Saturday, March 1, 2008

Mush, Mush!

So this past Sunday, our friends Erik and Sandy were still here and they wanted to go skiing in Vail for the day. Well, Will and I decided it wasn't worth the cost for us to ski for a day in Vail for what would probably be just an hour...so we went DOG SLEDDING!!!!!
It was awesome! Probably my favorite thing we've done so far out here. We got picked up in Vail and rode about 15 miles west to this private farm.
We got out of the van to 5 dog sleds full of dogs just barking and barking! It was so cool!



This is me making friends with the dogs that pulled us. They have anywhere between 10-12 dogs pulling each sled...and we had 11 dogs.



These are the dogs that pulled us and our musher...very friendly musher, told us all about the dog races in Alaska. We were the last sled to take off, and you can see in the background the other sled that has just taken off.



All the dogs were so excited and eager to run! Here is Will and me on the sled...we sat under blankets and our musher stood up behind us directing the dogs.



We went sledding for about 2 hours, and the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. We had amazing views around us with tons of untouched snow. Our musher stepped off the trail and into the snow, and it went all the way up to his waist!





You can see the snow storm coming over the mountains...







We stopped halfway for some hot chocolate and to give the dogs a break. Despite all the layers we are wearing, it was such a beautiful day and relatively warm! It was 33degrees with a light snow occasionally. For once we were out in the snow and I wasn't cold; I actually got hot in all my gear!



Will with 2 of the dogs who pulled us...



Our trip back down the mountain was really fun! We got to go really fast and the dogs loved it!



We were really sad when our ride ended...we hung around and watched them pack up all the dogs. Here is one dog hanging out of it's cage...they put 2 dogs in each of these small cages to transport them back to the farm they live on.



Overall we had such a great time! If anyone ever gets the chance, we definitely recommend dog sledding!! Erik and Sandy had a great time skiing too...they had perfect weather as well. We had a great day, except for our 4 hour drive home...it's only supposed to take 2 hours from Boulder to Vail, but we ran into traffic, an accident, and snow! We played lots of fun car games :)

2 comments:

MPA said...

Looks like that was so much fun. I'm sure you really had a great time. The countryside was gorgeous and I'm sure absolutely beautiful with it being basically untouched. Glad you got a chance to do this since you probably won't do it in NC. Love you- MOM

LABLUVER said...

Fabulous and it looks like so much fun !! So glad you had that opportunity and I bet the scenery was breathtaking.
I really like this blogging. It is so much fun being able to keep up with all your adventures.
Have a great week !!
Love ya
Aunt Betty