Aliy took several short videos during her nine days on the Iditarod trail. There are 20 in the series, many are quite short but we thought you would enjoy them over the next few weeks.
This video is taken approximately 10 miles before the Iditarod Checkpoint. The absolute vastness of this area always amazes. The hills and valleys roll along like this for miles and miles with little or no sign of human influence.
It is easy to feel like a tiny speck in the middle of this wilderness. There are no permanent human inhabitants nearby: the small villages on the Yukon River are over 100 miles away to the north; the towns on the Kuskokwim River are over 50 miles away to the south; dog teams came from the tiny town of Takotna (pop. 50) which is 100 miles away to the east ; and to the west 60 miles – where dog teams are headed – is the village of Shageluk (pop. 80).
Note: The numbers on the Youtube videos got a little out of synch here, don’t worry, you haven’t missed video 7
So vast is that interior country! To think that you are hundreds of miles from the nearest village is incredible….no roads, no utilities….just wonderful wilderness. What an amazing place.
I don’t remember seeing video of this part of the trail before. It looks like Alaska goes on for ever. One wouldn’t want to be there without a dependable team.
I can’t imagine traveling through this area and feeling under the weather, like some mushers did this year.
Thank you for all the videos Aliy!
<3 🙂
I love these videos you get to sense the peace and watching the dogs is why I watch the Iditarod. Thanks for doing this for us
Go doggies go!!!
By the way, wonderful description of the alone-ness of the Iditarod trail, so grateful, thanks again.
The vastness with rolling hills has it’s own kind of beauty. Love it. Thanks for all the videos. There was definitely no lack for snow this year.
I sat down and watched these in one sitting – to kind of get the feel of several mushing days. I have really enjoyed seeing the southern route. At this point, it is hard to imagine the difficulty of the trail.