The joy of Dog Sledding
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Designed for Beginners.
Kathleen has been teaching and taking people dogsledding for 30 years. It is a great privilege to work with these amazing huskies and share their passion and love for running. It is truly exhilarating to glide through the woods as part of a happy working team. They love people and will welcome you into their pack. |
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A special part of mushing with us at Wintermoon is “living” with the dogs. You get to know them and their personalities, help care for them, really learn about hook ups and driving the sled, feel immersed in the life style of a musher. Spending time allows you to see their spirits and feel like you have really experienced dogsledding. You’ll hear their stories, sit with an elder husky on the couch and we’ll talk about the mushing culture. Kathleen loves sharing stories, from being Race Director, handler and public radio reporter for the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon, to handler and “pee team” collector at the Start of the Iditarod, to winter camping mushing in the BWCAW, to raising and training huskies for 30 years. Kathleen and her dogs are all a family, working together at something they love. And happy to share it.
She will teach you all the basics, how to harness and hook up the dogs, steer the sleds, so that if you like, you can be the musher driver of the team. The more you connect and bond with the dogs, the better the mushing will be. With Kathleen in the lead and two people to a sled, you’ll experience the immense present-moment joy of the peaceful Northwoods behind a skillful team of 4-6 dogs. And we should say, besides the fun and exhilaration, it can be a transformational experience.
There are also opportunities to snowshoe, cross country ski, view our many bird feeders, nap, read, walk an elder husky and we always take a Finnish wood fired sauna.
She will teach you all the basics, how to harness and hook up the dogs, steer the sleds, so that if you like, you can be the musher driver of the team. The more you connect and bond with the dogs, the better the mushing will be. With Kathleen in the lead and two people to a sled, you’ll experience the immense present-moment joy of the peaceful Northwoods behind a skillful team of 4-6 dogs. And we should say, besides the fun and exhilaration, it can be a transformational experience.
There are also opportunities to snowshoe, cross country ski, view our many bird feeders, nap, read, walk an elder husky and we always take a Finnish wood fired sauna.
2018-2019 Schedule and Rates
Reservations are now open for individuals for any of the dates below. Cost is $600. per person.
Groups with a minimum of 6 may still sign up for the dates that have a * behind them. Cost is $550 per person.
To register, please send a $150. deposit (made to Kathleen Anderson) with your name, address, phone and email. I will send you a packet of information; please indicate if you would like it sent email or regular mail. An information sheet and the balance are due three weeks before your adventure.
December 29-January 1 (starts 5pm to Jan 1 a.m.) - full
January 3-6 ( includes helping handle at the Gunflint Mail Run, need to have experience mushing) - 1 space
January 11-13 full
March 8-10 - might be full, please contact me first
March 15-17 * full
Groups with a minimum of 6 may still sign up for the dates that have a * behind them. Cost is $550 per person.
To register, please send a $150. deposit (made to Kathleen Anderson) with your name, address, phone and email. I will send you a packet of information; please indicate if you would like it sent email or regular mail. An information sheet and the balance are due three weeks before your adventure.
December 29-January 1 (starts 5pm to Jan 1 a.m.) - full
January 3-6 ( includes helping handle at the Gunflint Mail Run, need to have experience mushing) - 1 space
January 11-13 full
March 8-10 - might be full, please contact me first
March 15-17 * full
Dog sledding trip details
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All adventures are cabin based and are all inclusive.
Our setting is the peaceful boreal forest and the lodge is located on a 400 acre Finnish homestead, 50 miles north of Duluth, Minnesota. You’ll stay in a cozy wood heated log cabin with beds (usually 6-8 people). We have a hand pump for well water, Finnish sauna for relaxing/ bathing after an invigorating day outdoors. Friday 1 pm to Sunday afternoon, 3 x mushing To register: wintermoon@brimson.com |
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testimonials
Friends and family have been asking “what was it like?” and I am truly hard pressed to explain it to them. Part summer camp, part church retreat, part dude ranch… I don’t really know. My answers have primarily been things like “magical”, “transforming”, “blessed.
- Meg from Florida
My love of dogs and desire to try dogsledding brought me to Wintermoon for the first time 16 years ago. When I arrived, I found a magical place in the beautiful north woods where a person can relax, forget the worries of the outside world, and challenge herself in a nurturing environment. Kathleen’s warm welcome puts everyone at ease, her love of her dogs is contagious, and the meals are outstanding. I look forward to my winter sojourn at Wintermoon every year–it’s become my annual mental health retreat.
- Andrea from Colorado, has come dogsledding every year for the last 24 years
Thank you so much for a wonderful adventure of dogsledding. It is truly an unforgettable experience. I enjoyed each day looking forward for feeding, petting, mushing, snowshoeing and the sauna too. The dogs and the place are truly magical.
- Chit from California
Thanks again for all the fun I had racing through the woods with your dogs and the warm welcome I received at your place! It was such a good start of the new year. Greetings from Germany
- Marlene
I can still hear the dogs howl and the sound of wood crackling in the fire, smell the snow and feel the belly laughs that I enjoy so much even though I am thousands of miles away. I miss Wintermoon and I’m looking forward to our next trip!
- Nicole from Germany
