a long wait

so the Quest started on Saturday and Cob and i were supposed to head north on the trail to take some pictures of the mushers and their dog teams on the trail. however, a hiccup in the race thwarted our plans. the trail between Chena Hot Springs and the Mile 101 dog drop was blown over, leaving little snow for a snow hook and miles of hard trail on dog paws. for safety reasons, the Race Gurus decided to suspend the race in that part of the trail and truck the dogs to Mile 101, where we were going to take pictures. Cob quickly reorganized to head to the next spot between Circle and Central, but i couldn't go on a work day. Our friend Teresa volunteered for the job of helping Cob trek out to the trail on snowshoes....and wait for a musher.

they made it to Central and got some cool pictures of dog teams readying for the next leg.

Dog trucks are a pretty common scene around these parts, and taking on the Quest means lots of supplies. piles of straw means instant beds for tired pups. this was Monday in Central and it was still around -40 to -50F - brrrrrrr!


to get some pictures of mushers in action, Cob and teresa snow-shoed out to the trail on the river where they got a little frosty in the cold temps.

that means cold fingers when taking pictures...

they waited and waited....and waited and waited...and then....

a musher!! this was Jean-denis Britten, a 41 year old rookie originally from Nova Scotia and now living in Whitehorse, Canada. his dogs helped him skid logs to build his cabin in the off-season. now that's cross-training.