Over the River and thru the Bush!

     Today is Tuesday, Feb. 16 and Brooke and I are in Pelly Crossing.  Another beautiful ride surrounded by breath-taking vistas.  The scenery is phenomenal.  Once again I can only imagine what Katie must be experiencing from the trail.  We have seen the Northern Lights several times and while we feel we are in remote locations there is still light pollution from the towns that washes out the colors.  The view that the mushers must have! 

 

 

     We arrived yesterday afternoon and did what handlers do best, waited on the teams.  We also ate and laughed and cared for the dogs on the truck and ...waited.  Katie's livetracker was not operating (Brooke is addicted to following by this method) so it becomes a guessing game as to when she may arrive.  You listen to the teams arriving ahead of her and assess their travel time and trail conditions, etc.  Bart De Marie came in about 2 am, followed by Peter Fleck and then Jenn Rafaeli and then just before 5 am YK time our team pulled in.  This was a good bit ahead of the time we estimated last night.  They (the team) made up about 2 hours on the folks that had gone from Dawson City ahead of her.

     So, I was sleeping when they pulled in but here is the report that Brooke has gleaned from Katie while she was bedding down her dogs.

     Katie chewed an entire pack of gum on the way here.  She doesn't ordinarily chew gum but has found that it does help keep her awake while on the runners.  I am really happy to hear that she is very pleased with the recovery of the team since she pulled into Dawson City.  They are motivated and she feels she 'got her team back'...rest is so important!

     There is a condition out on the ice referred to as 'overflow'.  I have only learned about it on this trip - and Katie's dog have learned about it on this trip as well.  It is where water comes over the ice and may be deep or may be shallow but sometimes it is standing water.  The first encounter was just outside of Two Rivers...the very first checkpoint of the race.  Another musher that ended up in it, Kelly Griffin, described it as;  "an Olympic sized swimming pool..."  Bear in mind that they are travelling in the dark.  They do have very bright headlamps that shine ahead - but the team is on a line stretching more than 30 feet ahead of them.  At speed.  Those of you that ride horses know the accordion effect when one horse at the head of the line stops suddenly...or driving a car if you don't ride : )  So, there have been a couple of  overflow encounters along the way.  While the weather has been very warm for this time of year - it is not pleasant to go swimming or get your feet wet! 

    Sometimes the overflow is from melting snow crossing a down-slope.  It then refreezes into a slick glacier that these dogs aren't accustomed to either. Etna is a new fearless leader!  She confidently powered the team right across frozen overflow.  She earned some brownie points with this newly aquired skill!  Much to Katie's relief.

      On this leg she had  Etna in front for awhile and of course Whitney and Shiloh did alot of leading.  Katie mixes up the pairings she says so that no two dogs spend too much time together.

     The terrain is changing now.  While the just completed portion was described as hilly once they got past King Soloman's Dome, it will level out somewhat.  Lots of river ice to cover - travel along roads some, etc.

The amount of food Katie left Dawson City was enormous!  Her sledbag was stuffed tight and the weight of the food for the dogs changed the way the sled handled.  Big impact on the musher.

     Oh and by the way - the race was won yesterday!  Broke all kinds of records this year.  This is the first year ever that all teams have checked in to Dawson City with no scratches.  More teams are finishing with less dogs dropped.  This is really a science.

     Katie reports that the Northern Lights were so impressive last night that she felt like a tourist!  She had her eyes to the sky - one of the rewards for being on the trail in the middle of the night going over the river and through the bush!

    

Pictures from the Trail

Katie had a few spare moments out on the trail to take a few photos.  She reports that the trail is rather rough and technical.  She has incountered several obsticles and has prevailed.  Now she is over half way finished and looking good.  Enjoy her photos.

The team moving throw snow ghost.

Bart De Marie tending to his team.         

The team resting.

          Jumble ice on the river.

                                                                              A beautiful sun rise on the river.

      

   

Happy Valentine's day from Dawson City, YK

     So glad that Brooke and I arrived in Dawson ahead of Katie and had a chance to catch up on some rest.  The Fifth Avenue bed and breakfast is the place to do it - very comfortable and the folks, Tracy and Steve are great hosts.

     Once Katie and the team arrived it was on!  With half of the race complete there are alot of used and used up supplies to manage.  Not to mention some tired and travel-weary dogs and a very wired musher.  This mandatory 36 hour lay-over is for the dogs, for sure.  Because while Katie was able to make a small dent in her sleep deficit, she still had to unpack her sled - assess its condition -make the necessary repairs - dry the sled bag and other drenched equipment - account for supplies -  (remember the stolen drop bag?!) go over and over and over her lists and plan her next leg of the journey.  There is also a great need for food.  She freezes alot of vacuum sealed meals for the trail but the requirements are quite high to make up for the caloric drain the race demands.

     The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have a station here.  There is a heated area that was generously donated for the mushers to use as a drying room and also a place to work on the sleds indoors.  The Mountie (Dave) was very amenable and engaging and we got to meet his lovely daughter Haley as well.  I am still very impressed with the genuine kindnesses and hospitality we have encountered along the trail!

     We let Katie sleep the other night and tended to the "crew" until almost 3 am and then we bounced out of bed yesterday to get all of our chores done. ( Also, not to miss breakfast served by our afore-mentioned hosts...)  Katie and Brooke saw to the team while I spent about four hours at the laundry...lots of dog blankets and coats and harness and musher attire with a few miles on them.  Got to meet some interesting local folks there - even made a new friend that I hope to be able to come visit durng the summer months on her 260 acre farm on the "Other side of the Klondike River" - Someday.  Thanks for the invite Anja!
     We didn't finish the preparations for Katie's departure this morning until well after midnight last night.  Then the alarm goes off at 3 am and back to camp we go to get ready to send the team on their way.  Katie had hoped to finish the race with the 14 dogs from the start.  She made the decision to leave two of them with us - Boggle and Miss Cleo.  That's okay.  It is hard for the mushers to drop dogs - but they do it for the benefit of the individuals as well as the rest of the team.  It sometimes has an adverse effect on the others when one dog cannot perform optimally. If the musher has any question it is better to make the decision at the checkpoint rather than out on the trail before the question becomes a problem.
     So the vets checked Cleo out at 5:15 this morning and then the girls 'bootied up' the team.  We followed that by hitching up the pairs to the gangline on the sled and just after 6 am they were off!!!  Brooke and I were actually able to see part of the trail this morning.  We stood on the ice bridge where the trail crossed and watched them glide on their way down river.  It is surreal.  The northern lights were glowing overhead and across the tops of the mountains and the team is so smooth.  There is a hush and you can hear them puffing and Katie calling out directions.  Then we follow the glow of the headlamp until it is out of sight.
     Five hundred miles down - (+-) five hundred to go!!!  

Notice how loaded Katie's sled is, she has everything she needs for her and the dogs for the next 200 miles of trail.  She will resupply at Pelly Crossing. 

THEY'RE HERE - THEY'RE HERE- THEY'RE HERE

     So, just after the last post I headed outside to scout out the route Katie and the team would have to take from the check-in on the road back down to the river crossing to the camp ground...then I checked in with the officials to see if they had any folks down river to call in when teams were approaching.  The answer was that they would step out periodically and look.  Okay, I can do that!

     Just before 5 pm I can see a little spot on the white ice field.  Just near the spruce grove that goes right down to the rivers edge - and yes! It is moving!  It's the TEAM.  Finally.  Brooke is so prepared.  She had me drop her off at the camp around 4 pm to get the water heating so the dogs can have warm soaked kibble on arrival...

     A stop at the gate on the street - a tow to the ramp and there they go across the ice again.  Finally to camp,  icy booties off, good warm dinner, pull blankets and harness, vet check (each dog was handled thoroughly and kindly) lead into our wonderfully crafted shelter ;) bedded down for the night...(Brooke and I will go back later and walk, massage and feed again) then load all the stuff, then drop some off at the RCMP garage drying station. Now, Katie has had a wonderful hot shower and we need to feed her.  Hey we get to eat too!  Bonus.  Later!

Dawson City Checkpoint - waiting...

     Good day from this picturesque, historic goldmining village on the banks of the Yukon River!  We are still waiting and following Katie's progress via the live tracking feature.  This creates alot of speculation as to how fast she may be travelling and when we should expect her to arrive...at this point we think it may be as soon as 5:30 this afternoon, maybe sooner we shall see.  Bart De Marie just arrived a short time ago and as I am posting this Peter Fleck just pulled in to the check.  Live tracker says she is 20 miles out.

     This is the fun part- the waiting, the anticipation!  The live tracking has been wonderful, but it is not exact and still leaves room for error.  We want to be on standby to provide the optimal assistance for the team. It looks as if we won't be sitting around camp or the check in the dark as she is making a really good run today. 

     I was trying to post some handler stories earlier today and the page on the computer I was using at the B&B shut down without saving. (Crap!)  So let me try again.

     Since the start of the race the pace of the mushers has sorted itself out.  The front half is comprised of alot of veterans and very competetive teams setting a burning pace.  If you have been following you have seen that they have broken some records this year.  There is a middle group that is a day (give or take) behind the front runners and then another group running about the same rate together.  As a result we often find ourselves with the same group of handlers at the check points.  You get to know these folks pretty well.  Everyone is so nice, and from such diverse realms with one common denominator - the mushing.  The dogs.  The sport. I don't want to single anyone out because I don't want to overlook anyone - certainly don't want to do any name dropping.  For example: Alex handling for Dave Dalton or Megan and Jenn with Terry Williams or Darryl travelling with Cindy Barrand...Brooke and I have had the pleasure of spending time with Stefaan De Marie, brother of Bart and their friend/handler Marc.  The De Marie brothers are from Saskatchewan where they have a kennel.  They are from Belgium originally;  as is Marc - he is here for six months to assist with the kennels, run dogs and help with the races.  I believe Stefaan told me that he and his brother alternate on the training and racing of their teams.
     We arrived in Dawson about 7:30 on Wednesday evening.  We immediately checked in and arranged to pick up Katie's supplies that had been trucked in. There were nine check bags and five bales of straw. We offloaded them from the tractor trailer, went back inside for a moment and then pulled the truck around to pick up.  Brooke began arranging our trailer and I dropped dogs for a break. (Remember Detour and Herbert have been travelling with us...)  Suddenly a local woman came running up and informed us a large dog had absconded with one of our drop bags!   She and Brooke ran around for a bit hoping to locate the thief - but he is a town dog and was not to be found.  One happy town dog we imagine.  Fortunately, our Katie is very organized and we have a book that lists each bag and it's contents by number.  Brooke was able to repack a bag with all of the food that Katie will need on the trail with extra supplies we are carrying.  Boy, Brooke was pissed.  We didn't expect that.
     On a different track, since we were in Fairbanks Brooke has been talking about a bar in Dawson that is very well-known for a special cocktail.  The "SourToe".  She said we had to go there and join this special club...seems that sometime back in the 70's these folks found a severed frostbitten digit on the floor of a remote cabin and came up with the idea that people would love to pay for the honor of taking a shot of whiskey with the "Toe" floating in it.  There is a special ceremony and you have to sign the registry.  And if you successfully imbibe your beverage the "Toe" has to touch your lips!  This is a real, gnarly, human toe folks - I looked at it!  There are more than 40,000 people that are registered.

      So, last night Brooke and I stopped in for dinner and we were joined by a fellow named Jack from a town way north of here(!) by the name of Old Crow.  He was interesting but had been enjoying the bar all day if you know what I mean.  After a bit we were also joined by Stefaan and Marc and Darryl.  Some hardy souls in the bar took part in the "Society of the Toe" proceedings including Darryl and BROOKE!  No, I did not and will not be joining up with this group thank you very much.  Way too real for me!

     Somehow we coerced the guys into trying out the locals favorite spot; the Pit.  It was fairly quiet - but we had another round and got into a few more stories.  Stefaan was telling us about their accomodations in town.  The lady of the house is a friend of his sister-in-law or something.  She is not here this weekend but they were to make themselves at home as they wished.  She did caution that the dog was going to be left inside and Stefaan was a bit worried because they hadn't seen the dog.  We were joking around that he shouldn't worry about him going hungry as he was probably the scoundrel that made off with forty pounds of kibble and frozen meat in a drop-bag.  We were going over the story again and included the fact that the local lady said;  "It's probably So-and-so's dog; he runs around all the time!"

     The look on Stefaan's face was priceless - it was the owner's dog!  Right now I don't know if they have seen him yet.  I wouldn't worry too much about him - he is very resourceful!!!

    Okay, the tracker says she is ten miles out on the river now!  We can't wait to see her and how they are faring...Bear with us as we will be busy for awhile.  We will post photos - this takes some time as electronics are a bit challenging the closer you get to the North Pole!!!  Later!!!

yukon quest adventure!

     It looks to be another gorgeous day in the Klondike...We (Brooke and I) are currently in Dawson City in a beautiful bed and breakfast enjoying hot coffee, equally hot showers and a wonderful warm bed.  I have to say though it has not been too rough sleeping in the truck as Katie prepared it with comfort in mind.  She travelled solo with the sixteen dogs over 2300 miles and it was their rolling hotel the entire trip... 

     The hospitality we are experiencing along our journey is unbelievable.  These folks at the checkpoints and in the towns along the trail are fantastic and so enthusiastic.  The community of mushers is also very impressive.  It is truly an international event as the musher profiles illustrate.  All the handlers and other support staff are interesting and engaging and it is my good fortune to be a part of this.

     The Alcan highway lives up to its reputation.  It was quite a haul from Circle around to Destruction Bay (first leg) and then on Wednesday we arrived here in Dawson about 7:30 pm.  Brooke has done most of the driving...I may have lost points on my driving abilities because of a 'minor' mishap on the Alcan...I lost the right hand trailer tire. Completely.  Flattened the rim.  We pulled into the closed gas station/hotel parking lot and assessed the situation - suddenly two other dog trucks whipped in...three wonderful men jumped out finished jacking the trailer, changed the tire (laughed alot) dropped the trailer off the jack like a NASCAR pit crew! Then they were gone- trucking on down the highway!  Bonus!  Thanks Clinton and friends!!!

     Now.  About Katie and the race!  The team left Circle at 1:35 am Tuesday morning.  They arrived at their next rest at Slaven's cabin at 10:18 am.  From there they headed out at 8:15 pm.  The website indicates the arrival at the Eagle checkpiont was just before 5 pm on Wednesday.  We were following the race on the radio about this time and heard that Hans Gatt was on the river close to Dawson City...His was the first team to arrive at 6:02 pm Wednesday and they will receive 4 ounces of gold for this feat.  While we were picking up Katie's supplies for the next HALF of the race, I saw Lance Mackey arrive at 8:49 pm and also had the luck to see the third team to arrive - Hugh Neff at 9:04 pm. 

     We at this point are following Katie through the live tracking on the website.  We have a greater responsibility here...this is the only point in the race that we can provide hands on support.  It is not allowed at any other time.  We will set up the camp and have warm water going and enable Katie and her team to rest as completely and comfortably and quickly as possible.  This is a mandatory reststop of 36 hours for all teams.

     We see that Katie left Eagle at 4:11 this (Thursday) morning.  Two other teams/handlers that we have been enjoying time with: that of Bart De Marie left Eagle at 1:18 am and the young Brit; Peter Fleck followed Katie by a few minutes at 4:14 am.  We expect our team to arrive late this evening  - maybe early Friday morning...it just depends on the conditions and how Katie feels the dogs are handling them. 

     Sometimes this is very challenging for us - we have an idea of her run/rest schedule, sometimes she may be three hours ahead of her plan or maybe six hours behind...Ah!  That's racing, just gotta be able to roll with it!   As we are internet connected for the next few days we will try to update a bit more often...Later!

Circle City - fourth checkpoint

Katie surprised us and arrived a few minutes after 3p.m. (Monday).  She said the trail from Central to Circle was "boring".  This is a good thing, it means that the trail was smooth going and the team was traveling well.  She decided not to stop and rest on the trail but rather keep moving and take one longer rest here in Circle City.  She is currently sleeping after eating a large plate of Turkey dinner, chocolate cake and three chocolate chip cookies.  She is a good sled dog - eating, drinking and sleeping as much as she can.  The mushers provide better care for the dog such as nice shoulder, wrist and foot messages and lots of hand on contact.  If only the dogs could give Katie the same treatments.  However, Katie knows that if she takes the best possible care of the dogs they will in turn take care of her on the trail.  She will have to wait till she gets home to get a message.  Maybe she will get one in Dawson.

From Circle Katie heads out to Eagle 158 miles of trail .  She will make the trip in three runs.  From Cirlce she will run 68 miles to Slavin's Cabin.  From Slavin's cabin she will break the run up into two more legs.  Resting/camping on the trail.  In Eagle, a remote checkpoint that we cannot access, she will have access to her drop bags.    Drop bags are bags that Katie packed before the race and are shipped out to every checkpoint. They contain all the necessary food and equipment that she and the dogs need for that checkpoint and for the section of trail from there to the next checkpoint.  From Eagle Katie will head to Dawson City 150 miles down the trail. This is where we will see her again.  She intends on arrive sometime Thursday, probably later in the day to evening.

Handler update - Clear skies, temperatures dropping to around -15'F tongiht.  Once Katie leaves Cirlce City, ETD 11:30p.m. Monday, Anita and I will curl up in the truck and sleep till morning (5ish) and clean up Katie's parking area.  This includes racking up the straw the dogs were bedded down on and hauling it away.  We also collect any extra supplies she left behind.  Then we will be heading back to Fairbanks to pick up the trailer.  Fuel up and head out for Dawson City, Yukon, Canada.  From Circle City (for the record this is not a city rather a very small town) to Dawson City it is about 1,100 miles of driving.  It looks like we will be traveling with a few other handlers.  Having said this it maybe a few days before we update the blog again.