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Adventure Journal 

April through December, 2007

December 24th, 2007        "We drank a toast to now."                     Dan Fogelberg    Same Old Lang Syne

I love that line!  In fact, I love the entire song but don't read into the lyrics.  I am not even going home for Christmas this year.

As you can tell by the lack of journal entries, life has been crazy fun as of late.  I will be enjoying today and tomorrow as "days off".  Today I got up a little earlier, 4:30 a.m. so I could squeeze in a little extra fun, for example, this journal entry that is long overdue.  Next I am headed out to take half my crew on a relaxing run.  Hopefully I will be back by noon to enjoy some company with our great friends, the Starks, who are stopping by for some Christmas time dog sled rides, hot soup, and some warm fellowship.  Then out to take the other half of my crew out for a trot in the woods.  Tomorrow is Christmas!!!!!  All of you have a great Holiday and don't forget to include your dog(s) in the family festivities.

I would like to propose a toast.......to now! 

December 20, 2007.  I think that the onslaught of snow has caused time to move at warp speed.  I can't believe it's been ten days since a journal entry, and I have no idea what I've been doing during that time.  Tours are underway, training is underway, Boyne rides start this weekend, Christmas is just around the corner, the puppies are out of control, and I'm still up at 11 pm catching up on emails.  Here's a few awesome photos from Erin Ramirez, our first tour guest of the year...#1 Mickey and his nephew 2x4, Bouie is under attack by Tasha's puppies, and Badger, who now roams free, still is a sled dog a heart!  I'll write more soon....(more)

Thanks Mrs. Easter and the Logansport Indiana School District for sending us such inspirational kids.  We LOVED having you at Nature's Kennel!!  You are amazing sled drivers, amazing puppy lovers, and incredibly tough!!  Thanks for taking such good care of Bouie, Joe, and Jake on the trail.  And yes, we DID see the video of Bouie riding in the sled while all the kids drove!! 

December 10, 2007  Life according to Arlo...the following article was recently written by Ed for our December issue of the NK Howl.  I thought you would all enjoy a little insight into one of his favorites.   Ed, Mariah, and Arlo are off for a five hour run this morning.  The trails are perfect, the sun is peeking out, and it's about 10 degrees.  What a beautiful morning to take a ride around the neighborhood. 
"Arlo (in photo on left) is a small, short legged dog in our kennel. He was sick as a puppy. Sick may be an understatement. We had spent over a thousand dollars on him in vet costs by the time he was four months old. It might be more accurate to say that he was on his death bed.
Arlo has some behavior abnormalities. He communicates regularly by growling. At first, I thought he had aggression problems but soon noticed that all of the dogs ignore his growling. His growling is mostly random. It may occur when you harness him, when he walks, when you scratch his back, really at any time. The only time his growling is predictable is when he gets in the dog truck. He always rides in the back of the truck on a dog “shelf”. He will load himself by gracefully jumping into the back, and leaping onto his shelf in two smooth bounds. Once on the shelf, he buries his head in the corner, wags his tail like crazy, and growls a thunderous melody.
Another unique personality trait that Arlo has was developed this past summer while working on the Mendenhall glacier. On the glacier, guests would sometimes want to take long breaks out on the trail in order to take pictures. The dog team quickly learned to be patient during these breaks. Well, at least most of the dog team learned to be patient. If the guests took too long, I found that Arlo would dig a small hole in the soft glacial snow and stick his head in it until the guests were ready to go.
With all of this being said, I should mention that Arlo is my main race lead dog. Even though he is about 10 pounds lighter and two harness sizes smaller than any other dog on my team, he is “The Man”. Look for him in pictures this race season. He should be easy to pick out, unless of course, he has his head buried in the snow."

December 7, 2007 Ahh, so good to be home...the snow is here, the dogs are happy, the tours are starting, Iditarod training is underway, and I'm working a lot in the office to get things caught up and under way.  Sure beats driving in traffic!!

November 30, 2007  The "Dog Show-on the Road" is still moving along.  Momo, Tasha Canine, and I have traveled 995 miles thus far, have been through four states (Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan), and are enjoying our first day off.  I'm at the Mt. Clemens Public Library, and the dogs are across the street sleeping on Aunt Lynne's couch.  I'm heading down to see some college friends today, and to celebrate Luke Melville's 8th birthday.  Tomorrow we head to Port Huron for a family day at the Maritime Center, and then we're off to the Grand Rapids area.  We have had a fabulous trip, met some wonderful kids, and have experienced everything from suburban life, to big city traffic jams (which causes quite a stir with the dog sled on top of the car), to Amish life.  We were treated to dinner with an Amish family in Shipshewana, one of the highlights of our trip.  I think I feel more connected to their way of life (with the propane appliances and the peaceful farms) than I do to the bustling suburbs.  Momo and Tasha loved seeing the horses on the road during morning rush hour!  We learned that mushers and Amish kids say the same things when driving...gee and haw to the sled dogs and horses!  We've had wonderful traveling weather...unlike the crew back on the farm...

The sleds are being pulled out of the storage shed at home for the inaugural run today!  Ed said there's well over a foot of snow at home...so winter has come to the U.P.!!  I'll be heading home to a different world on Wednesday.  Ed also sent in his Iditarod entry fee and paperwork on Tuesday...so you should see his name on the list sometime soon.   I guess I'd better get home soon before they have all the fun without me!

November 25, 2007 "Howlin' wolves, windy nights, reading books by candle light, in that little country cabin in the hills.  Callin' owls just for fun, playing cards and shootin' guns, long ago and I remember it so well.  See you trudgin' through the snow, makin' coffee on the stove, splittin' wood, laughin' all the time.  All alone you and me, we were wild and we were free, and we were crazy, and didn't have a dime.  When a man who has a dream, finds a woman who believes, there's nothin' in this world, they can't do.  In my heart, in my soul,  your the one who's made me whole.  I am blessed by the love of you.  By the warmth of the fire, we'd watch the sun retire, and give way to that starry-starry night.  Sharing dreams, stealing kisses, holding hands, and making wishes, knowing you'd be always be by my side." Hobo Jim, Blessed

Tasha leaves today for almost two weeks of school programs and meetings.  Although these trips are necessary for the success of our business, I still wish they were much shorter.  A huge thank you to all of you that are helping take care of her, Momo, and TC on this trip!  Please give all three of them hugs from me.

November 17, 2007 The race was awesome!!!!  Thanks to our INCREDIBLE HOSTS, Brian and Gary, we got to stand in the pits with the crew for the McDonald's car #35.  Of course we couldn't help or touch anything but just being in the energized environment was incredible!  My Mom, who is the biggest NASCAR fan ever, had the time of her life and helped keep Tasha and I informed on exactly what was going on.

November 16, 2007  Race Day!!  We're on our way to the races and are looking forward to it with the same excitement we feel at a sled dog race.  We now know how fans as their first sled dog race feel...we have no idea what we are in for (the noise is overwhelming), we are baffled by the fact that this many people actually like this sport (they must be crazy to take care of this many cars), and we can't understand why it's so fun to sit for hours in the hot sun (ok, so we stand in the freezing cold).

When we compiled a list of pre-race "questions" for our host, Brian of Team Rensi Motorsports, we had to laugh at ourselves...it seem like we've heard most of them before!  Do the cars really like to race?   What do you feed them?  Can we touch them?  Do the cars race everyday?  What do the drivers hold onto?  How do they go to the bathroom when they are racing?  I never expected the drivers to be so small, are they in good shape?  Who's that #3 guy who wins all the races, isn't it something like Dale?  How do they see at night? Isn't it expensive to keep all these cars?  How do I teach my car to go fast?  Where can I get a car like yours, do you ever sell them, how much do they cost?  How to you get the cars to the races? Have you ever won a race? 

November 13th, 2007  It's off to the races!!  Ed and I are headed to the Ford 300 NASCAR Bush Series race at the Homestead-Miami speedway this weekend!!  Yes, you read correctly...this is no dog sled race...this is NASCAR!  One of Ed's glacier tour guests this summer was Brian Weisbaum, whose father is an owner of Team Rensi Motorsports, the #25 FreeCreditReport.com Ford Fusion and the # 35 McDonald’s Ford Fusion Bush series cars. Brian graciously invited us to join in a NASCAR race, so we are headed to Miami!  In return, Brian will get a feel for our high-speed life when he joins us for some dog sledding this winter.   We'll have many stories to tell soon, but in the meantime, be sure to listen to or watch the Bush race this weekend that starts at 4:30 p.m. ET Saturday, November 17.

November 9, 2007 "Was it possible for a dog- any dog, but especially a nutty, wildly uncontrollable one like ours- to point humans to the things that really mattered in life?  I believed it was.  Loyalty.  Courage.  Devotion.  Simplicity.  Joy.  And the things that did not matter, too.  A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes.  Status symbols mean nothing to him.  A water-logged stick will do just fine.  A dog judges others not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside.  A dog doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull.  Give him your heart and he will give you his.  It was really quite simple, and yet we humans, so much wiser and more sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not..........Sometimes it took a dog with bad breath, worse manners, and pure intentions to help us see.", John Grogan, Marley & Me

November 2, 2007  Bouie's Back and Joe is Here!!  My relief crew has arrived to help run the young en's and old en's!!  Bouie, our favorite Pirate of Caribbean has returned for a second year of guiding.  Joe, a fellow Sheep Creek cohort of mine has decided that he liked my cooking so much this summer that he had to have more this winter.  Joe guided for Frank Teasley in Jackon Hole, Wyoming last season, so he brings a great deal of experience to our crew.  The two have dubbed themselves "Team Boo-Joe" as they prepare the young dogs for the touring season. 

Meanwhile...I've been spending time entertaining my three year old niece with Tasha Canine's puppies.  David, her brother, thought that he'd spend time eating dog biscuits instead of feeding them to the dogs.  Ed has been spending lots of time on the roof nailing up siding.  For those of you who have followed our slow house progress the past four year...we are finally covering the "yooper" tyvex paper with real wood siding!!  Come and visit...you won't even recognize the place! 

October 29, 2007  "Yes we can, can, can, can, Can, can, can, can, Can, can, can, can, Can, can, can, can, can, oh",  Fatboy Slim, Because We Can

Finally, we had a good training run.  Since our return from the glacier the dogs have been running OK but they have seemed flat.  Yesterday morning though they came alive.  I had Feta and Boom (pictured at the left) in lead and they were running incredible!  Feta is two years old and one of only two females that Mariah and I are training.  She is built perfectly, has a ton of energy, and sometimes I question whether she is lacking in the brains department.  Sounds like the perfect wife, huh?  Just kidding, I know that last line was offensive but Tasha told me to write that.

This is Mariah Smyth for those of you who have not met her yet.  She came down to Michigan from Big Lake, Alaska to help me train the main race team this year.  I met Mariah on the glacier in Juneau where she was a co-musher.  It became evident to me early last summer that she knows how to run dogs and acts very similar toward the dogs that I do.  So I recruited her.

In the past our Guides have hated running my team because they do not usually listen to anyone else but me.  (That reminds me of a story that I will share in a minute.)  I was concerned with how Mariah would do with this frustrating problem so I rode along with her on the first few training runs.  I couldn't believe it, the dogs instantly listened to her.  I think I will learn a lot from her this year.

A few years ago we had this superstar Guide named "Andrew".  Andrew was the perfect kennel helper, displaying a hearty work ethic with a blend of most-times used common sense.  When I needed to fly up to Alaska that December to attend my Iditarod rookie meeting, I asked Andrew to run my dogs once for me.  We had great snow that year and I was running teams of 18 dogs with the sled before I left.  I assumed that Andrew would run my dogs in two teams of 9.  I assumed wrong.  Andrew hooked up all 18 dogs and as they left the kennel, the leaders decided that they were not going to run for Andrew.  Within the first 1/4 mile they had completely stopped.  When Andrew got off of the sled to correct them, they decided they were now going to go.  Andrew caught the sled as it went by but crashed.  The team drug him for over a mile!  I commend Andrew for not letting go and for hopefully getting smarter.

October 26, 2007.  No, we have not been celebrating Ed's birthday this whole time!!  As I write this, Mariah and I are driving home from Antigo, Wisconsin (about a ten hour round trip drive) to fetch 3,000 pounds of beef for the dogs. We had a warm start to the fall, but are now enjoying cooler temperatures and longer dog runs so the dogs are in need of meat!  We feed dry food year around, but increase the fat and protein the dogs require by feeding ground beef.  We don't cook the meat, it's just fed like a stew; mixed with warm water and dry kibble.  The dogs LOVE it.  It's going to be like Christmas at the kennel, as Ed and Jake also are picking up our straw today, so the dogs will have warm beds and warm bellies tonight.

Tasha Canine's puppies are just about the cutest things on earth.  Well, I'm sure they are cuter to us humans than they are to T.C..  She has cut them off from nursing but they are pretty persistent about getting just one more taste. I was worried that she would not be ready to make the school program trip late next month, but I think she'll be more than ready to leave her puppies for a road trip. 

The Alaska Puppies are now "dog" as they have made it into the kennel and are now each in their own space.  They adapted amazingly well to their chains and houses, and will be able to run in harness soon!  They still get their daily walks and now run right back to their houses instead of into the puppy pen.  Ed is still amazed at how well behaved they are; they all still know how to "sit" when asked!!

We've been working a lot on the house on the warm fall days...so for those of you who visit in the near future, you'll hardly recognize the place.  We have a real ceiling, siding, and a husband who deserves all the credit!!  (photos coming tomorrow...)

October 15, 2007  Happy Birthday, Ed!!  We all had a great time at our 5th Annual So Mush Fun event this past weekend.  Here are a sample of the photos...more will be coming soon!!  We had to take time out to celebrate today...

October 8, 2007 “Jesus tapped me on the shoulder and said, Bob, why are you resisting me?" Bob Dylan

I already have a name change to announce regarding TC's pups.  Jesus is now known as Judge Charlie.  Tasha human feels that naming a pup Jesus is just too much.  She is usually right in matters such as these.  The theme of the litter, for those of you who are wondering, is people that have lived their life passionately while enhancing freedoms.  Krister was added to the list as a thank you to him for everything he did for the kennel in the past year.  My only concerns naming the pup Krister are the pup having thick facial hair and wanting to sleep in until noon.

Some of the "kids" arrive "home" today.  Tasha and I have enjoyed our week of being alone but we are looking forward to having some help loving the dogs.  Later today Jake and Mariah will arrive.  Then at the end of the month, our musical crew of Bouie and newcomer Joe P. will arrive.  Our always smiling Yooper, ex-summer helper Julie B. will join forces with us in December to complete the crew.

Sorry my journal entries have been so boring.  I promise the next one to be more entertaining.

October 6, 2007 "The delay between impact and full-on hurt is utter purgatory.  There's a split second when you think, 'Whoa, maybe it's not gonna hurt...' And then bam!  A train plows right through your crotch."  "Pete" in Women's Health Magazine

The above quote really has nothing to do with what I am writing about today but when I read it yesterday I laughed out loud.  Hopefully you do too.

Hello again everyone!  I had a blast this summer but I have to admit, it feels great to be home!  I hope to get some pictures up for you from our drive home from Alaska.  We saw bear, bison, moose, caribou, etc but all of the pictures are on Krister's camera and he is out East.  He is supposed to be sending me a cd with photos and I will share when it arrives.  Also on the cd should be photos from our going away party for Krister.  Jake, Krister, and I went golfing and then to the bar of Krister's choice.  Fun for all and all for fun.

The weather here in Michigan has been incredibly hot so our dog training for the most part is non-existent.  Since it is always so humid, we only run our dogs in harness if the temperature is under 50 degrees otherwise we risk the dogs overheating.  In the nearly three weeks that I have been home, we have run five days.  For example, it is 5:45 a.m. right now as I write this and the temp is 72 degrees.  Yuk!

Tasha Canines pups are all still wonderful and I think I have names for all of the them now.  The single female is named Ayn.  The males are named Ali, Jesus, Wallace, Gandhi, Crazy, MLK, Flynt, and Krister.

October 2, 2007  We are all home...puppies, dogs, and Ed and Tasha!!  Tasha Canine has a pile of adorable puppies.  They were still in the house when I got here, but they are out in their own pen now.  T.C. was fine with just Ed here, but once I got back she wanted to sleep on the bed rather than with her babies.  The dogs are digging like crazy...see Venus and her hole and the Alaskan puppies are enjoying the ponds.  We were hoping to have lots of fall training photos up, we are are anxiously awaiting cooler weather.  The dogs have pretty thick coats yet from glacier living, so we really need to watch the temperatures.  Ed and I did sneak a run in early this morning and the dogs are ready for more.  It's amazing how much there is to do around the house and kennel so we've been taking advantage of the warm days to get lots of projects done: fixing dog houses, mowing the kennel and driveway, cleaning the house, doing laundry, making trips to town, and spending lots of time trying to think of puppy names.  All the handlers are gone right now so we've been enjoying some quiet time together!! 

September 26th, 2007.  "Home where my thought's escaping,  Home where my music's playing,  Home where my love lies waiting.  Silently for me."--Homeward Bound, Paul Simon.  Yes, I AM homeward bound...well, tomorrow that is, after I make several stops...Juneau to Seattle to Las Vegas to Cleveland to Grand Rapids.  Then to Ludington for a memorial service for my grandpa, and then onto McMillan on Sunday.  I'm looking forward to dry weather, sand, sunshine, and dogs!  We closed down Sheep Creek yesterday.  All the dogs are gone, and the gate locked.  The glacier tear-down crew is still here in Juneau, waiting for the weather to clear to get the rest of the supplies off the ice.  The weather has been so bad that they have been grounded for two weeks.  There is still a LOT of things at camp that need to come off. and if it starts snowing, it won't look good.  Mr. Giggles, Ed's favorite heater, is still sitting in a tent, and may have to winter-over on the Mendenhall.  It would be impossible to get things in the spring; 100 FEET of snow are expected to fall this season! 

Ed and Jake are getting things under control at home.  They have run dogs a couple of times, are still unpacking the truck, making small trailer repairs, catching mice in the house, walking my puppies, and thinking of names for Tasha Canine's puppies.  I'm sure they will tell you they have done much more than that too, with the goal of getting things up to "Tasha Standard".  When they left two weeks ago I wasn't quite ready to head back...now I can't wait!! 

September 23, 2007.   I think I'm ready to go home.  Ed is giving reports of puppy fun, sunny weather, and happy dogs digging in the sand.  Kirster is headed back to New Hampshire, after a good-bye game of golf with the boys at the Newberry County Club.  Ed said it's a really nice course and can't believe we hadn't been there yet.  Meanwhile, I'm basking in the wet Juneau "sunshine" and counting they days until I leave on the jet plane.  I was reminiscing about the summer while cooking breakfast this morning and thought I'd share some of the favorite recipes from this summer.  Thanks to all of you who sent recipe books and ideas through out the summer.  We've eaten well!

September 20th, 2007  They're home! Ed called late this afternoon from Munising.  The guys were headed to the Shanty Bar for dinner, and then making the last 8 mile drive home.  All went well.  They stopped in Marquette for Dr. Tim to take the dew claws off the new puppies.  They only had a couple minor equipment issues on the drive...the passenger mirror is held together with string and the exhaust pipe is held together with a coat hanger.  And I'm sure the guys have been held together with coffee and caffeine!! 

Look into the mountains...in between the raindrops...there was SNOW for my birthday!

September 18th, 2007  News from the Road...somewhere between Skagway, AK and Edmonton, Canada...from Jake:  Moose, Bear, Bison, Deer, Caribou, Bikinis and nine little Cheech and Chongs and we are not even to Edmonton yet. The dogs are pretty happy due to two things: the first being a huge blizzard we encountered leaving us to fend for ourselves against abdominal snowmen and Santa Claus, and the second the cereal girls are in heat so all the boys are only interested in love. Krister has decided that his next adventure will be working on a dude-ranch giving tours and learning how to rope cattle. Our waitress here pretty hot! We had Subway last night I had a tuna, Ed had veggie and Krister had meatballs extra tomatoes.

Krister refused comment.

from Ed...Hey Babe! The trip has been great so far!!! Jake pretty much covered everything (bikinis means the hot springs). Sorry I did not get you on your birthday but I have been trying. TC is doing great with the pups! 8 boys and 1 girl!!!!! The theme at this point is going to be Pootie Tang movie characters, Dirty Dee, Pootie, Costas, Vauhgn, Truckie, Froggie, Bad Bitty, Biggie Shortie, etc.

Yes, you heard correctly...my sweetie little namesake, Tasha Canine, had 9 puppies ON MY BIRTHDAY!!  I think the boys definitely have not gotten enough sleep and driving has melted their brains.  They also have forgotten that I have final veto powers over all puppy names...I don't think those above will pass.  I'm thinking something along the lines of a Canadian theme...our first puppies with dual citizenship.  I sure hope the puppies can cross the border back into the US and aren't considered illegal aliens! 

September 16, 2007  They're off!!  The boys and dogs are headed home!!  All the dogs (nearly 300 of them) flew off the glacier on Friday just before the stormy weather blew back in during the evening.  I spent Saturday hanging out with the dogs, running errands for the boys, and rubbing Tasha Canine's huge belly!  She's expecting puppies within the next 5 days...so hopefully the boys drive fast! Tasha and Maple are also the parents of our outstanding dogs Cheech and Chong, so hopefully she delivers more puppy prodigies.  Her belly is so big that she got a special maternity flight to bring her down from the glacier; a ride in an extra large dog crate instead of in one of the small dog boxes in the helicopter.  She also got to enjoy my birthday present from Jake...a new travel doggie bed! 

The dogs were so thrilled to see straw we had to coax them out of the boxes for feeding.  We treated them to fresh straw from the local feed store for the drive home.  It is $15 for a square bale but the bales are about twice the size of the bales we get in Michigan.  The dogs all look fabulous, with big muscles and shiny coats!  Jake and Krister were pretty excited to share all the stories about "their" dogs that they ran this summer.  The young puppies (The Tree Dogs and Cereal Puppies) are now grown up sled dogs instead of whining puppies!  I think Krister is going to be pretty sad to leave some of his favorites when he goes back to New Hampshire.  The guys were definitely happy to be on solid ground and reveled in the fact that they could eat breakfast in a warm restaurant, sit at a table with cushy charis, and not have to do the dishes afterward. We were all treated to dinner Saturday night by Dan and Chris Turner (AIE owners) at a fabulous Hibachi grill.  We also learned that Ed again was awarded as a "Princess Guide of the Month" for August.  In addition to a wonderful gift from the Tuners, he received a Princess Cruises travel coffee mug...which he thinks Jake and Krister should keep filled for him all the way home.  Good luck with that Ed! 

The caravan took the 1:30 pm ferry to Skagway this afternoon and will continue the trek across the Yukon from there. My adorable Sheep Creek puppies all got new collars and hugs and kisses before hopping in their boxes.  Ed didn't get a collar, but he did get the hugs and kisses  See ya soon boys!! And puppies, and dogs, and Tasha Canine, and....

September 12, 2007  The heavens have opened and the sun is shining.  Some of our Sheep Creek crew took a hike up into the nearby mountains yesterday and had a spectacular view of the valley below.  Dog camp is visible in the center of the photo.  Michele won the Mountain Woman of the Year award by carrying Lily up to the ridge!  I miss having Ed around for our "family days" here where we all do family activities together on Tuesdays.  It's definitely one of the "perks" of being a landlubber; our work days are shorter and we get to enjoy doing things on solid ground (like hiking, bowling, dining out, etc.). 

The boys' days on the glacier are numbered...they board the ferry on Sunday for the trek home.  I think they all (both dogs and humans) are looking forward to rolling in the grass and digging in the dirt!  I'm pretty sure I'm going to be second-guessing my decision to stay up here through the end of the season when I see my husband, my Sheep Creek puppies, and all the dogs board the boat for home.  I'll meet up with them on the 27th of September...but that won't be soon enough...especially since they leave the day before my birthday.  It's a good thing I have good friends here to keep me company!

September 10, 2007 Watching our garden grow...just to give you an idea of how cold and wet it is here in Juneau, Lily is showing off our strawberries that are FINALLY ripe in September!  Yes, it was raining when I took this picture!  We had a great streak of nice weather, but are now stuck in the fall fog.  Ed has been "weathered down" since Saturday, which means Kirster and Jake are "weathered up" and probably going just a bit crazy on the glacier.  They have had no tours and bad weather for the past 7 days.  I'm sure they, and the dogs, will be happy to be on land for good at the end of the week.  In the meantime, Ed and I have been working on getting the truck and trailer finalized.  He's adding a couple vents to the top of the trailer just in case they hit some warm weather heading home. 

There's been bears feeding on salmon at the base of the Mendenhall glacier so last weekend we headed up to see if we could catch a glimpse.  We never saw the bears, but we did get a few photos of the crystal clear glacier ice.  The sign at left reads, "This sample of glacial ice took 200-250 years to travel its 13 1/2 mile to Mendenhall Lake from the Juneau Icefield.  As glacial ice melts, it looks like a three-dimensional jigsaw puzzle of interlocking ice pieces.  Each interlocking piece is a glacial ice crystal."  That means that any lost dog booties from the trail will arrive in Mendenhall Lake in about 175 years as dog camp is about 10 miles from the base of the lake.  Be sure to mark your calendar and scan the lake for fossilized dog booties! 

September 8, 2007  “You can't direct the wind but you can adjust the sails.” Anonymous

We are getting ready to close the glacier down for the season and I am proud to announce that everything has been nearly perfect. The glacier consists of 11 mushers in 11 different dog lots with 11 different handlers. The crew of mushers as well as the crew of handlers have been a blast to share the trail, camp, and our life experiences with. I am very proud to announce that the dog lots of Krister, Jake, I were the only three dog lots without a vet expense and/or an accidental breeding. Also, every single handler that worked with us complimented us on our well trained dogs and were thankful of the time they got to spend with them.

Another high point for me was knowing that all 81 dogs were safe to be petted by the oldest of my guests (Rita on her 86th birthday) and the youngest (Cameron at 14 months old).

Also on a performance note, Krister was the first guide to hit 400 tours and Jake followed soon after. They did this by not having to take time off for sickness or injuries which seemed to plague some of the glacier crew. (The ole NK motto of “Suck it up” really must work.) I honestly feel that both of them gave some of the best tours that were given on the glacier. This is a huge compliment because all 11 mushers are very talented.

On a personal note, I learned that I really enjoy guiding tours! Does this mean that I will start guiding tours at home? Probably not, I enjoy managing more and I am definitely better suited for it. This summer we got to work for a manager with a style that I had not encountered in my years in the real world. Without going into stories that will only take the emphasis away from what was accomplished, I can tell you that Krister, Jake, the Dogs, and I worked hard to turn a potential negative experience into a super positive one. Thanks to the wisdom of Abe Lincoln, “We can complain because rose bushes have thorns or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”

Another exciting benefit of our summer in Alaska is our crew that we will be sharing our dogs and lives with this winter. Our mainstay Jake is of course returning for his Iditarod adventure. Mariah Smyth, one of my fellow glacier mushers, is joining the kennel to help train and race my main team as well as help operate Nature’s Kennel at Boyne Highlands Ski Resort. Joe P and his trusty sidekick Lisa will be guiding and running some our yearlings this winter. Joe and Lisa worked with Tasha at Gold Rush Sled dog tours this summer and will bring more life, song, and dance to an already festive crew. Bouie, our jolly good pirate that we met sailing in the Bahamas will also be returning for another season. Bouie’s love for life is contagious and I can’t wait for the big hairy guy to give me a bear hug. Krister still can not be convinced that life in the UP of Michigan with 100 dogs is better than life back home with his sweet girlfriend Molly, so he is returning to New Hampshire. I hope that he visits for a week, two, or more this winter though.

Congratulations Krister!! The first glacier guide to lead 400 tours this summer!!

August 31, 2007  "Don't ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go do that. Because what the world needs are people who have come alive." Harold Whitman

Hello all, just a quick note to say life is great!  Giving tours on the glacier is still a blast!  Yesterday, for one hour at a time, I was in Ecuador, South Africa, Dominican Republic, and all over the United States. I estimate the dogs are at least a month ahead of schedule in conditioning as compared to Michigan fall training.  The computer just flashed low battery so I will conclude this with saying, I can't wait to see all of you soon!!!!!!!!!!

August 30, 2007  My grandpa Henry passed away somewhat unexpectedly this week.  I had debated about writing about it in this, mostly dog-related journal, but realized he is one of reasons I am where I am today. Growing up, I spent a significant amount of time at Grandpa and Grandma's house in Ludington.  My sister, cousins, and I have endless memories of grandma and grandpa walking with us to the beach, watching us ride bikes and roller skate around the block, and taking us (several times a day if we begged) to get ice cream at the House of Flavors.  Summer at the beach house with grandpa was any child's dream.  During my first years of college, I lived with grandma and grandpa and worked on the Ludington Carferry.  It was during one of those summers that I met and fell in love with a guy named Ed.  Had my grandparents never retired in Ludington, and had I not loved spending summers with them...I would not be writing in this journal today.  Thanks for all the memories, Grandpa, and here's to a lifetime of more.

The timing of Grandpa's death was somewhat ironic as just last week we ran in a run for Hospice. Grandpa had the privilege of being cared for by wonderful Hospice volunteers.  This week, the girls of Sheep Creek are running in Beat the Odds, a fundraiser for breast cancer.  I'll be thinking of Phyllis, Ed's mom who beat the odds several years ago when she won the fight against breast cancer.  You go girl!!  Even though we are thousands of miles away from home, our loved ones are still with us.

August 23, 2007  HAPPY 11th BIRTHDAY MOMO!!! 

Momo is the “Queen” of Nature’s Kennel.  She was raised by Susan Butcher, but has been with us for about ten years.  She is wonderful, loving, an awesome sled dog, and the mother of  twenty nine children.  Many of her offspring still reside at Nature's Kennel, and include:  Children:  Boom, Yooper, Luke, Tasha Canine, Maple, Goose, Hedgie, Willow, Mickey, Mouse, Vinnie   Grandchildren and Great-Grandchildren: Hairy, Clark, Arlo, Chong, Violet, Happy, Dash, Mr. Incredible, Dill, Rott, Weiler, Cheech, Chong, Ero, Cupid, Val, Hera, Venus, Ontario, Robi, Buckwheat, Captain Crunch, Count, Fruit Loop, Honeycomb, Lucky Charm, Cheerio, 2x4, Timber, Lumber, Kix, Art, Caullie, Rhu, Sprout, Clair, Tongass, Sheep Creek, Juneau, Glacier, and Alaska.

We didn't want her running on the glacier this summer, so she had to stay home.  She's celebrating her birthday with Tasha's Mom and Dad.  They've had strict instructions to get her in good shape, and she's lost 4.5 pounds!!  She still is in great health, loves to run, swim, and ride in the car. If you want to send her a card or birthday treat, she can be contacted at: Momo  c/o Joyce Tchozeski  7705 Canfield Rd.  Belding, MI 48809.  We miss you, Momo, and we'll be home soon!!

Speaking of home, our departure from Alaska is coming up soon!!  Ed and crew will be done with the glacier on September 14th.  They will leave on a ferry to Skagway as soon as all dogs are on the ground.  I am staying through the end of September (the 27th) as our season goes a little longer.  I really debated about flying or driving, but figured that this way I can make a little extra money by staying a few extra days.  Hopefully the guys aren't too mad at me!!

August 15, 2007  Congratulations Ed---He's been recognized as a "Guide of the Month" for Princess Cruise Lines for July!!!  Princess passengers are encouraged by the cruise line to evaluate their excursion guides. Only twelve guides received recognition the Juneau area and Ed was the only glacier musher recognized.  Looks like he'll have to run some tours this winter ☺!!   There's no complaining about Juneau weather this week...we are having record setting temperatures.  Ok, it's still not hot by most standards, but it's been clear and sunny, with daytime highs in the high 70's (we broke yesterday's record of 79 degrees), and nights in the mid 40's.  I am enjoying the sunshine, but I know that Ed is worried about the dogs' eyes in the intense sunshine.  We are supposed to have rain and clouds move in toward the weekend.  I'm not ready to see more precipitation, but I know the dogs will welcome a reprieve from the sun.  Oh, and one question...how many puppies can you fit into a box (house)??

Many of you may remember Colby, one of our long-time kennel dogs who had many "issues" with self control.  Colby loved to run (alone), he loved to run (slowly) and he loved to run (short distances).  For eight years we tried to find a perfect home for such a high need dog.  We are thrilled to say, that Colby has finally found his place in this world!  Abby Winell took Colby under her wing late this spring and recently sent some photos of Colby's summer vacation.  Thanks Abby for your patience...you've made a difference in the world!! 

August 13, 2007  I am back in Seattle after having an incredible weekend! Paul and Amber’s wedding was on the beach at sunset and everything was picture perfect. I even got to help shoot some really big fireworks off after the wedding…..so cool! Weddings always hit my emotional button and really get me thinking about friends and family. Speaking of friends and family, my younger brother and two of my best friends from high school surprised me and showed up for the weekend. This really helped amplify the fun factor of an already incredible weekend. The weekend concluded with us tearing up the dancer floor of our once infamous college hangout the “TIKI Lounge”. Well, I am off to the plane again. This time it appears that the NCOSK (National Association of Screaming Kids) has already left town (they were all previously on my plane) so it should be a peaceful flight.

August 8, 2007 Stranded (verb): to leave in, or be put into, a difficult, helpless position.  Example: Ed was stranded on the glacier for five days and missed his flight to Michigan.  Clarification:  Ed is the best man in the wedding for his good friend Paul Ptaszenski, which takes place this Saturday in Ludington.  He had planned to fly off the glacier on Sunday night with the last tour in order to allow plenty of time to make his flight today (Wednesday morning).  However, there were no tours on Sunday...the weather closed in on Saturday night, so he has been stranded.  A crew flight finally took place about 9:30 am today (about 12 of the crew have been stranded on the ground, including Jake and Krister).  Ed missed his early morning flight, but the Alaska Airlines ticket agent was very helpful, and he was able to get a flight to Seattle at 2 pm where he got on the plane to Detroit.  We were beginning to think it would never stop raining, that the fog would never lift, and that Ed would be another causality of glacier weather.  We are slowing learning that plans should never be made when one has to completely rely on mother nature and a helicopter. 

August 6, 2007  I didn't think I'd be excited to see rain today, but after hearing reports of the fire near our home in McMillan, I'm wishing I could send some home.  I have talked to several friends in the area, and even though the fire is still growing, our home is not currently in danger.  Tim VanderMeulen is headed up there this week for a bike race in Marquette, and will check things out and stay for a few days.   Meanwhile...back in Juneau...I finished the 1/2 Marathon last weekend and had a great time.  I'm not nearly as sore as I thought I'd be so I guess that's a good sign.  The puppies all had baths yesterday so they looks good for the guests.  I've been walking them on the trail on any dry days, and then they usually are calmer for the guests to hold.  They still love people and always come when called.  Juneau is still the smallest (she's the black one in lead on the trail), Sheep Creek is the largest, Alaska is the bravest, Glacier is the fastest, and Tongass is my first favorite boy puppy.  They are just a blast!  Ed is waiting out the rain today and hoping for some clear weather so he can get off the glacier to fly home on Wednesday morning.  He's the best man in a good friend's wedding and is looking forward to seeing beach sand, his parents, and some dry Michigan sunshine!

August 3, 2007 Hey everybody, I am back on ground for 24 hours and loving it.  Our glacier crew had a great week with most of my friends super happy and the dogs running fast.  I am at Sheep Creek for the day visiting with my wonderful wife and her super relaxed, fun loving co-workers.

Some of my glacier friends have already left to return home.  My first handler extraordinaire known as "Lefty" has returned to his home in Hanover and is greatly missed.  He was the perfect handler because he truly loved the dogs and kept our dog lot perfectly level and organized.  My second perfect handler, Chelsie (riding the bike at the left), is back on the ground in Juneau for college.  She left this past Tuesday and sadly took her incredible smile with her.  Thanks for spoiling my dogs Chels.  Another friend that is now back in Oregon is Brad Thomas.  He is the one that is responsible for some of the incredible pictures from the glacier.  That is him in the photo to the left capturing some of the scenery.  Brad is one of those rare people that is sincerely honest in everything he does.

August 1, 2007  August first generally marks the start of fall training for the dogs. We dig out the four-wheelers, clear off the trails, and hope for temperatures under 50 degrees.  We are still watching the thermometer here in Juneau, but we now hope for temperatures above 50 degrees and pray to see the sun!!  The dogs are getting their fall training workouts this year on snow, and the best parts of all...no four wheelers and no mud!! 

I'm also getting my fall training underway.  Last weekend I participated in the Mount Roberts Trail Run, where we climbed 2400 feet in about three miles.  Since I didn't punish myself enough in that run, I've signed up for the Douglas Island Half Marathon to take place this Saturday.  Douglas Island (across the channel from Juneau with has the only flat road in the area).  Ed and I ran two Marathons while living in Duluth,  but it's been quite a few years since I've run on a regular basis. I'm sure I'll have some tales to tell on Saturday afternoon. 

July 24, 2007 "85% of women think their ass is too fat... 10% of women think their ass is too skinny... The other 5% say that they don't care, they love him, he's a good man, and they would have married him anyway."  Unknown

Some great news for NK this fall!  Jake will be returning to run "his" dogs in the Iditarod this year!  And, Mariah Smyth will be training and racing the main team with me!  Mariah is a life long Alaskan who has been driving dogs since the day she was born.  She is athletic, personable, quick-of-wit, and great with the dogs.  Mariah and I will be working with 24 dogs throughout the season, with our focus being the Iditarod.  We will start with Bert, Starman, Big Ben, Boom, Yooper, Luke, Gimli, Hairy, Clark, Sebastion, Bonfire, Razzle, Arlo, Chong, Violet, Feta, Ladybird, Kar, Onyx, Jade, Coach, Art, Jasper, and Piepie.  There will be much more talk about the season at a later date but for now, I am on limited battery supply while on the glacier.

Glacier life is still wonderful.  I have never worked with such an incredible group of people.  A handful of our glacier crew leave next week in order to return to college.  It will be interesting to see how the dynamics will change in their absence and how the new people coming in will alter the organism.

July 26, 2007  We celebrated Jake's 21st birthday last weekend with a trip to the Juneau Country Club.  There was actually sunshine on a Saturday so the course was pretty busy.  We knew we were in Alaska, when the woman at the club house looked at our shoes (tennis shoes for Ed and myself and Crocs for Jake) and commented that we may want our mud boots and that Jake was the only one with appropriate footwear.  I guess golf shoes are not required here! The course (9 holes, par 3) was probably not challenging by most standards, but it certainly tested our golf abilities and took over three hours to play.  The scenery around the course was magnificent, even though we had to wade through a few puddles to find our balls. 

Krister's girlfriend, Molly, got to spend the week on the glacier with the crew.  We all went out before she headed home and it was great to have the old Nature's Kennel Crew together.  I generally don't have the same days off as Jake and Krister, so it was fun to hang out again.  The next time we are all together may be the drive home.  The summer is going really fast and we'll be back on the road before we know it! 

July 19, 2007  We took advantage of the Juneau sunshine and hike the seven mile Perseverance Trail last weekend.  My parents were still in town and we talked some of the glacier crew into hiking along.  The Perseverance Trail is one of the three most historically significant trails in Alaska, along with the Chilkoot (in Skagway) and Iditarod Trails. The original route, used by natives for goat hunting, fishing and berry picking, was later to become the first road in Alaska after Joe Juneau and Richard Harris found gold in the Silverbow Basin in the 1880's. The Johnson Road (Perseverance Trail) is said to be the first road of any size in Alaska.   Ed really looks forward to walking on hard ground, so we usually spend most of the weekends walking, hiking, and walking some more. 

July 16, 2007  A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself."  --Josh Billings,  humorist and writer    I have a couple of iinteresting and funny dog stories to share:

#1.  Ladybird says she's done with her crazy puppies.  This is where I found her a couple of days ago.  She could hop from the top of her dog house and balance along the rail of the puppy pen.  Since she appeared to have had it with her kids, so I sent her up to the glacier to be with Ed and her sisters.  I took her to town with me on Friday.  She got to spend the day with us, then she got grounded on Saturday due to weather so her and Ed had an extra day off.  I think they were both very happy about it!

#2.  Many of you know Happy, who smiles and waves her hands at everyone (see photo at left).  Stuff, her sister, now lives with Matt and Paula Rossi in Herbster, WI.  She recently had a sore on her neck, so was living in a pen to let it heal.  She quickly figured out that she could outsmart the crazy humans and open the gate herself.  This is the series of photos from Bark River Racing's wesbite:

Also in the news from Bark River Racing, The Rat (sister to Tasha Canine, Boomer, Yooper and Luke) is due to have puppies in September!  The Rat ran the Iditarod with Andrew three years ago, and went home with him after the season. Congratulations Rat!

July 14, 2007 Just a quick note to say that I am still alive and having a great time.  As Tasha mentioned, the dogs are looking incredible and are definitely having more fun in the snow than the summer dust of Michigan.  With the latest rain storms, we went from having three waterfalls coming off of the surrounding mountains to over 30!  Someone compared it to the Lord of the Rings scenery (New Zealand).  Where the water runs off of the tents, drip holes will form in the glacier.  Some of them are now large enough to fit a person into.  I will try and get some pictures.  Keep smiling, I am!

July 9th, 2007  It appears that July 9th marks the end of summer in Juneau.  We've lost our streak of sunny warm days, and are now in the midst of fog, drizzle, rain, mist, and clouds.  My parents, here visiting from Michigan, are getting a real feel for summertime in a temperate rainforest.  For the past four days, it has been very misty and rainy in the morning, and clear and sunny by the afternoon.  Today we weren't so lucky and never saw the afternoon clearing, instead, it rained harder.  The weather did break on Saturday so we made a surprise trip to the glacier to visit with Ed and see all the dogs.  It's been a few weeks since I've been up there, and I can't believe how great the dogs look.  They are all very buff and muscular!  The young puppies, the "cereals" and "tree dogs", are getting really big!  2x4 has even been running tours!  It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon and all the dogs were sunbathing and smiling.  There are a few whose eyes are still sensitive (Big Ben, Starman, Mickey, Pie Pie, Clair, Mouse, Onyx, Kar) so they are kept in kennel crates covered with sheets during the day, except for when it's their turn to run..  The last time I went up I went on the crew flight so we took the fastest route up and back.  This time I was with other tour guests and got to take the extended trip around the mountains on the way up.  The scenery was amazing!  Mom and dad are off on the ferry to Haines for a couple days.  Hopefully it's not quite so soggy there!

Photos: Tasha and Tasha Canine, Hellboy, Tasha helping Ed hook up, Dog Log (Gimli running around), View of Dog Camp, Ed and his anniversary flowers, Big Ben with dog teams behind

Happy 4th of July!!  I wish I had a few photos of the Juneau fireworks to share, but I didn't stay up late enough last night.  It's light so late here that any nighttime event is held really late.  The fireworks started at 11:59 pm on the 3rd, and continued into the 4th.  I'm still recovering from my late night last weekend, where we all participated in a 5K midnight race, "Only Fools Run at Midnight".  It had to have been the craziest event in which I've ever participated.  Over 500 runners got dressed up in some very wacky costumes and took to the streets of Juneau at, you guessed it, 11:59 pm.  Our Sheep Creek team dressed as dogs, tied ourselves to a gangline, and pulled our 500 lb. dog cart.  For our efforts, we won a dozen Crispy Creme Donuts.  Ymmm...  Ed had hoped to join in the run, but the weather finally got the best of him, and they could not get any flights to the glacier to rescue the stranded mushers.  He was pretty bummed that he missed his days off.  The glacier is great, but getting off also does a lot for one's state of mind.  It's the only chance they get to take a warm shower, do laundry, catch up on phone calls and emails, and get to walk on solid ground.  He was able to come down for a very short time on Tuesday evening, but hopefully this weekend he'll get to spend more time on dry land.  He's been encouraging all his glacier guests to send emails of their trip, and we've received some fabulous photos. It's been fun to see that Ed is working hard up there!

June 28, 2007  Since the days are so long here in Alaska, things really grow fast...even puppies!  Lady Bird's pups turned six weeks old on Wednesday, and they are starting to really be fun.  Here is the lineup in the photo, from left to right, Alaska, Juneau, Tongass, Sheep Creek and Glacier.  Can you guess who doesn't belong??  Little Juneau, the solo black puppy, is the smallest, feistiest, and bravest one.  Tongass, with Ed, is the fattest, laziest, and most fuzzy of the bunch.  Whenever I take them for a walk, he stays right by my feet and refuses to walk in front.  I guess he'll make a nice walking dog, I'm not so sure about a lead sled dog!  Ed and I hiked up last Friday so he could see how they've grown, and as you can see, he was left unattended in the pen with the camera. 

June 24, 2007.  In loving memory of Ivy.  Ivy was adopted before we left Michigan and was living in a wonderful home in Kalamazoo.  Last week, she was in her yard when a car swerved to keep from hitting another car going too fast down the hill and in the middle of the road. The car came into the yard and hit her. Ivy loved her new doggie friend Hannah, and will be missed by her family.  Ivy was a fabulous sled dog and finished the Beargrease Marathon and UP 200 several times.

Trapper (age 16) is still doing great this summer.  He's living with Tim and Toni Eichinger in Wisconsin.  We told Toni he could live in the kennel, but he's got her wrapped around his finger.  He now lives inside and sunbathes on the porch.  I think he's showing off his new flower garden in the photo!

June 22, 2007 There is such an amazing contrast between the six days on the glacier and the one day on land.  The glacier is desolate yet very busy from 6 am until 10 pm.  My land life is Juneau (30,000 people) yet calm and happy with Tasha.  Both are fascinating yet represent the two ends of the spectrum.

Jake and Krister are doing great.  I asked them to take a picture with Harry because they all three have beautiful red beards.  Krister has decided not to come back to the kennel after the glacier.  He has been in limbo for awhile now and will be missed.  I still get to enjoy his company in Alaska and during the road trip home.

As you may be able to tell, I am not in the mood to write at the moment because I am headed back to the glacier in an hour.  Talk to you next week.

June 16, 2007  Our 9th anniversary is this Wednesday, so we decided to celebrate a bit early this weekend. We had Friday off together and took advantage some of the spectacular hiking trails near Juneau.   It has been years since we've hiked like this on a regular basis together.  At home there's always something else to do, we have to find someone to care for the dogs, and we never can seem to pull ourselves away from home.  But here, we are forced to take a day off, there are handlers to care for the dogs, and we don't have a home to take care of!  It's like being on an Alaskan honeymoon each week! 

We headed out to the Mendenhall Glacier ice caves on Friday morning.  We weren't exactly sure which route we needed to take, but made our best guess, and ended up at the foot of the glacier.  The caves are amazing.  There's a river flowing through the glacier, carving out some of nature's most magnificent ice sculptures.  The ice inside is crystal clear and the light absorbed by the ice is bright blue.  It is stunning.  It's also very loud, wet, and cold!  We ate lunch near the caves and then decided we would hike along the rocks and find our own "shortcut" route back to the trail.  The lunch was good, the shortcut ended up to be a mistake.  After an hour or so of rock climbing and bush whacking, we backtracked and hiked our original trail back out.  From the top of the mountain we could see where we had thought we'd meet up with the trail, and we were not even close to getting it right!  We are used to smaller Michigan parks and trails, not the vastness of the Alaskan wilderness!  Once back to the truck, we took a short second-lunch break, and then headed down town to hike to the top of Mt. Roberts.  At the top of the mountain is a tramway that goes back into Juneau.  Hikers can pay $5 each to take the tram down, or spend $5 at the gift shop or restaurant.  We decided to spoil ourselves and have an anniversary dinner at the top of the tramway.  It will certainly be memorable meal because it was probably the worst dinner we've ever had...so we had to make up for it with ice cream once we made it back into town!

Glacial Ice Caves:

Photos from last week's whale watching adventure:

Ed had a two WXCL (no tours due to weather) days on the glacier last week so the dogs got some extra play time.  It also meant that Jake and Krister ran some of the younger puppies (2x4, Lumber and Timber) as they aren't quite ready for tours yet but still love to run.  2x4 finally has a play-buddy, and as you can see he and Captain Crunch are great at wrestling.  (Note Ed working hard in the background writing names on the dog's houses.)  We have had a few weather reports from friends in the U.P. and hear that it's been in the 90's and very dry.  It can get quite hot on the glacier as well, but dusty and dry are certainly not a problem--and the dogs still get to roll around in the snow.  I think we made the right decision in bringing the dogs here for the summer. It sure beats the Nature's Kennel dust bowl that we get in McMillan! 

June 13, 2007  The Sheep Creek running team took Juneau by storm on Tuesday night.  We had eleven participants, and won eleven ribbons!!  The Southeast Road Runners  host races through out the Juneau area all summer.  We have the schedule up on the board and

hopefully will make this a regular event.  It certainly keeps us all motivated to do some training runs during the week.  Our group consists of first time runners and those truly dedicated!! I land somewhere in the middle as it's been quite a few years since I've claimed to be a "runner". 

The puppies are growing big and strong, and starting to annoy their mother.  I took a Juneau, Sheep Creek and Tongass down to the hiking trail today and took some photos in the buttercups.  Juneau (the black female) is by far the most daring and physically advanced.  Tongass (the reddish of the two) was pretty playful if Juneau got him going, and Sheep Creek just wanted to go back to sleep!  Tomorrow I'll have to recruit some extra hands and take the whole crew down.  They are just becoming adventurous enough to romp around.

Momo continues to enjoy her summer with grandma and grandpa.  This past weekend she visited with friends, Steve and Marcia Long, who have a summer home on Bois Blanc Island (it's the large island just south of Mackinac Island near the Straits of Mackinac) She enjoyed a boat ride under the Mackinac Bridge, was the boat caretaker at the marina for the afternoon, searched for rocks along the beach, went for jeep rides, and flew to the island via airplane.  I think next year I'll spend the summer following Momo around!!

June 10, 2007  Ed can quit whining (see journal entry below)...we had the same day off this week and took advantage of some of the Juneau tourist-attractions by going Whale Watching!  I was worried that Ed would not make it off the glacier on Thursday night as they had been weathered-in for three days prior (again, see journal below).  They did not do any tourists flights that day, but they did do one crew flight late in the afternoon.  Brad, the unofficial glacier photographer and Kirster's handler, wanted to get some photos of Alaskan Wildlife, so we joined him on a whale tour.  The weather suddenly, and unexpectedly, turned on Friday and we awoke to sunny skies and temperatures in the 70's.  The trip was amazing.  I have some photos, but Brad's are much better, so I'll get some posted of his next week.  We even got to see a young whale breaching (tossing it's body up in the air and doing a belly-flop onto the water), along with several adults feeding.  We had a lunch dinner at a local fish restaurant, did some quick shopping, and then Ed headed back up around 6: 30 pm.  While at a local bookstore that afternoon, I noticed a flyer for an author signing and "dog talk" by Patricia McConnell.  Dr. McConnell is a biologist at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, and listen to her show "Calling all Pets" on National Public Radio at home.  It was a great program, and of course I bought her new book about dogs' emotions.  I recognized one of the guys there as a bus driver who brings the tourists up to Sheep Creek.  Come to find out, he grew up in Oscoda, Michigan, has won the canoe marathon there three times, and knows our good friend Lynne Witte.  What a small world! 

June 6, 2007

We have had two days in a row with no tours.  The fog in Juneau has been so thick that the helicopters have not been able to fly.  Yesterday we had beautiful sunny skies while today we had the fog on the glacier as well.  I ran around with the camera and tried to capture different methods we entertain ourselves on this big block of snow and ice.

June 3, 2007

 "Film critics said I gave a voice to the fear we all have: that we'll reach a certain point in our lives, look around and realize that all the things we said we'd do and become will never come to be -- and that we're ordinary."  Ann Bancroft (about playing “Mrs. Robinson”)

 It is 11:00 p.m. and I am sitting outside my tent listening to a mountain waterfall to the West and avalanches coming from the mountain to the East.  It was very warm here today and the snow load in the higher mountains must have become unstable.  We also have had about 40 more dogs arrive in the past two days so I am being serenaded by an occasional “I miss home” song.  Up until tonight our 10 o’clock “Quiet time” has been a thorn in my side.  Tonight though, I am finally thoroughly enjoying the beauty of the glacier.  Even though it is late, I can still see everything due to the powerful whiteness.

 My roommate finally arrived.  I ended up getting Phil as a roommate.  He is a 21 year old from Chicago who is having the experience of a lifetime.  (Another avalanche.)  I have not got to speak with him very much because he is working in a South Park dog lot while I am in North Park.  Last night he came in the tent and mentioned that he was tired.  Five minutes later he was snoring.

Brad Thomas, who I have mentioned before, got this incredible photo of me and my dog team today.  This glacier is actually more beautiful than the picture even shows.

 Probably the only frustration so far is that Tasha and I still are not getting the same day off of work.  I have been spending my day off at Sheep Creek and grabbing a few minutes of her time in between her job.  This coming weekend I think I am going to stay at the company provided housing in Juneau just so I can do some touristy things and town hikes.  I guess we get free trips on some of the other attractions like whale watching cruises because we are guides.  This weekend may be time to take advantage of them.  (Another avalanche.)

A bunch of the crew have a bug that is going around.  Jake is one of the ones sick.  Don’t worry Barbie, he is getting better.  Krister is, well, still Krister.

June 4, 2007  Spring is finally coming to Alaska.  The grass is green and most of the trees have leaves...I just may see a peek of summer yet!  The puppies are growing like weeds.  My latest project is selling puppy photos to guests. In addition to doing the camp cooking, I'm also the photographer.  When the dog teams get hooked up, I race down the trail, stand in the middle of the road, and try to get a good shot of a moving dog team without getting hit by the cart or tangled by the lead dogs.  The guests then have the opportunity to purchase their action photo for $20.  They can also purchase an adorable puppy photo for an additional $10.  I didn't have the puppy photos out yet this morning, and one woman even asked if I had puppy pictures available...of course we do!  I have a new hiking and running partner here at Sheep Creek as well.  Badger was sent down from the glacier due to severe eye problems, so he is now part of Abbie's team.  She was gracious enough to send one of her dogs, Bellatrix to the glacier for Jake, and now Badger will have a team to run with here.  He's been pretty excited to go for hikes on solid ground! 

Irresistible puppies and excited tourists!   

Early this week, we had a great visit from our friend Michele, who was one of our handlers at Nature's Kennel last winter.  She now lives in Kodiak, Alaska, and couldn't resist having the dogs so close and not visit this summer.  Ok, Alaska is really big, we are still about 2 hours by plane from Kodiak, but it's the same state!  It was great to see a familiar face.  She spent a couple days at Sheep Creek, and made it up to the glacier to do a trip with Ed.  I was worried she'd have bad weather as it was pretty rainy last week, but the weather held and she had a great time! Thanks for the visit, Michele!! No, spring is NOT coming to the glacier!!

 June 1, 2007  I am still loving glacier life and I thought I would fill you in on some of the unique things that go along with getting to live in snow during the normally hot/miserable summer months:

Putting gel in the eyes of dogs that show sensitivity to the really bright sunshine.  Big Ben is my patient in the picture at the left.  He has had the most problem with the sun so far.  I actually bring him in my tent for 8 hours every day to get him out of the brightest times of the day.  He is doing pretty good but I just noticed yesterday that the insides of his ears are sunburned now too.  He might have to live at Sheep Creek with Tasha if he does not get better.

We don't use snowhooks on the glacier because the snow is so soft that they would be worthless.  Instead we use what the Alaskans call "pickets".  They are t-shaped pieces of aluminum about 24" long that we drive into the snow with our hands or feet in an effort to hold the dogteams.  They are about as dependable as snowhooks are in the U.P.

In the picture at the left I am securing a "rack".  A rack consists of 3-55 gallon barrels that we use to haul our waste off the glacier.  Our waste consists of dog poop, dirty dishwater, outhouse buckets, etc.  When the racks are full they are slung out by helicopters back to Juneau.

Grooming the bottomless pit of a trail system that we operate our tours on.  The trail is very slow and hard pulling for the dogs.  My team has not had a problem because I have mainly large mature males that could pull a Mack truck, but some of the other teams have struggled slogging through the cement.

Moving camp.  Tasha got to help during her WxCL days on the glacier.  It was really very fast, efficient, and entertaining.

May 29th, 2007  I would have had a journal updated sooner about my experience with Ed on the glacier, but I got stranded up there for several days!  I tagged along with Ed on the crew flight on Friday night with the intention of returning on Saturday afternoon.  The weather was somewhat marginal when we left on Friday, but the pilots said flights had been running flights all day so I took my chances and headed up.  The flight up the pass to the glacier is spectacular.  We flew a little lower than usual, so Ed said we were a lot closer to the ice fields than he had been before (see photo at left).  We arrived at camp to hear they had been very busy that afternoon, with ten tours for each team, and only half their crew on staff (the other half was on a day off with Ed's group).  The crew that had worked all day was waiting to unload and then take the helicopter back down (see photo of Jake and Krister working hard at unloading the helicopter!).  Their tours had just ended, so we had to finish up many of the dog chores they did not have time to do. So, at 8 pm, we had to feed the dogs, scoop the poop, shovel the touring trail (all the poop has to be scooped off the trail each day), and groom the trail.  It was damp, rainy, and we ate dinner at 10 pm.  I was quickly thrown into the hardships of glacier life. 

By Saturday morning there was such dense fog I could hardly see across camp (there are supposed to be large mountains behind the dogs in the photo). The dogs are all separated into small dog lots of 27 dogs each.  Ed's lot is right out side his tent door.  When I got off the helicopter and walked over to the areas our dogs are in, they all lifted their noses in the air for a few seconds, and then went crazy!  Big Ben was the first to recognize me and Tasha Canine whined as soon as she realized who I was.  Most of our A-team is with Ed, along with a few two year olds, and puppies (2x4, Lucky, Cheerio, and Captain Crunch).  I spent the morning playing with all the dogs and helping with chores as we waited for the weather to clear. About 2 pm the call came in that we would be having a WXCL (pronounced Wixel) day, meaning that all tours/flights are cancelled for the remainder of the day.  The weather conditions are monitored both by the ground crew at the Temsco helicopter base and by Bill, the camp manager.  I would not be going home on Saturday.  We spent the rest of the day building a drying rack for Ed's tent, playing Boggle (so we can take on the Benda family when we return) and taking a nap with Tasha Canine.  I soon realized that on the glacier the crew is either working very long days, or not at all . I set my hopes on getting out on Sunday. 

When we awoke on Sunday to heavy snow showers and more dense fog, my hopes soon diminished.  I would not be seeing the green trees of Sheep Creek anytime soon.  I had entered into perpetual winter.  Thoughts of Memorial Day Weekends of the past came flooding in...having water balloon fights on the Ludington beach, swatting mosquitoes at the Paradise cabin, and canoeing at Indian River.  I had never spent the first weekend of summer in a snowstorm.  Ed still loves it, I think he's crazy!  At 2 pm, our day was again announced to be a WXCL--no going home.  I had never felt so stranded in all my life!  It was great to be with all the dogs, to play with the tree puppies in the mess hall, and to meet some of Ed's crew, but I really hadn't packed for such a long stay and didn't want to tell my camp manager that I would not be able to fulfill my cooking and photo duties that day.  I was adopted by the glacier crew, so I went to work moving tents (the snow melts around the tent and they end up getting tipsy in the middle), grooming the trail (which included riding behind the groomer on a kiddie sled!), playing with and repairing a few of Ed's chewed harnesses.  The snow is unlike anything I've ever seen.  You never hit bottom or see dirt!  It's very wet and so hard to pack, making walking very challenging.  I set my hopes on leaving on Monday as there was rumor that it was supposed to be the only nice day this week, if I didn't get out then, I would be stranded!  My crew at home was probably digging through the kitchen and wondering what to cook next.  They also had to send up a