Mush!

Denali National Park and Preserve is the only national park with a kennel.



These dogs work year round. And they love it. We got to meet the dogs up close and personal.



Of course everyone loved seeing the puppies.They were a big hit, even though they slept through our entire visit. Lazy dogs.



They have a few more months to go. They'll bulk up another 40 pounds or so before training begins.

As you can imagine, the kennel tour is very popular with families. The rangers give a good talk explaining the history and usefulness of the dogs during the wintertime. The dog sled demo is very exciting as well.

First you see the assistants hand pick dogs for that day, depending on conditioning. Notice in the picture below that they drag, for lack of a better word, each dog to the sled.



The dogs legs are so powerful and they are so eager that holding them up by their collar is the only way to control them. Don't worry, their necks are so strong it doesn't harm them. If you look closely you may even see this guy smiling.

Once a few get harnessed they really get excited. Here you can see them barking up a storm, just rearing to go!


After a team of 6 is squared away off they go with a flash. Good thing the ranger was hanging on. I think those dogs can pull about 4 Gs when they leave the line.


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