Caribou Bluff and Sunshine

On Sunday, we ventured up to the White Mountain Recreation Area for a change of scenery. With the temperature inversion, we swapped the -25F of Two Rivers for a balmy 5F to 10F. Contrary to my experiences in Colorado (the higher you go, the colder it gets), the Fairbanks area is often the opposite. The cold air sits in low lying areas, like the Chena River Valley, with the warmer air concentrating in the hills. In a normal winter, -25F would be a relief, and we would not have felt compelled to head to higher ground; however, this winter with the unseasonably warm temps, -25F felt frigid! So off to the White Mountains we went. 

Riley and the yearling team consisting of his dogs Neptune, Brodie, and Dana, and yearlings Drake, Coot, Eider, Brant, Belle, Lefty, and Fenton, split their run into two parts with a three hour break in the middle. I was told that the yearlings camped better than they have all season. Immediately upon arriving, they ate a meal, curled up and slept, then were ready to go a few hours later. Almost like adult dogs! 

I took the adult team of Ham, Katy, Cartel, Fire, Sally, Fez, Derby, Rucu, Kindi, Supai, Niagra, and Perm on a longer run exploring new areas of the Whites. The dogs and I absolutely loved the new trails, as you can see in the video. There's also some great shots of frosty faces from traveling in the valleys between the hills.