Cabin Life # 4: Mush Mush

For the past two winters I have had the pleasure of playing with a couple of pretty rad dog teams and had the opportunity to learn a few of the ins-and-outs of handling and mushing dogs.

Dog mushing is something that I never really imagined myself doing, being someone who was always a self-proclaimed cat person, dogs were never quite my thing. I always liked dogs —having grown up having them — but I never wanted to own one myself, until I took care of and fell in love with sled dogs. They won me over with their unique energy and sweet expectant faces. They are absolutely the hardest working and most dedicated dogs I have ever met. I definitely hope that mushing is something that I will be doing for many winters to come.

When you approach a dog yard with your sled in tow the dogs immediately know what they are about to do, and they are excited! Most sled dogs in the Yukon are Alaskan Husky's. These dogs are incredibly athletic — small, strong and agile they are literally made to pull — pulling is their job and they love to do it. This makes them the most common dog to use when sledding, but often they are bred with other athletic dogs who may have a strong pulling gene.

Walking into the dog yard is a sensory overload. Your senses are filled with the barking, jumping and howling of dogs who want you to choose them first to hook up to the gang line. They all come out of their individual houses to see who or what is going on. They are tethered to a post with a chain that allows them enough room to run eat and go into their houses without any of the dogs getting into each other’s spaces and causing any trouble. Dog fights can be common among these types of animals. Even playful fighting could cause an injury and take them out of the team, so it is avoided at all costs by the handlers.

Each dog has a unique personality, and knowing those is the job of the musher or handler. Some dogs love to be near and run next to each other, others do not and could make your run very difficult and dangerous. Some are motivated by each other and will follow them to the ends of the earth, others like to be out front, and those are the leads.

Lead dogs are a special kind of animal. In my experience, the lead dog often is the oldest and wisest dog. It often lives in the house with the musher away from the dog yard. Because their direction instinct is so attuned they are often left off leash to their own devices, but usually hang around the dog yard, or beside their owner. They are the ones that guide the pack. They must listen for commands from the musher and bring the other dogs in the right direction, without them the other dogs will go astray. They often have a very strong bond with the musher, and mushers can often be found having long in-depth conversations with them, planning out their next moves, offering encouragement and comfort to one another and holding each other together on long races. A good lead is the most integral part of the team. Without a good lead your run can become very frustrating very fast, they must listen intently to the mushers spoken commands as this is the only way the sled is directed. The lead must be confident, independent and fast as they do not have anyone to follow, and can literally make or break a dog team.

When you walk through the yard the dogs look at you expectantly and jump towards you pulling their chains taught. They rest their paws on your arm and calm when you stop at each dog to give them a pat before choosing the first to go on the line.

Each dog that is going to be in your team is harnessed. The dogs are old hats at this process, lifting each leg as you guide the harness over their head and pull their front paws through. Once you have your sled secured all your dogs harnessed and your line ready it’s a race to get the dogs hooked up. Then you take them and attach the harness at the back and front to the gang line one by one. This is a strategic process and must be completed quickly as the energy of the dogs mounts. They are excited and ready to go, when you attach them they begin to jump up and forward launching themselves into the air as they do. Once you have all the dogs on the line you can jump on the sled, release the brakes and you are off.

Standing on the back of the sled you watch each dog as they steady into a pace that will bring you through small passes and trails that are often only accessed by dogs. Keeping your feet steady on the runners you use the brake in between to keep the dogs from over-exerting themselves but keeping the line taut.

When you are out with the dogs there is a calmness that takes over, like nothing else. Once you get into a rhythm with them a silence comes over the world and whoosh, you are transported. All you hear is the sound of the dog’s feet as they pat across the snow, your own breath in rhythm with theirs as each breath crisps with the exhalation. The snow slides beneath the sled as it slips over the fresh snow beneath you and you suddenly find yourself miles away from nowhere.

As you anticipate the turns and twists of the trail you call out “gee” or “haw” to your leader to indicate the direction you choose while leading the sled with your weight. Each movement connected to your lead as if through ESP as they guide your path.

Sledding is unlike anything I have ever done before, the ease with which you move juxtaposed with the hard work it takes to maneuver the sled, and the feeling of being out, just you and the world with your dogs. When we stop for a coffee break, the dogs lay down for a well-deserved break themselves. We have situated ourselves within a valley between two mountain peaks that we have been travelling between for about an hour. Here the snow is deep and our feet crack through the icy surface sink into the soft snow as we stop the sled and step off the rails. We can only stop for a moment before the dogs are ready to go again and begin pulling at their snow hooks.

And with a quick "Ok" they are off again, pulling you forward with a swift movement before steadying into a pace again with tongues hanging out, and a smile on your face; the world is in front of you, and it feels like you could go anywhere with them leading you.

This experience has been one that I definitely hope to enjoy for years to come and has given me a renewed appreciation for a dogs spirit and the connection that is created through them to their human owners…

Man is truly a dogs best friend.

Running on a Frozen Fish Lake, YT

Running on a frozen Upper Labarge

A quick stop to rest and take in the scenery

Quick rest along the Yukon River