Ididaride Sled Dog Tours | Iditarod Dogsled

If you've got 2 hours and nice weather, I recommend a great family outing at the Ididaride Sled Dog Tours just 4 miles north of Seward. You get to pet the puppies, learn about what it's like to race the 18-day Iditarod from a real race finisher, see the equipment they use, watch them hitch the dogs to a sled, and finally take a 3-mile sled dog ride through the forest. Very cool!

When you walk from the front office around the back to the main kennels, it's quite a shock. First of all, the din is horrific - 100 or so dogs ALL barking for attention. Second, you don't expect to see 100 dogs with plastic drum dog houses all laid out in nice rows.

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One big attraction is the sled dog puppies. All Iditerod sled dogs are mutts. They aren't husky pure-breds like you might think. They are mixtures of huskies, greyhounds, and whatever else they think loves to pull sleds with great endurance.\n\nThey had about 7 puppies this year, and you could go into the puppy kennel to pet them. Our daughter is afraid of dogs, but she really liked the puppies. Real Iditarod sled dog puppies go for between $3000 and $5000. Yikes!

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After petting the puppies you get to see a quick video montage of Iditarod clips and then an equipment demonstration. Here a 10-year-old volunteer gets suited up in a nice warm snow jacket.

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Looks like Kenny from SouthPark. Notice the mittens on the string so that you don't lose them.\n\nJake is 20 years old and he finished the Iditarod last year. Here he explains that the race takes about 18 days over more than 1000 miles. You start in Anchorage in March when there is only 6 hours of daylight and you head northwest on a well-marked trail. The amount of daylight gets shorter each day.\n\nJake didn't grow up around sled dogs or racers or anything. He just decided one day that he wanted to be an Iditarod champion. And to finish the race at his age I'd say he's well on his way.

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Here's our volunteer on the sled. The bulk of the race is devoted to taking care of the dogs -- keeping them energized, warm, well-fed. Sleds these days are carbon-fiber so they are light-weight. You never let go of the sled.

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Back out to the kennel area for our ride. All of the dogs have their eyes on the personnel who are choosing them for the pull. Why they didn't have this all figured out before we got out there is beyond me.

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All of the dogs are yelping like mad hoping that they are the one that is chosen next. Some of them literally could not contain themselves. Why they didn't have this all figured out before we got out there is beyond me.

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Getting a better view from the top of his doghouse. The doghouses are all made of plastic so that they repel the rain and don't rot.

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Loading up the sled for the 3-mile pull. All of the dogs are excited; they can't wait to pull us. It is noisier than you can possibly imagine.\n\nThese little 3-mile tourist pulls are part of their training. They learn to pull as a team, lead, turn, and stop. They also learn to pace themselves. Dogs are carefully chosen to make sure that some very experienced ones are mixed in with some new ones. That way the new ones learn from the experienced dogs.

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These dogs kept jumping over each other while they were waiting for everyone to be hitched up.

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All of these dogs are barking with excitement. They can't wait to pull the sled. I used to think that it might have been a little cruel to make dogs pull sleds, but it is blatantly obvious that these dogs enjoy it.

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All of the dogs are yelping like mad hoping that they are the one that is chosen next. Some of them literally could not contain themselves. Why they didn't have this all figured out before we got out there is beyond me.

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In the summer there is no snow in Seward, so the sled dog runs are with golf cart-like things on dirt roads. The dogs can't go more than about 3 miles else they would overheat.

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View from the sled. Some dogs are on an even pace, some are trying to run as fast as they can.

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All 3 of the sleds on this tour were piloted by actual Iditarod finishers.

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Temporarily stopped, the dogs still want to go and go fast.

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At the halfway point we stop by a creek to let the dogs rest and to take a few pictures. The 2 lead dogs must be experienced enough to keep the line tight, else all the dogs would end up in a chaotic pile.

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View from the front of my wife and daughter. At 3.5 years old, she had a blast.\n\nThis is a lucky shot - notice one dog in the rear is frozen in mid-air? He jumped up in excitement just as I snapped this picture. Say cheese!

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On the road again. Our speed was constant throughout the entire 3 miles. We saw no wildlife on our tour.

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My daughter watches the dogs pull the sled.

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The end of the line. All of the slobber says that these dogs are hot. They were built more for cold weather.

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Darn, this one didn't get picked to pull a sled. Maybe next time.

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Funny sign outside the Ididaride main office.

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