a musher’s lifestyle is all about, they forget to hate each other and their relationship evolves into something neither of them expected.

Starstruck ☆

From the outside Castiel Novak looks like a regular guy: a good job, two teenage kids, a nice house and a crappy car he’s way too attached to.

But there’s one thing no one knows about him: that, over twenty years ago, he used to live next to none other than Dean Winchester – back then a brash and loud-mouthed boy and nowadays a huge movie star and Hollywood’s sweetheart.

Castiel never bothered to tell anyone about his childhood friend because frankly, who would believe him? Probably even Dean himself already forgot about his former awkward and weird neighbor, so Castiel seriously doesn’t see any point in mentioning the whole thing ever.

But then an interview on national TV happens where Dean reveals way more about his past than ever before … and Castiel - as well as the rest of the world - suddenly realizes that he left a much bigger impact on Dean’s life than he originally thought.

Russian to the altar ☆

“I need you to marry Castiel.”

They weren’t the words Dean expected to hear from his business partner’s mouth before their bakery-slash-chocolate shop opened for the day. He’d been quite happy being single—and who the fuck was Castiel, anyway?

It turned out that Castiel was a Russian erotic novelist in need of a ticket to America, and Dean… well, Dean was a last resort.

I wanna get outside (of me) ☆

Dean is a novice in the dom/sub world asked by his employer as a desperate last resort to be a sub for his recluse of a brother, Castiel. Castiel is a diagnosed OCD suffering from PTSD and agoraphobia, mysophobia, and dystychiphobia. Needless to say—he’s a mess who hasn’t stepped out of his home in literally seven years. The only times Gabriel can see traces of the way his brother used to be is when he feels in control—specifically when he has control over a sub. However, due to his idiosyncrasies and paranoia, keeping a sub around has been impossible. Enter Dean, who’s not a very traditional submissive, to try his hand at subbing for the hermit.

Painted angels ☆

Author Castiel Novak has finally hit the big time, with a book based on his failed college relationship with a brilliant painter. He's put all his pain behind him, but at a book signing, he comes face to face with Dean Winchester for the first time in twelve years, and the reunion doesn't go like Cas hoped. Dean's a broken man, with a lot of scars and secrets, shoulders weighed down by his demons and self loathing.

Cas sees a second chance with the man he's never stopped loving, but Dean's moved on, and is about to get married. Sam launches a "brilliant" plan to reunite his brother and his best friend, but Cas is worried it will all blow up in their faces, and he'll go through the agony of losing Dean a second time.

Texas state of mind

Dean Winchester was once an award winning country music star, but fame came too early. Now, he’s fifteen years sober and owns a ranch in western Texas. He’s happy with his life. He has horses, a nice herd of cattle and so what, if he’s alone. He tells his friends that he’s happily single. Back when he was touring, men and women threw themselves at him – but he knew they only wanted him for his fame.

Cas Novak just won his fifth CMA award. He loves singing, but the touring was getting old. Living in a bus nine months out of the year was slowly destroying his creativity. He hasn’t written anything new in over a year. Then he hears an old song on the radio. He vaguely remembers the handsome singer and wondered whatever happened to him. Before he knew it, he'd written a new song. The only problem was…it was a duet. A duet that could only be sung with a voice like Winchester’s.

After locating the man’s ranch, Cas makes a surprise visit. Will he be able to talk Dean into joining him on stage after all these years? Will the two men find what they’ve been looking for all their lives – someone to share a future with?

If angels were men

Castiel Novak was raised by a hunting father, but he left that life behind for college and a flower shop. When his father is killed by a demon, Cas jumps back in the game and finds himself constantly running in the presence of the Winchester brothers, who are searching for their own father. They seem to be everywhere he turns, and at some point they become friends, then a team, then, maybe, in the case of Dean Winchester, something more.

Vagabonds ☆

Dean is a sheriff in a tiny town in Colorado, restless and unsatisfied with his life. It's not like what he's read about in the dime novels since he was little, capturing dangerous outlaws and being the last word of the law. More like tossing the town drunk in a cell to sober up when they get a little too rowdy.

But Dean's chance comes when a thief rolls through their town. He pursues the thief, which puts him right into the path of Emmanuel, a notorious outlaw. When he is captured by the outlaw and his gang to be held for ransom, Dean starts off on a journey he could have never envisioned, and learns that perhaps there's more to Emmanuel than meets the eye.

Four letter word for intercourse ☆

As a grease monkey turned college freshman, Dean's constantly three seconds away from being stressed out of his mind. It hardly helps that he's finally figuring out his sexuality in his thirties.

What might help with that stress is a little phone number (and a big credit card bill). If he can't figure out how to be bisexual in person, he can at least give it a go over the phone, right?

(It's probably a bad idea, but he really can't help himself.)

Any little heartbreak ☆

Dean Winchester knows everything there is to know about the human heart.

Well.

Anatomically speaking.

Get some

Very slowly, Dean turns. 'How'd you know I was here about a room?'

'Power of deduction,' says Castiel, leaning against the doorway. 'I mean, you're not after pot, and I'm pretty sure we haven't slept together.' He grins wolfishly, gaze sliding over Dean's body. 'You, I'd remember.'

Dean's been hit on by guys before, but never so blatantly, let alone by a semi-naked dude in a kimono. A hot blush warms his cheeks, and he covers his shock with cockiness, tilting his head and grinning. 'Sorry to disappoint you, Cas, but I don't swing that way.'

Castiel throws back his head and laughs. 'And you want to live here? What, did your friends put you up to this?'

'Actually, yeah.' Dean raises an eyebrow. 'Is that a problem for you?'

What i need

A joking phrase commonly heard between a surgeon and his tech is "Give me what I need, not what I ask for." Dr. Novak and his tech Dean will soon learn the impact this phrase has on life outside the operating room.

Mad at your dad? ☆

Dean wasn’t sure why he was even scrolling through Craigslist. Especially not the casual encounters section. It was four days before Thanksgiving. Not like he was gonna try and hook up with someone before that shitstorm. After, sure, but not before.

He kept scrolling, though, not clicking anything until a title caught his eye.

Alone on Thanksgiving? Mad at your dad? I am a 28 year old male felon who has no degree, but has studied enough theologies of the world, behavioral psychology, and philosophy to set your whole family’s teeth on edge—no matter which way they lean, politically, religiously or in terms of neuroses. I drive a van the same age as me that’s got a mural on the side of an angel holding an orgy. I can play between the ages of 20-30 depending on whether I shave. I live off an inheritance, and sell weed on the side. If you’d like to have me as your strictly platonic date for Thanksgiving, but have me pretend to be in a very long or serious relationship (monogamous or polyamorous, whichever sounds most like it would freak out su familia) with you (and/or others), to torment your family, I’m game...

(dis)affection ☆

When Dean and Castiel are tricked to go on a date, neither is happy about this. To get back at their deceitful friends, they hatch the perfect plan: pretend to be dating, and gross out their friends with their over-the-top, disgustingly cute romantic relationship – and then break up in the most despicable manner imaginable. As it turns out, you can learn a lot from someone just by pretending affection.

Ninety one whiskey ☆

In the spring of 1944, the 104th Medical Battalion of the United States Army is disbanded, and its men reassigned to various infantry companies in preparation for their invasion of occupied France. For First Lieutenant Novak, this is less than helpful, as he has so far met his platoon’s designated medic a grand total of twice, and has both times found Sergeant Winchester to be the optimum combination of reckless, arrogant, and downright insufferable so as to make cohesive platoon function near impossible. When the time comes to move out, however, Castiel has to reconcile himself to the fact that men are going to go down and trust that Dean Winchester may well be the only person who can put them back together again. WW2 ETO infantry AU.

The breath of all things

Dean Winchester was twenty-six years old when a car accident killed his father and left him paralysed from the waist down. A year and a half later, Dean is in a wheelchair and lives in a care home in Kansas, where he spends his days waiting to die. It's only when Castiel Novak starts volunteering at the care home that Dean starts to wonder if a changed life always equals a ruined one.

If you'd have been the one

A boy sits on the front steps, his dark hair a wild mess. A gingerbread boy, Dean thinks. Dressed in pressed slacks and a sweater-vest to match his father’s. He looks about Dean’s age; maybe they’ll be in the same class. That wouldn’t be too bad, unless he’s mean. He could be mean; a lot of kids are mean to him, so he has to be mean back.

He hopes this one is nice.

...

In the year 1986, at seven years old, Dean Winchester meets Castiel Novak.

Eleven years go by, then eight, then three.

Somewhere along the way, things start to change.

Spirit of the west ☆

Dean grew up on a horse farm and can't imagine any other life. There are drawbacks to working for his father, but they're worth it if it means remaining with his beloved horses. Besides, between his broken arm and his lack of prospects, he hasn't got much else.

Something of an outsider, Dean always feels like there's something he's missing. But this tense summer brings back a figure from his past: years ago, a teenaged Cas worked for a season at the Winchester ranch. His return could change everything.

If you ever wanted a 90s horse girl book, but starring a young Dean Winchester, this is your fic.

Guns and wings

Dean Winchester is the sheriff in the small town of Sioux Falls, along with his deputy (and brother) Sam. Life there is calm and normal, easy to manage with the occasional problems. That is until the Garrison gang sends an assassin to kill one of their beloved citizens. Dean is ready to hang the man for his crimes, when the outlaw gives him a deal he can't pass up. The whole Garrison gang. Dean and the criminal, Castiel, set off to find the gang; enemies working towards a common goal. Dean is determined to hate Castiel, but the longer they journey together and the more he finds out about the outlaw the harder it becomes to deny the feelings he begins to have for the man. But he's the sheriff and he has a job to do, he can't fall in love with a criminal... Right?

Life was a willow

When Dean’s favorite author becomes a regular at his bar, Dean knows he’s done for. He never could have anticipated the intense feelings that blossomed for the talented Castiel. There’s just one thing standing in his way of being with Castiel the way he truly wants: Castiel is waiting for his soulmate.

Dean has spent his entire life hating the concept of soulmates. He just wants to live his life without the universe intervening. If the only way he can keep Castiel in his life is by swallowing his feelings, then that’s what he’ll do.

300cc ☆

300 Complementary Characters: a forum on Kansas City University’s student website. You can write whatever you want, but it has to be 300 characters or less.

Dean is crushing hard on Sam’s TA, but it feels different than it has before; it feels like he needs to do it properly, to have a grand declaration and to prove that romance isn’t dead. What better way to profess his feelings than posting a poem on 300cc?

Castiel is torn. There’s no mistaking the poem is for him, but who could be posting them? Despite being very tempted by the very attractive new light and sound engineer that will be working on the play he has written, Castiel can’t ignore the feeling that he and the anonymous Poet are meant to be together.

A comedy of errors, mutual pining, and erotic poetry.

Satin and sawdust ☆

When Castiel moves out of Jimmy's house and into his own place for the first time, he saves money on buying a home by investing in a Fixer-Upper. He knows nothing about how to fix the many problems the house has, but he figures he's smart enough to figure it out. Unfortunately it's not too long before he learns that he's way in over his head.

Thankfully his new neighbor Dean is a handyman, and agrees to help him out. He knows Dean has a bit of a crush on him, but he's not taking advantage of it, really. Dean's a great guy, and quickly becomes a good friend.

But a flash of satin under Dean's toolbelt changes everything.

Stay with me, sweetheart ☆

“Alright Cas, here comes the hard part. We’re gonna get you out of here, but we’ve gotta take the roof off and while we do that, we’re gonna have to cover you with a sheet to protect you from the glass. I’ll be right here though. I’m not going anywhere.”

As he starts to drift away, he suddenly feels the press of Dean’s forehead against his own through the rough fabric and hears that warm, sunlit voice murmer quietly in his ear, too low to be overheard by the firefighters currently working to remove the SUV’s roof, “Stay with me, Sweetheart.”

A single moment's distraction ends with a serious car accident that leaves Castiel trapped in his vehicle. Fortunately for him, fire fighter Dean Winchester is there, never leaving Castiel's side as the rest of his company work to free him from the mangled remains of his SUV.

When the two meet again in the ICU, Castiel finds himself just as drawn to and comforted by the handsome fireman as he was during his accident. Dean is certainly attractive, but single father Castiel doesn't have time or space in his life for a romantic relationship.

Then again, there's no harm in making a new friend, is there?

And this, your living kiss

Only a very few people in the world know that the celebrated and reclusive poet Jack Allen is just Kansas mechanic Dean Winchester, a high school dropout with a few bucks to his name. Not that it matters anymore; life has left him so wrung out he never wants to pick up another pen.

Until, that is, a string of coincidences leads Dean to auditing a poetry course with one Dr. Castiel Novak. The professor is wildly intelligent, devastatingly handsome...and just so happens to be academia's foremost expert on the poetry of Jack Allen.

Sometimes you'll find that i'm out of my mind ☆

Castiel returns from the Empty, and Dean worries obsessively. Dean also sleeps on the floor in Cas' room, which he admits is weird, but at least he's sleeping.

[rabbitcruiser]

National Sled Dog Day

High-energy, furry athletes powering through snow and ice — a testament to teamwork and nature's endurance champs.

Running through snow all day, every day, pulling a sled that can weigh hundreds if not thousands of pounds—that’s a sled dog’s job. Don’t you think they might deserve a little recognition? February 2nd is the official holiday of the sled dog that we can safely say man would not have managed very well at all without.

The History of National Sled Dog Day

Sled dogs are thought to have evolved in the mountainous regions of Northern Asia over 35,000 years ago, but are thought to have started actually pulling sleds for people about 3,000 years ago, when hunting and fishing communities were forced to move further up north to Siberia. From there, they made their way to Lapland, Alaska, Canada and even Greenland. Historical references to actual dog harnesses far outdate the first European contact with the native peoples of Alaska and Canada.

In fact, it was the Alaskan gold rush that really got the American population interested in the use of sled dogs as a form of transportation, as most gold camps were only accessible by dogsled in the winter months. In fact, for a long while, dogsleds were the only relatively dependable way of transporting anything in the harsh Alaska and Yukon weather conditions, until airplanes finally took over in the 1930s. Dogsleds were also used to patrol western Alaska as late as World War II. After that, mushing became largely recreational. One of sled dogs’ most impressive achievements was the 1925 serum run from Nome to Nenana. With a diptheria threatening the lives of people in Nome and the serum needed being 1,100 kilometers (700 miles) away in the town of Nenana, hundreds of people may have died if not for the 20 dogsled teams that worked together to relay the serum to Nome. In the end, the serum reached Nome in only 6 days, saving the lives of many. Also, the first Arctic explorers were men with sled dogs.

How to celebrate National Sled Dog Day

Sled dogs are also celebrated for their role in polar expeditions, and a number of famous dog races are organised each year. National Sled Dog Day is an opportunity to raise awareness of the animals’ dedication to the human race. It can also be a time to raise money for dog charities taking care of homeless, or sick dogs, and those that have been cruelly abandoned by their owners. There are also numerous opportunities to volunteer at your local animal shelter to spend time with some of the dogs living there, play with them, or take them out for walks.

Dogs are generally social, friendly creatures that love physical activity and playing games, so even the smallest gesture on your part to celebrate National Sled Dog Day will definitely be greatly appreciated by a dog that has nothing to do but sit in a cage or pen all day, every day.

Who knows, maybe you’ll become friends and you’ll decide to adopt the dog? That would be the ultimate gesture of respect towards the sled dogs that sacrificed their health and sometimes their lives, for the good of men.

Organizations like PETA take the opportunity to point out how many dogs are being abused and mistreated in the world and encourage people to take action if they happen to witness any kind of abuse being perpetrated on man’s best friend.

PETA is also strongly opposed to the runs that take place in Alaska every year, saying they exhaust the animals for no good reason, and implore of Alaskan tourists not to patronize the Iditarod annual commemorative race, or any tourist attractions that include dogsled rides.

Source

[sergeifyodorov]

so the iditarod. any fun facts?

the Iditarod Trail as we know it was originally a mail trail. in the far north, dogs have been used as freight runners since precontact times by alaska native peoples like the inupiat (in fact, the name for the "malamute" sled dog breed comes from the name for a group of the inupiat, the malemiut who lived on the seward peninsula.

as a draft animal dogs are, pound for pound, stronger and faster than horses, and in an environment like the alaskan interior a carnivore is much easier to feed than a hay-eating herbivore. they are also much better at navigating the winding, slippery, and often difficult trails -- there are places that snowmachines can't go, to this day, but dogs can. old mail trail runners would have teams of twenty or more dogs, hauling cargo like gold and mail and people through the interior. the town of iditarod itself, although now largely a ghost town, once was larger than anchorage!

the history of the iditarod race starts in the winter of 1925 when nome, a town on the icebound bering sea, suffered a diphtheria outbreak. without serum and with no way to get it there by other means -- icebound, so no boats, and the only pilot who could make the trip was on the other end of the continent -- they organized a trail relay, seven hundred miles long. it took them six days.

fifty years later, with mushing considered a dying sport, they decided to resurrect the iditarod as a race, anchorage to nome, one musher and fourteen dogs. it's about a thousand miles long -- there's two different routes, which alternate every year.

uh list of fun trivia below the cut so i don't make this TOO long

specifying the two routes thing: the routes only diverge at about the halfway point and reconnect at about the three-quarter mark, at the checkpoint right before they hit the bering sea.

trail dogs wear little booties, not because their feet get cold but to protect them from things like fallen branches, and other hazards on the trail. mushers can go through hundreds of booties in a race.

the last musher to complete the iditarod is called the "red lantern," which is a tradition that apparently started as a joke and stuck. you may have heard of musher apayauq reitan, who made history as the first out trans person to run the iditarod? she was the red lantern in 2022!

the current general frontrunners of the iditarod are father and son mitch and dallas seavey. dallas is one of two people to have won the race five times.

four people have won four times, including susan butcher, one of the first women to win.

race times can vary HUGELY depending on year and musher. the records are about eight and a half days, but it's not uncommon for people to take two weeks. libby riddles, who won in 1985, had a winning time of 18 days!

[hasufin]

Unfortunate Numbering

So, today I found out a thing.

Now, you know about the Iditarod Trail Dogsledding Race, right? I guess this is likely pretty obscure for some folks, but it's basically the premier dogsledding race; it's basically the only one which gets any attention to speak of.

Today, it's a televised event with planes and drones and such. But it's been annual since 1972, and they didn't do that kind of thing back then. As with many overland races it's all checkpoints and legs. And it's in the Alaskan wilderness where, well, Things Happen.

Moose Things.

That is, it's entirely possible that while someone is mushing their team, they will have a Close Encounter of the Pleistocene Megafauna Kind. And they will have to shoot the moose. In fact, that is exactly what happened in the most recent race.

Fortunately, the Iditarod rules cover this. What you have to do, if you need to kill a game animal on the trail, is stop and gut the animal (for those who are not familiar with hunting, this is called "field dressing" and keeps the organs from fouling the meat). Anyone who catches up to the person who is gutting the animal must stop and assist in the gutting, and once the animal is properly gutting they must proceed in the order they arrived. Essentially the race is stopped for moose guts, and no one can use moose guts to get ahead. Then the incident must be reported at the next checkpoint. Apparently the meat is then retrieved and processed, although that step is not explicitly part of the rules.

Speaking of the rules. The Iditarod rules are actually pretty brief. The rule which covers moose encounters? Rule 34.

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

hiiii tell me more abt alaska plz

Alaska is hecking huge. like... ENORMOUS. there's a mostly-in-jest rivalry with Texas, which is the next biggest state. like... this is a huge genre of T shirts, I'm not even kidding

and because AK is so massive, it's extremely normal to go on VERY long drives. to the point that most Alaskans don't bat an eye at a one or two hour car trip, that's just like... the weekly trip to the grocery store.

and the road system is a hot mess. like, there's basically one way in, one way out of most places. for instance, if the Parks Highway gets closed for some reason (it's happened a few times due to wildfires alongside the road), a LOT of people who live in like... Houston or Talkeetna or any of the other tiny towns north of Wasilla/Palmer/Anchorage (Houston/Willow is where the Iditarod starts each year and TKA is the closest actual town to Denali, so they're easy to remember lol) won't have access to full-service grocery shopping or medical help unless they're airlifted out. which is like... a tad frightening to think about, but at the same time it has to do with the very small population density in AK. there aren't that many people per capita, so there just... aren't that many roads. a lot of people just straight-up own planes (like, bush planes) and fly around fairly frequently. I lived across a field from a small airstrip for awhile when I was a kid, it was great because the little planes would fly in low right over my house and if the pilots saw someone waving at them from the ground, they'd tilt the plane back and forth and wave back.

also this spot, here, Valdez:

is #1, the end of the road system, #2, the end of the Alaska oil pipeline, #3, Prince William Sound (which Valdez sits on) was the site of the infamous Exxon-Valdez oil spill, and #4 — the original town was destroyed by a massive earthquake and subsequent tsunami in 1964 and the town had to rebuild a few miles up the road in order to not get washed out again. I'm mentioning this solely bc of my interest in seismological history, but also it's pretty cool to see EXACTLY where the literal End Of The Road is on a map tbh.

ok and one more fun tidbit: the World Ice Art Championship is held every year in Fairbanks AK

which is not only a huge tourist attraction (this is what I was talking about in my tags on that attractions post — North Pole is the actual name of a town that's basically a suburb of Fairbanks. they have like a Santa's Workshop type touristy thing that like, yeah it's kinda goofy but also they do have really good fudge skskdjsk) but ALSO a big deal for people who live IN ALASKA. people drive in from all over the state to walk through the park where they host the competition. they have like, ice slides and mazes and everything gets lit up at night, including the sculptures:

(top 4 pictures from, I believe, 2015 and 2017. bottom two, the same sculpture in daytime and then at night, was a presumably multiblock entry from 2021 that I couldn't find the name of who carved it/which team it was)

anyway part of my point here is: Anchorage/Wasilla/Palmer is a main population center in AK, people annually drive to Fairbanks for the Ice Festival, it's like a 5/6 hour drive. nobody is fazed by this. long distances to Alaskans are a minor inconvenience tbh.

[charlesandmartine]

Wednesday 21st June 2023

As the record books will one day show, a milestone was passed with two nice sunny days in a row in Alaska. 7.30 dawned and the captain felt compelled to broadcast to the ship and anyone else who might be listening that we might consider getting up on deck fairly pronto to take a close inspection of the sort of scenery we've paid a lot of money to see. Well whilst I understand the sentiments, I do need a bit of time to fully endorse an idea like that in terms of action at that time of the morning. However, the thought persisted and sooner or later we were there on top deck in person to form our own opinion. Overnight we had travelled from Sitka and were now ploughing along at 6.7 knots along Stephen's Passage in the Juneau direction. Juneau is the capital city of Alaska and owns the title of the only US state capital that cannot be accessed by road. It can only be reached by air or sea. Originally the home of the Tlingit People, Juneau's claim to fame was that between 1882 and 1917 it operated the largest gold mine in the world. Perversely it was a Tlingit leader who led Joe Juneau to the gold deposits in 1880 and everything took off from there. Well at least for Joe Juneau it did. Not sure how well the Tlingit People did on the deal. The town today has something of a frontiers appearance which would be quite charming were it not for the suspicion that its Disney looks are there to beguile you into parting big time with your hard earned. The opportunity was there in spades for the good people of Juneau since today there were 4 cruise ships in town. Us, two Princess ships and our old friends on the Holland America. Jewellery shops abound which offer cruise ship passengers a free gift to pass their portals. The crab restaurant was able to offer crab claws at 70 dollars a pound! Whale watching tours being touted like banana sellers in the marketplace. Frankly, it was horrible and we were grateful that late afternoon was booked for a ship's excursion. We had booked to go to a dog sled and musher's camp. Now we did have doubts I confess. The possibility to score high on the naff spectrum was there in droves so it was with some trepidation that we boarded the bus to travel up the tree lined mountain. We pulled off the road and down a long gravel track and into a courtyard of open pine barns. The sound of huskies hit us immediately. This was a big operation. In all about 5 or 6 sleds were being prepared. Since the snow had gone they were wheeled platforms but each to be pulled by teams of 14 or 16 huskies. Each sled took 6 passengers plus musher and we all climbed aboard. On the command from the musher off went the dogs. 0-15 miles an hour or so instantly! Such traction! And these dogs love it. After a run around a circuit we were given a talk on dog sledding and specifically the annual race these guys get involved in; the Iditarod race which is 1000 miles through deep Alaskan snow during early March. The record time to complete is just over 8 days! After the talk we were presented with several husky puppies to admire, stroke, cuddle and thankfully hand back. The trip I think redeemed the visit to Juneau. An Asian theme to our dining experience followed. Thanks in part to Joe Juneau without whose original scam with the Tlingit people our enjoyment may not have been possible.

Tomorrow we have a day at sea to look forward to.

[mightyflamethrower]

Togo, hero of the 1925 serum run to Nome, Alaska, with his owner Leonhard Seppala.

In January 1925 an outbreak of diphtheria threatened to wipeout the town of Nome, Alaska, sparking fears that an epidemic would spread and kill thousands if antitoxin medicine was not supplied. The antitoxin could only be delivered by dogsled across a portion of the Iditarod Trail, the only route accessible for transporting goods during the harsh winters. A heroic relay of dog teams transported the antitoxin across the 674 mile trail from Nenana to Nome braving gale force winds, -85 degree temperatures, and whiteout conditions across the remote Alaskan Interior. The life-saving serum was delivered to Nome in a record-breaking 127.5 hours, without a single broken vial. This came to be known as the 1925 Serum Run. Many aspects of this journey are commemorated annually in the Iditarod dog sled race.

I love Dogs. We should be more like them.

[writewolf90]

Did you know that my fic Breaking Trail has a playlist? Check it out for some Alaskan ambiance and songs I listened to on my drive to the Iditarod this past year! 

[tonichelleak]

Iditarod fanboy from a very early age turned Iditarod Rookie, Hunter Keefe and team at the Ceremonial and Restart of Iditarod 51. Hunter would win the Sportsmanship award at the end of the race, voted on by his fellow mushers, for helping out his main competitor for Rookie of the Year as well as for his infectiously positive attitude during the entire race (he was singing and dancing on the back of his sled for nearly 1000 miles).

[darkwood-sleddog]

Do sledding races have upper or lower limits for the number of dogs in a team?

Yes!

In many shorter sprint distance races for example you'll see different classes that determine both the general distance and number of dogs allowed. These are often 1-2 dog skijor, 2 dog sled, 4 dog sled, 6 dog sled, 8 dog sled, 10 dog sled and open/unlimited class sled (10+ dogs).

Dryland will also have their own specific classes such as women's canicross, men's canicross, 1 dog bikejor, 1 dog scooter, 2 dog bikejor, 2 dog scooter, 4 dog rig, 6 dog rig, etc. Longer distance races have less options for small teams since these expedition style races require a lot more dog power and ability to drop dogs at checkpoints for their health and well being. While their classes are more to do with the specific distance run, Iditarod for example requires a minimum of 12 dogs at the start (you can have a maximum of 16 dogs at the start) and you cannot drop below 5 dogs total. (Now iditarod and other long distances races have a significant barrier to entry such as other qualifying races and a uh...hefty entry fee, but that's another story).

You'll also see races specific to the types of dogs may be entered. All breed for example is any breed of dog and this is where you see the most competition because it's where the Alaskan Huskies, GSPs and Eurohounds compete. Registered breed competitions in North America are often only Siberian Huskies, but competitions in Europe, such as Polardistans, have specific classes for Siberians, Malamutes, Greenland Dogs, and Samoyeds depending on the breed makeup and purpose (freighting breeds have to carry a specific amount of weight per dog that is different than the weights required by lighter breeds). Longer distance races sometimes, but not always, limit the type of dogs allowed to race. Iditarod only allows husky type dogs with the appropriate coat to survive in arctic conditions (teams of standard poodles have finished the Iditarod 4 times prior to this rule change however and spaniel type dogs have run in the Can-Am).

[fagqueer]

Hi, Alaskan resident here! We have super strict rules about how to field dress animals, to dissuade people from wantonly killing animals that they think are a nuisance! So if you kill a moose, the state of Alaska has very strict regulations about how to gut it, how much meat is allowed to be left on the bone, and what to do with bones and antlers. You also can't get caught using meat for dog food cos that's considered wanton waste (which actually kind of sucks cos everyone I know with a dog team or teams is just about ready to take out a second mortgage for dog food). Look up our hunting regulations and you will find the craziest booklet of hunting regulations I have ever encountered in the US.

For obvious reasons, these regulations are translated into similar rules for the Iditarod. This situation kind of sucks cos these days most teams have a support freight dog or snow machine team that travels behind them, so there have been grumblings about letting support teams handle things like this. But TLDR: this situation sucks but they do have these rules for a reason!

Fun fact: It's so cold here in the winter that the state has a lottery you can register for and they'll call you if an animal in your area gets hit by a car or train, and you can go collect the animal to butcher it.

I love this place

[redswrap]

A Day at the Sled Dog Kennel

Me with a 4-month old pup I held an Alaskan Husky pup today – one bred for sprint racing so she was slim and sleek. And I ate cold fried chicken out of a wicker picnic hamper and spit cherry pits out the window while we bumped home on a dirt road. Baker We listened to stories of the Iditarod we hadn’t already heard and pet noble dogs including the extraordinarily handsome Baker, now retired…

[theghostpinesmusic]

A few flashback photos from our day in Skagway! Vertical shots coming in a separate post because Instagram sucks now...

Our first "real" stop (in the sense that the boat docked and we got off and stepped onto land instead of just another boat) was in Skagway. I didn't really know anything about the town before we got there, and while I was excited to learn more and to take in the sights, I was also a little worried that this particular day's activities were going to be too tourist-y for my tastes. Especially after the previous day's eye-opening trip up the fjord, I felt like traveling around Skagway and its environs in the company of a "costumed guide" (as advertised) might feel a bit...inauthentic?

Luckily, I needn't have worried.

Now, tourism is a strange thing. The relative "authenticity" of this or that experience is something that's pretty much always on my mind to some degree when I'm traveling, whether we're talking ten-year-old me at Disney World (I was a weird kid) or forty-year-old me in the "wild" mountains, surrounded by twenty other backpackers, all of us tracking our progress on our phones in real time. In this particular case, we were in Skagway in the first place because we were on a cruise, which is a super *fun* way to experience just about anything, but rolling into town on a huge ocean liner and then getting chauffered around all day because you have money is hardly the best way to experience any place from anything approaching a local's-eye view.

That said, I've had a ruggedly romantic notion of Alaska in my mind my entire adult life, informed by obsessively reading Krakauer and other nature/adventure writers and, later, my own adventures in the mountains and on the glaciers of not-Alaska, and while I'd always known this trip, on its face, was not going to be some Artic Dreams-style struggle for survival, I'd hoped to glean some small sense of what such a thing might be like amidst and maybe in spite of the buffets and slot machines (both literal and figurative).

I'd managed this on the boat up Tracy Arm, and with a little help managed it in Skagway, too.

We learned a bunch about the history of the town and the Alaskan Gold Rush in general, as well as how to pan for gold (this part was sort-of geared more toward kids, but it was still interesting). We learned a bunch of *fascinating*, intense stuff about the Iditarod, met some sled dogs, and got to play with sled dog puppies (If I hadn't already raised my own puppy, this might have been the best moment of my life). Then we rode a train along an absolutely crazy Gold Rush-era railroad track (built for the Gold Rush but only finished after it had petered out).

The train ride, in particular, was great: I like learning stuff, and I like seeing massive mountains and valleys, *and* riding trains, so I was pretty much set. Plus, while all of the day's events were presided over by our "costumed guide," he really came into his own once we were his captive audience on board the train.

As we found out over the course of the train ride, our guide had made his way to Skagway and his employment there via a journey that had a lot in common with the Gold Rush pioneers he was being paid to teach us about. He had, apparently, taken the job somewhat spontaneously after finishing college in New York state, moving away from everything he was familiar with to this small town in Alaska that he very clearly already loved after only having lived there for a few months. His enthusiasm for, well, *everything* was contagious, and I'd be lying if I did said he didn't remind me of myself a little bit at that age, or at least the version of me that I'd tried and likely often failed to be back then. At forty-two, his excitement and earnestness were reminders that in the last twenty years I've become less adventurous and more guarded than I'd like. As the train ride finished, he took his last few minutes with us to recite a legitimately lengthy poem about the Gold Rush written by a local poet, and despite the train car being packed by a group of hungry tourists, you could have heard a pin drop when he finished.

The whole experience was inspiring enough that Lindsey and I decided to take our last bit of time in port to hike out to the edge of town and take a trail a mile and five hundred or so feet up into the mountains to the first alpine lake we could find. There, we ran into a guy who'd left his cruising family behind temporarily for a similar reason, and we all spent a few minutes talking about (you guessed it) tourism and authenticity and all of that fun stuff. Then he took our picture!

The end.

[dogs-shows-and-more]

Sled dog

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/40207-W-Krantz-Rd-Willow-AK-99688/2084117292_zpid/

https://www.natureskennel.com/sale?pgid=l6zhnqe7-30bbe2bd-09c3-45a1-a542-91346a8b0b74