ID2020: Tuesday Morning Elim Bound

Time 7:15am Race Mile 800

Returned Dog Update

According to the Current Standings, Aliy has had to leave two team mates behind. (EDIT: The standings were amended and she still has 11 team mates!) We know one is Chevie but unfortunately, at the time of writing, we are unsure of the second. Please bear with us as sometimes this information can take some time. Sometimes even, we might not find out until they are back so we will update you asap. I understand both dogs will likely be flown forwards to Nome where the crew there will meet them and give them their undivided attention until the rest of the team arrive.

Unfortunately, Iditarod rookie Chevie has been benched as she developed a sore shoulder and with still a couple hundred miles to go she needed to finish her race early. Aliy was really pleased to have her on the team and we are all so proud of her for getting so far into her first 1000 mile race! Good girl Chev!

At 2.29am this morning the team pulled in to Koyuk after 16 hours and 51mins since the last formal checkpoint. For Quest mushers and those used to camping this change in status of Shaktoolik would not have fazed them too much especially as they had their supplies, straw, fuel and a cabin.

After resting 4.5 hours in Koyuk, Aliy and her 11 team mates left at 7am for their trek to Elim in 19th place. The trail heads overland for about 15 miles before hugging the shore line most of the rest of the way to Elim, with the exception of Moses Point where they travel back overland. Don Bowers Jnr says “Moses Point is the tip of a long, low, narrow spit extending back to the west. Soon after you climb back off the ice, you will begin to see houses and cabins. This is old Elim, now used as a fishing camp. It was the main village until new Elim was built 30 years ago on high ground 15 miles west. It stretches for several miles along the spit.”

Back in 2017 Aliy made a summer time trip to the villages of Elim, Golovin and White Mountain in association with Matson, to give a little back to a few of the villages that welcome the Iditarod every year. Read her piece about Elim at this link.

I’ve always been fascinated by maps and atlases (or ‘atlantes’ according to one google search – the Greek plural of atlas), so I get a kick out of zooming the tracker right in to get a sense of terrain and environment. This zoomed snap of Moses Point looks like a piece of abstract art.

Interesting stuff happening up the front of the pack! It’s getting hard to look away from. And, we spotted a familiar face presenting Thomas Waerner with the Northrim Bank ‘Achieve More’ Award – Scotty Watkins! (Allen and Aliy’s son in law).