Ready to Run....or Waddle

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While I have been regularly updating the Ryno Kennel Facebook page with puppy pictures, I realize I have withheld these adorable shots from puppy lovers who do not check Facebook! Here is a little video of the puppies as well as a few individual shots.

Solo

Who is the daddy?

SOLO is Kristin and Andy Pace's main leader at Hey Moose! Kennel. In both the 2015 Yukon Quest and 2016 Iditarod, I ran near Kristin and her stellar team, watching as Solo often single-led down the trail. His lineage traces back to older King lines, and interestingly, share many similarities with Fire! As part of our arrangement, one puppy will be joining Hey Moose! Kennel at about eight weeks old, but I'll be sure to keep you posted.

4 Weeks Pupdate- The pups are continually growing, maturing, and changing, but here's a little insight into their current personalities.

Nessie (white female)- She is the bravest female. She's very independent and prefers to romp around on her own than play with others.

Oryx (smaller black female)- Oryx is the smallest pup right now (not that it means anything...they're all huge!). She is sassy. She's always pouncing on her brothers and chewing on toes.

Nala (larger black female)- Nala is mellow and loves to just waddle around checking out her new surroundings. That being said, if her brothers try and show any dominance, she's quick to remind them that she's not one to mess with.

Badger (grey male)- Badger is a WHINER. He's always making noise and is currently the most timid. He's most comfortable cuddled up against you and napping in the grass.

Nile (dark grey male)- Of all the puppies in the litter, Nile is the most fearless. He's the first to come out of the house, chase after babysitters Stormy and Jezzy, or torment his siblings.

King Louie (black male)- King Louie is, at this particular moment, a fat lug. He waddles around and just body bumps his siblings, knocking them off balance. That being said, he's a big cuddle bug.

King Louie looking regal.

Nessie trying her best to wink.

Nile- can you put your foot in your mouth?

Lovely Oryx

Handsome Badger

Meet the African Litter

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Time for introductions! Perm has been an exceptional mother to these six big chunkers: Badger, Nile, King Louie, Vanessa "Nessie," Oryx, and Nala. Each day they are becoming more and more curious and adventurous. Stay tuned for more pictures or checkout our Facebook page!

From left to right- Vanessa "Nessie", Oryx, and Nala

From left to right- Badger, Nile, and King Louie

From left to right- Vanessa "Nessie", Oryx, Badger, Nala, Nile, and King Louie.

Happy Mother's Day

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To My Mother- who instilled within me a need for adventure and has always supported me in any crazy endeavor that comes to mind. Braving record rains, -50F temperatures, snow, dark nights, or mountains of dog poop, Katy Human has thrown herself into the mushing life even when others question my sanity. Happy Mother's Day Mom- I love you!

To Scooter- who was the first Mama at Ryno Kennel and blessed us with the goofy, fun-loving, tail-wagging Ecuadorians (Kindi, Rucu, Supai). She instilled within her pups her "go get 'em" attitude, dopey happiness, and love of food. Happy Mother's Day Scooter!

To Nutmeg- whose offspring are the sassy, friendly, hug-loving Ducks of Brant, Coot, Drake, and Eider as well as Champ and Cayenne at SP Kennel. Nutmeg passed on the "Spice Girl" love and affection traits famous of her sisters (Spicy and Rose) with a touch of her own attitude and determination. Happy Mother's Day Nutmeg!

To Puppet- whose offspring are Fenton and the Outlaws (Fenton, "Belle" Starr, Calamity Jane "CJ", and Lefty). Her pups share her stunning good looks, fast pace, and quirky attitudes that one can't help but love. Happy Mother's Day Puppet!

To Perm- who is now the mother of two litters at Ryno Kennel: the Card Games (Yuker, Blitz, Fish, and Uno) and the African Litter. Her pups share her affectionate personality as well as her high-pitched, sassy bark that can be heard throughout the state of Alaska. She's instilled in each pup a confidence that borders on arrogance. Happy Mother's Day Perm!

Puppies!

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Even though it's hard to accept that the snow won't return for several months, and it's time to hang up the harnesses, summer has one saving grace- PUPPIES! Last night, Perm gave birth to six, big healthy puppies! There are three males (two black and one with Perm's coloration) and three females (two black and one white). We're so excited to welcome these little pups into Ryno Kennel, and can't wait to watch them grow! Future champions in the making!

Amy and Eider Retire

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At some point in each canine athlete's life, it comes time to retire. Sometimes it's at ten or twelve-years-old, and other times, like in the case of Amy, it's at the early age of three. Amy has left Ryno Kennel to go and live with close family friends in Arizona. You can tell from the photo- she's quite happy with her new "profession" as couch potato!

 

Eider is far from ready to hang up his harness, so he has joined a small kennel in Two Rivers to help our friend Tara and her daughter to accomplish all their mushing goals. Tara and family have a smaller kennel, so Eider is getting lots of special one-on-one attention as well as regular free runs this spring!
 

The Time We Drove a 24 Dog Team

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After the winter storm, all our trails had been completely obliterated by the heavy, wet snow, so on the first sunny day all week, I decided to take the snowmachine out to break open some trails before guests arrived. Snowmachines and I have a rough history given that they tend to not start, break down, or get stuck and leave me to walk back home, cursing and berating the untrustworthy iron dog. Due to this, I normally just stick to dog power. This particular day, I opted for the snowmachine, and told Maliko to come rescue me with the dogs if I’m not back in a couple hours. Sure enough, I managed to get the machine stuck in knee-deep overflow just a mile out of camp. Since I was still within sight of camp, I hollered and waved my arms until Maliko took notice and came to the rescue. She hooked up a ten dog team and slowly slogged her way through the deep snow. We attached the ten dogs to the snowmachine, but as the dogs hit their harnesses with all their strength, it didn’t budge an inch. Ok Plan B.

We mushed back to camp, and I looked at all 25 happy excited dogs, begging to have a go at pulling the snowmachine out, screaming “Pick me, pick me!” So I said to Maliko, “Let’s take everybody.” My theory- hook up 18 dogs by their necklines, 6 by their tuglines, and 1 free running because I couldn’t leave one dog at camp by themselves. That’d just be mean. Maliko was immediately skeptical (rightfully so), but I figured we could hook everyone (except for six dogs) up by their necklines until we reached the snowmachine, then attach the tuglines. This should be enough of a handicap right? Wrong. We tied off the sled to the cable drop chains screwed into the lake ice, and as we were hooking up the last dog- POP! From my vantage point in the middle of the team, I remember seeing Maliko clinging to the side of the sled, dragging as a freight train of 24 dogs bulldozed their way past me. I launched for the sled, holding the stanchion just above Maliko until I realized that not only did I not have a firm grip, but I was pulling Maliko off with me, so I let go. Leaping up from the ground, I watched Maliko boldly hold on, getting whitewashed through the fresh powder for about 1/2 mile around the lake. She righted the sled, looked back at me running as fast as I could (which was painfully slow in the deep snow), and laughed.

Side note- normally, almost losing a dog team is no laughing matter. In fact I get very angry when people joke about losing their team. Dogs can be seriously injured when no one is controlling the sled, but in this instance, had we lost the team, they would have dutifully run the one mile around the lake to the machine where they would have balled up in overflow. The snow was too deep for them to have busted out on their own across the open country.

Once I finally made it to Maliko and the 24 dog team (25 if you count Katy Canine running loose in front), we looped them around the snowmachine, tied them off, gave the signal and out came the machine. Looking back, we probably only needed 16-18 dogs to get the job done, but where’s the fun in that? And now Maliko can say she single-handedly drove, and partially was drug, by a 24 dog team. And that’s the story.

Alaska Range Adventures

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I apologize for the radio silence recently, but we’ve been out tromping around in the gorgeous Alaska Range for the past month! This spring for the first time, we offered week-long mushing trips in the heart of the Alaska Range. Not only was this a way for me to postpone going back to real life and continue to spend time in the wilderness with the dogs, but it was a great way to share the thrill of dog mushing with people who would prefer not to have 30 Alaskan Huskies living in their backyard (understandably).

Like any new endeavor, we had some exceptional times and some not so exceptional times. Due to a winter storm, the first group was unable to fly into base camp. For several days, Maliko and I hunkered down in our arctic oven waiting for the strong winds and heavy, wet snowfall to let up. It was as if we lived in a cloud. We were plagued by overflow and cement-like snow that kept both snowmachines and dog teams from covering much ground. We became so frustrated with the snowmachine that we wrote a children’s story about the snowgo that couldn’t go in the snow. It rhymes and everything.  I’ll share it with you sometime. Combining that with the avalanches all around us, and we didn’t venture too far from base camp.

Tessa and team

Wombat trying to be a lap dog. 

Luckily, our patience was rewarded and the next two weeks were INCREDIBLE. Stunning views, bright sunlight that burned my face, gorgeous sunsets and sunrises, and northern lights- it was paradise. Nearby, a family of beavers worked diligently climbing the hillside for willows then playfully sliding down with their branches. A curious fox visited the camp several times. We crossed otter tracks, wolf tracks, and bear tracks. The world was coming alive around us with the warming temperatures, and we were so privileged to be a part of it.

These incredible adventures required the help of lots of people, so a big thank you to Maliko, Tessa, Derek, Andy, Mike, Brian, Jeff, and Evan for making this an experience I’ll always remember. If you’re interested in participating in a week-long adventure next spring, send me an email at ryneolson@gmail.com.

 

Sunbathing pups

Fez and Brant cuddling up. 

Maliko and team

The Next Adventure

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With Iditarod still fresh in our minds, we're headed out for three weeks of expeditions! Following the expeditions, I'll be posting a complete recap of the Iditarod, but in the meantime, check out the Ryno Kennel Facebook Page for short Iditarod videos that are scheduled to be regularly uploaded.

Ryno Kennel Facebook Page Link

You do not need a Facebook account to view the page and watch the videos. Over the last couple days, we've uploaded a video from the coast near Shaktoolik as well as a clip from the famous Dalzell Gorge. Enjoy! And I promise to write a more complete report upon our return from the expeditions. As John Muir said, "The mountains are calling and I must go."

Trail's End

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Good morning Ryno Kennel fans! 11 Days, 13 hours, 31 minutes, 41 seconds later and Ryne Olson and her fantastic Ryno Kennel athletes are in to Nome!  Ryne came in at 4:31 AM with ten happy, waggy, sassy dogs.  We are so proud of Ryne, and the Ryno Kennel athletes: Goblin, Jana, Lefty, Drummer, Coot, Fenton, Rucu, Supai, Katy and Cartel!

 

 

Ryne has many tails from the trail to tell, but I’m going to keep this post short and sweet.  She’ll be back in blogging form in no time to share her amazing experiences with all of you. 

Thank you Ryno Kennel fans for all your love, support and positive vibes!  We count ourselves lucky to have you following us along.  That’s all for now folks, tune in later for more from Ryne and her happy huskies!

 

Home Stretch

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Good evening Ryno Kennel fans!  I know you’re all sitting at your computers and mobile devices anxiously awaiting news on your favorite musher.  Ryne left White Mountain a little after 8 PM.  The musher standings have not updated yet, so I’m not sure if she still has ten dogs, but judging from how well she’s been moving, I think its safe to say she’ll be coming into Nome tomorrow morning with ten happy, sassy Ryno Kennel pups!

Ryne’s run from White Mountain into Nome will take her along the coast and many of these coastal runs are notorious for being windy and difficult due to the bare sea ice.  Luckily for Ryne – and Kristin, who she’s been running closely with – it looks like smooth sailing all the way into Nome.

 

We’re expecting Ryne to come in between 4 and 5 AM, and we’ll all be waiting to welcome her and the dogs at the burled arch here in Nome.  That’s all for now Ryno Kennel fans, stay tuned for more updates from the finish line of the 2016 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race!