october soggy full moon

The “PUPS” will be 1  1/2 this month and are still acting like very playful youngsters.  They love their loose run and play time and are all getting along very well, a good sign for when they are in the teams this winter.  They also go on “harness” walks and all are pulling well – not surprising since Lemmikki, queen of the dogyard, is their grandmother.  Sigurd – mr. furrowed brow is still the thoughtful one, Monk – mouthy monkey, Osa – ms. congeniality and rub my tummy, Wing – sensitive onlooker and Susi – like her ‘wolf in Finnish’ name is observant and independent.  They are so wonderful, a joy to be around and I am excited to introduce them to mushing this winter.  (Not that all my huskies are not wonderful and a joy, they are and a perfect antidote to these crazy times.)   There is only one elder who will not be pulling this winter, Lydia, and hopefully she will be the cabin dog.  So we will have lots and lots of good energy on the trail this winter.

We have started training with the 4 wheeler and it is going very well.  Skipper here is 10 and doing great.  I have a number of very experienced 8-11 year old leaders  – Trondheim, Lemmikki, Sulu, Tahti, Urho, and they are sharing it with lots of 2-4 year olds.  7 year old leaders Kesha and Sami have been doing fantastic too.  There are 18 that are 4 and under and it feels like a lot of wild energy that we hope to channel down the trail; it is looking very good.

There are still openings on trips throughout the winter mushing season and the dates are under Trips: Dogsledding.   As our friend Dee Dee Jonrowe says in Iditarod Dreams about mushing:  “wow, this is fun, I feel so alive and excited.”  I have been rereading her 1995 book because it always inspires me about the upcoming season and also because she just announced the 2018 Iditarod will be her last.  She stands as one of the most achieved woman mushers having run over 30 Iditarods, 16 top 10 finishes including 2 second place and 4 fourth place.   We wish her the very best.

​And Cindy Gallea too, who we hear will be running Iditarod again.  Always fun to have a Minnesota woman running the race.  More on her story later….

TRAILS    WEEKEND  OCTOBER 20-22
All are invited to join us for a trail clearing3 on Sunday morning with time to play/run with the huskies and relax too.  It is usually nipping the pesky brush that grows up but we might work a little on a new section too.  Arrive anytime on Friday or even Saturday morning.  And we will be unveiling the 2018 Outdoorsy and Husky Loving Women Calendar, a benefit for the vet fund.

2018 Outdoorsy & Husky Loving Women CALENDAR  for sale
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It’s a benefit for the vet fund.  The practice at Wintermoon is to be a forever home for all of our huskies and it is usually later in life that trips to the vet become more frequent and costly.  We appreciate any support towards keeping our huskies healthy.   Each month is a tasteful glimpse at life in the Northwoods doing all the things we love, like the one above, playing with huskies.  Calendar & shipping/handling : $25.  please make payable to Kathleen Anderson – 3388 Petrell Rd – Brimson, MN 55602.

We have 400 acres of forest and quiet here in the Northwoods and I have built 2 cabins that we “share”,  If you are interested in either 3 or 6 weeks, let me know.  They are private, furnished, maintenance free and a great get-away.  Let me know if you have any questions: wintermoon@brimson.com .
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It has been a very wet late summer and fall, lots of shoveling gravel in the dog yard, can’t plant garlic yet, luckily no fire danger.  We are probably close to 10 inches over normal rainfall. All we can hope is that this trend continues through winter !