2009 Blog Posts

 

December 21, 2009
It is official! Today is the first day of winter. We have been in winter mode for quite a while at NWS; in fact we have now logged 300 miles with our dogs this season! The dogs are in great condition, the trails are improving with every flake of snow that accumulates.

 

December 13, 2009
Enough snow on the ground to do a bit of trail grooming with the snowmobile. It has been very windy so any of the open trails have had the snow blown off of them, but we can access enough trails through the bush for a 12 mile loop. We also checked the ice thickness to cross the South Branch.......

"Jeff selecting & prepping spruce handle for ice chisel"

"attaching the ice chisel and not forgetting the screw"

"ice depth is looking safe & soild"

"Jeff is on the otherside; the river is ready for dogs"

December 10, 2009
We had enough snow overnight to run the sleds today for the first time this season. It was great fun! We took two sleds each with a 6-dog team for a 4 mile rip without grooming the trail. We worked hard "trail breaking" through the bush. We all enjoyed our short run and how beautiful the scenery was after the snow.

December 9, 2009
It's snowing!!! Hurray.

December 6, 2009
Training is going really well and the dogs are fantastic this year! This is their second year all together as a team and having the time to bond with each other has certainly made a lot of difference in their work. Shannon has registered for a few of the Maine 6-dog 30 mile races; for a bit of excitment and fun in the New Year. That has changed our training regime towards a bit more speed from the "race team"; who are Star, Yellow, Dragon, Balto, Ice and Homer. The 6-dogs are enjoying the speed as much as Shannon is.

November 19, 2009
The autumn weather is still warm and we are limited in our oppertunities to train the dogs, but we have managed 286km to date. The dogs are becoming so strong and fit; we are very proud of the great team they have become.

November 12, 2009
A beautiful sunny and frosty morning we thought it was time to use a new trail that is a bit longer then our others; a full 16km. To access this trail it requires that we cross the "little" South Branch river. We discussed a game-plan that would safely get the entire team and wheeler to the other side of the river. (translation: the best way to cross without Jeff or I getting wet!!) As we approached the river I jumped off the wheeler and ran to the opposite bank by using the bridge, then called the dogs to me. This worked beautifully! The dogs jumped into the cold water and ran across toward me. We felt so proud! The next obstical that we were expecting to be a small challenge was a large beaver dam. We approched the dam with no problems, the water level had dropped enough that the dam no longer served as a worthy obstical. "Phew" we sighed a breath of relief this new trail was fun. Then the chaos and real fun began, we rounded a bend and the dogs were sliding forward on a big glaze of ice which would normally be fine but Yellow became a bit freaked and jumped into the alder bushes tangling her tug line. We stopped the wheeler and I jumped off and quickly went forward to untangle Yellow before everyone else got tangled and mixed up (this can happen quickly and easily with 12 dogs and a whole lot of lines) Mid-way up the ice there was an open spot where water was running freely and preventing a complete freeze. I was stretching my arms from the side of the water to try and untangle dogs, yup by this time Ice and Dragon had gotten tangled with Lois and Thunder. The clasps were frozen from getting wet in the South Branch and I needed to bang them together to get them to open, so that I could untangle everyone's neck and tuglines. Not a job I could do while stretching from the sidelines, eventually I crept foward and I was on the edge of the running water; then in the water when the ice beneath me gave way. I am thankful that I was dressed in wool pants! Approximately 18 more minutes and Jeff falling sideways into the icy water we had the dogs untangled and lined out. The team was excited an ready to pull, "hike, let's go" we encouraged the dogs to pull forward. The wheeler sliding along behind, until it hit the running water section. "Splash" the wheeler was in the water and unable to crawl back up onto the ice on the otherside. Large chunks of ice blocked the wheels, and Jeff and I were back in the icy water rocking and pulling the wheeler with the dogs helping. Five minutes more and we were free of the ice. Cold and laughing Jeff and I enjoyed the adventure and headed home, thankful that no one was injured or traumatized we can add this to our resumes of dog driving experiences.

 

November 11, 2009
Remembrance Day! It is sunny and warm as we take the time today to really appreciate the life we are able to live in peace and freedom and we remember the fallen soldiers and commerades who sacrificed so much to give us this gift.
We were up early today to get a run in with the dogs before the temperature rise and before our moment of silence at 11am. It was extrodinary this morning with the sun on our faces as we cruised by the beautiful Acadian forest landscape that sorrounds us here in Carleton County.

November 3, 2009
It is hard to believe that it is November already, 2009 is slipping behind us so quickly. We are experiencing warmer than usual temperatures and there is no snow, yet.
Lastnight we took the dogs on their first night run of the season. The moon (one day past being full) was bright and beautiful in the clear night sky. The temperature was 4'c and the setting really was idealic. The dogs seemed to enjoy the night run as much as we did.

October 29, 2009
We are well into the autumn swing of things, here on South Ridge Road. Our generous vegetable gardens are closed for the season, our winterstorage has been filled with a great summer's bounty and the garlic is in the ground awaiting next year's harvest. We have begun conditioning the huskies using our 4-wheeler to get them in shape for the upcoming winter adventures. Training began when the mornings were cool (less than 10'c); this year that was mid-September. Since then the dogs have added up 190 km to date. What a great way to start our mornings; spending time with the dogs.

"Blue Breadseed Poppies"