Many of you know Tig… the black lab floating in a sea of SP Kennel Alaskan Huskys. She is the dog who is the most “neglected” here because she is very trainable to do… well, black lab stuff. (HERE IS A LINK to “Tig the Helper” Post.) Tig is the most cooperative dog when it comes to Halloween photos or Christmas greeting cards. She is also a Dog Walker’s dream and enjoys trying to keep up with the huskys – although she will never run 1,000 miles, she might ride on an ATV!
Santa Tig… yea I know I’m mean!
Tig rides the ATV as Spark watches.
Ziptie at 7 1/2 weeks
Tig turns 11 years old in August – a big age for a lab. As we know, neither Allen nor I are getting any younger either. We decided we all needed some youth, energy and ZIP! in our lives this summer, so we have welcomed ‘Ziptie’ to the family. She is a Labrador Retriever from Big Lake, Alaska.
Tig is certainly Ziptie’s mentor and is doing a fantastic job. But if I’m being honest, Mismo is her BFF. How can a young puppy resist that puffy tail and happy attitude? She can’t and Mismo plays a pretty great game of “Catch Me!”
How a black lab will ever catch one of the best Alaskan Husky lead dogs is beyond me…. but she tries!
We often tell visitors that we live in one of ‘the coldest AND hottest’ places on the planet. Interior Alaska often has short – hot snaps – in the summer when the temperatures reach the 80’s or 90’s. This year we are certainly validating this, as it was 89ºF yesterday afternoon.
The primary concern that comes with these hot and dry days are wildfires. About 50% of these are a natural phenomenon that are usually caused by lightening and actually much of the ecosystem and vegetation in Interior Alaska is fire dependent. But you can guess who causes the other 50% of the fires: “Hey Bob – let’s go cook some hot dogs on an open fire today….” “Duh, great idea! And we can shoot fireworks while we burn our dogs.“)
Alaska is divided into Fire Management and Suppression Categories:
Basically from: “Holy Cow! PUT THAT FIRE OUT NOW!” to “Yea…. we can just let sucker burn.“
The actual terminology for the Four Management Categories are:
Critical
Full
Modified
Limited
All land is classified so that if (or when) a fire occurs the correct Management options is already known. These classifications have to do with human population centers, critical resources, structural resources, property and more. HERE IS A MAP of the state with the designations. The State and federal agencies all work together (peacefully or not… I don’t know) and fight the fires that are most critical and monitor the others. As of this morning, there were 454 wildfires documented in the state this year and have burned about 450,000 acres.
As you can see in this photo. SP Kennel is in between several fires. We are located at the . The city of Fairbanks is to the west of the star. As of this morning there were 4 firefighters and several helicopters on the “Nugget Creek” fire (east of us), 146 firefighters on the “Caribou Creek” fire (north of us) and 550 firefighters on the “Shovel Creek” fire (west of us). The fires just to the south of us are not currently manned. There have been some evacuations due to the “Shovel Creek” fire. That is over 50 miles from SP Kennel.
Currently there are no orders for evacuation preparation in our neighborhood. But, since we have been in this situation before (6 years ago) we decided to implement Level One (READY). Therefore we are completely ready to evacuate the dogs. We have crates, dog boxes, picket lines, health care and feeding supplies and one truck set aside for evacuation. There is a printed evacuation plan in the Dog Barn, Dog Room and house. We will keep this set up at Level One (READY) at the center of the SP Kennel property for the summer. We hope to never implement Level 2 (SET) or Level 3 (GO) but … you never know.
It’s Iditarod ‘Sign Up’ and Volunteer ‘Thank You’ picnic this weekend at the Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla, Alaska. In order to celebrate the race – as well as the dogs, mushers and individuals who volunteer for this amazing 1,000 mile wilderness adventure race – we did a Dog Fan Club Draw.
Thanks to everyone who continues to support our Dog Fan Club – we really appreciate it! Whether a dog has raced, will race or might never race the Iditarod… they are all SPECIAL!
Congratulations to Emily Owens who is a fan of Violet. Emily wins an “Aliy Zirkle” Limited Edition Iditarod 2019 Musher Ball Cap – plus a glam shot of Violet and some other kennel goodies will be on their way to you soon.
Violet is a sweet, affectionate rockstar! She loves to be with you and will climb up into your arms given half a chance. Violet is a cheerleader when it comes to racing the Iditarod. She is always quick to go and scurries down the trail with ease. This fun Iditarod Insider video clip from the 2019 race shows Violet directly in front of Aliy’s sled.
Find out more about our athletes at the “Dogs” page. To join the Dog Fan Club you can hit the “Become a Dog Fan” tab at the top of the page or click here. We are keeping the Dog Fan Club open all through summer so it is never too late to join.
I had several race plans for the 2019 Iditarod. But, I decided early on that my most likely course of action was that the team and I would push on from McGrath to Ophir and then to our 24 hour break in Iditarod. Of course plans often change – in life and Iditarod. Honestly, I was very tempted to alter my strategy due to the falling snow and warm temperatures. But, in my head, I really could see it all working out in our favor… if we just pushed through this tough section.
Both the team and I were rejuvenated leaving McGrath. The weather that had come in during the last few hours had certainly dropped a bit of snow on the trail so I was happy to have a rested team. My run time through the mountains and over to Takotna was average, I can’t claim to have made that run faster than anyone else but we certainly did not go slowly.
I wasn’t sure what was going to happen when I pulled into Takotna since for the last decade that’s where we have spent 24 hours and is basically my home away from home on the Iditarod trail. I wanted to sort this out in my head first so that I gave the impression to my team mates that we were not staying there this year. Once that was done, I was truly ready to commit to mushing all the way to the checkpoint of Iditarod for my 24-hour mandatory rest. And I’ll admit, even now, that I was pretty excited about this somewhat bold move. One small hurdle was actually passing through the checkpoint of Takotna because I had sent quite a lot of supplies, in case I chose to stay in that checkpoint. I needed to sort through all that and send dog jackets, booties and expensive extra gear back to myself in my “Return Bags”. Fortunately, Moira and I had packed the checkpoint bags so that all of that gear was somewhat sorted. All I had to do was take it out of one bag and put it into another. According to race stats I only stayed in Takotna for three minutes.
Scout helped manage all Food Drop packing.
Our run from Takotna to Ophir proved that the race trail was going to be a “slow go”. The team managed just fine, but we weren’t lighting a fire behind our tails. It took a lot of effort to reach Ophir and I deemed it best to stay in the checkpoint for a short rest prior to continuing. Why do that, instead of camping down the trail farther outside the checkpoint? Well, for one thing, it’s “easier”. All my supplies, water and straw are brought directly to my sled. I could bed down the dogs and feed them quickly and efficiently. The other factor is plain and simple: my dogs enjoy checkpoints. Of course I can make them go thru any checkpoint (and we just had gone thru Takotna.) A mom can make her 7 year old boy walk through ‘Toys are Us’ and not buy anything, but he’s going to leave the store crying. I didn’t want the possibility of crying, sulking or even slight frowns from my dogs. So, we stayed in Ophir for about 2 hours.
Before I left Ophir with 14 rested and relatively happy huskies I distinctly remember Nic Petit asking me “Are you really going to go and break trail?” I’m not sure if he thought I was crazy to do this or whether he didn’t want to let his lead go. He likes leading… so probably the latter.
Once we left Ophir there was no turning back. Our goal was to reach Iditarod and take our 24-hour mandatory there. It was just getting daylight and the snow was certainly coming down. I viewed this as going one of two ways.
Of course the first way was that we got out ahead or in this storm and were able to get to Iditarod as most of the snow fell behind us. Even though we were traveling in a blizzard, all the teams that left behind us would deal with even more snowfall and have slower travel times because they would have had to deal with deeper snow.
The second was that we went through the worst of it, we broke trail for everyone in the deepest snow, and that all the teams behind us would go faster after the snow had a chance to set up.
I did keep a positive attitude as we seemingly broke trail and went literally four or five miles an hour all morning. That afternoon when the skies cleared, I even got a glimpse of the sun, and I knew that most of the snow had fallen just before we trudged along the trail and on top of us – no more was falling behind us!
The dogs are bedded down at Don’s Cabin as the skies clear and no more snow fell.
Just because you make a gamble and it doesn’t quite pay off you can’t throw all your cards! So when I reached Don’s Cabin, which is still 50 miles from Iditarod, I knew that the dogs and I should take a well-deserved break. When you look at it from a competitive aspect you don’t want your break to be very long in duration, but when you look at it from dog-team management aspect you know you need to give you and your team significant rest. Probably the thing that made this decision to rest for almost four hours easy for me, was the fact that it was so warm that the snow was actually dripping off the roof of the cabin. I knew it wouldn’t be fair to ask the dogs to continue in these warm temperatures. So we took a well deserved break. But… I now knew that we were losing time to the teams behind us.
This video exemplifies the many ‘non glamourous’ miles of the Iditarod. Like life, the journey along the Iditarod has its peaks and valleys (literally and figuratively.) It is pleasant to have a section of trail that requires little technical sled maneuvering skills, team management or constant vigilance. The team’s simple goal is just to make more miles and travel towards Nome.
The only concern as the team traveled along this slough of the Kuskokwim River was the moose presence in the area. Obviously, moose are common here and the many foot tracks and signs of these enormous animals were everywhere on this section of the Iditarod.
In 2019 the trail was overall a slower route due to softer snow conditions and warmer temperatures . In this video you can see that in softer snow, the dogs’ paws sink deeper and obviously they run slower. A warmer temperature has a double effect.
The first is that the snow on top of the trail is not “set up” or frozen solid. It is still in the white “puffy” state that everyone loves to see on Christmas morning. It’s pretty and makes Santa Claus look good but it probably slows his reindeer team down, as it does our dog teams. Only after the snow is packed down by dog paws and snow machine tracks does it harden up like a fast paced highway. However, when snow continues to fall – like it did in 2019 – those speedy highway conditions (that we have seen on ‘record-setting’ Iditarods) never appeared.
The second is that the Alaskan Husky is a cold weather animal. They have guard hairs and thick under coats that allow them to sleep comfortably in winter snow and wind. When the temperatures are warmer, the dogs have to slow their pace in order to regulate their internal temperatures. Overheating is a real concern on a warmer Iditarod. So generally, an Iditarod sled dog will seem more sluggish and slow on a warmer, sunny day than on a chilly, -10 degree F evening.
The art of writing a letter still exists. I can prove that by the hundreds of letters that I am still receiving from some of my youngest fans. I do believe that the entire 2nd grade class at Del Mar Pines School in San Diego has sent me correspondence this week.
I need to thank the folks at Pleasant Valley Store and Trailside Mail for sorting and packing my post office box. I know it gets somewhat full at times… sorry!
All the kids get a letter from me. I also have some fantastic photo card handouts that Matson printed up for the Iditarod start weekend. I have some leftover and so in every response I’ve been able to add a packet of “Aliy Cards” as well as one or two “Dog Cards”. Who’s card would you choose?
I know… impossible to choose, eh? I just grab them randomly.
Here are some of the fun drawings that were included with my recent letters. Thanks kids. You put a smile on my face!
SP Kennel is located in Two Rivers, Alaska – just on the outskirts of the larger town of Fairbanks. Fairbanks is centrally located in the state. The largest town in Alaska is of course, Anchorage. This is where the Iditarod starts and most of the population of the state resides.
Anchorage is in Southcentral Alaska. Anchorage to Fairbanks is 350 miles. Depending on road conditions, it can be a 6 to 8 hour drive or depending on wind and sky conditions, it can be a 35 to 50 minute flight. Either way you travel, you will pass by the highest and most magnificent mountain in Alaska (and in North America), Denali – formally known as Mt. McKinley.
“Denali” – This photo was taken from my seat “9A” on Alaska Airlines Flight #215.
Once in a while – when the stars align, the weather gods are smiling, the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) is in a good mood and the Alaska Airlines corporate office don’t mind burning some additional fuel – the pilot will be allowed to verve slightly “off course” and do a literal Fly By of Denali. I have been lucky enough to have been on four flights (in 25 years) when they have diverted the airplane simply for the view. I fly to Anchorage and back fairly often. I always choose a seat on the right side of the aircraft while heading south (and the left side while flying north) because I know that Denali will be just out my window – in both good weather and bad.
This past week Alaska Airlines did it again. It was an AMAZING fly by and well worth the extra fuel. The mountain’s summit elevation is 20,310 ft. The pilot kept our aircraft at 23,000 ft as he flew around this enormous hill. In my state of awe, I even remembered to take a video for you folks who might not get an up close and personal view of one of the greatest mountains on Earth. Spectacular!
More often I get to see Denali from the ground. She is just as stunning!
It’s Dog Fan Club Draw day! Thanks to everyone who continues to support our Dog Fan Club – we really appreciate it!
Congratulations to Elizabeth Francis who is a fan of McCaw. A book of the “Very Best of Robert Service” poetry with illustrations by Jon Van Zyle – plus a glam shot of McCaw and some other kennel goodies will be on their way to you soon. Robert Service is a favourite of ours – check out this classic.
McCaw is a handsome, strong and well built boy who takes after his All Black namesake. He works best in the middle of the pack and this season he raced in the Yukon Quest 200 and became a champion along with his team mates. He then enjoyed a few days up on the North Slope. He’s having fun this summer, running the trails and splashing through streams. Good boy McCawesome!
Find out more about our athletes at the “Dogs” page. To join the Dog Fan Club you can hit the “Become a Dog Fan” tab at the top of the page or click here. We are keeping the Dog Fan Club open all through summer so it is never too late to join.
We often tell visitors that we live in one of ‘the coldest AND hottest’ places on the planet. Interior Alaska often has short – hot snaps – in the summer when the temperatures reach the 80’s or 90’s. This year we are certainly validating this, as it was 89ºF yesterday afternoon.
. The city of Fairbanks is to the west of the star. As of this morning there were 4 firefighters and several helicopters on the “Nugget Creek” fire (east of us), 146 firefighters on the “Caribou Creek” fire (north of us) and 550 firefighters on the “Shovel Creek” fire (west of us). The fires just to the south of us are not currently manned. There have been some evacuations due to the “Shovel Creek” fire. That is over 50 miles from SP Kennel.
The art of writing a letter still exists. I can prove that by the hundreds of letters that I am still receiving from some of my youngest fans. I do believe that the entire 2nd grade class at Del Mar Pines School in San Diego has sent me correspondence this week.
Anchorage is in Southcentral Alaska. Anchorage to Fairbanks is 350 miles. Depending on road conditions, it can be a 6 to 8 hour drive or depending on wind and sky conditions, it can be a 35 to 50 minute flight. Either way you travel, you will pass by the highest and most magnificent mountain in Alaska (and in North America), Denali – formally known as Mt. McKinley.
