Nome Sweet Nome

Prep week for the coldest adventure of my lifetime... the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. The eagle has now landed here in Alaska...and my goodness the eagles here are beautiful!

This year’s race has over 50 mushers (teams) each starting with 16 dogs who will face Mother Nature at its coldest as they traverse through the wintry terrain from Anchorage to Nome for nearly 1000 miles. The mushers will face mountainous, rugged terrain over anywhere from 8-15 days and must cross the finish line with at least 5 dogs on the tow line. While some scrutinize the sport as “cruel” these dogs are bred for & genetically spectacular and love what they do. I’m not debating here the pros or cons of animal sports...my objective is to offer my experience and expertise to assure the dogs are cared for. The Iditarod Trail Committee oversees the ethics and husbandry rules as well as employees the worlds best veterinarians to help ensure drug-free, healthy and painfree performances; they keep the dogs in the utmost of focuses in this traditional race. Freezing and off the grid... my backpack will hold 8 days of camping and survival gear, my special fitness meals and supplements as well as my portable medical kit. I will be toted to various work stations along the trail via helicopter and dropped to find my work spot to help inspect, treat and be a snow guardian for the dogs. These next few days we gear up for training, orientation and vetting the dogs as the race starts officially on March 2nd.

As a Texas gal... these single digit temps and living alongside an icy trail, a historic Eskimo and gold-mining trail actually

... should bode for some beautiful pictures and disclose if I am Texas-tough enough 🤗