Denali Highway: Trucks, Acting, and Wolves- Oh My!
/The past couple of days, we traveled to Alpine Creek Lodge on the Denali Highway and experienced a lot of firsts! First time chasing wolves, first time being movie stars (Ok, so we weren't the main focus, but Cartel, Fire, Boone, Brant, Drake, and Coot will be in a movie!), and first time truck training on the Denali Highway!
1- First time chasing wolves! The Denali Highway is a 135-mile mostly gravel highway between Cantwell and Paxson right through the Alaska Range. Caribou, moose, fox, bear, wolverine, lynx, marten, wolves, and loads of other wildlife call this area home. For the first time this trip, we literally ran with wolves! Cresting a hill, we spotted a large grey wolf, and as we rounded the corner, two more sprinted down the road, including the black one in the photograph. Curious Lefty thought it was pretty exciting and wanted to chase after them!
Cartel, Fire, Boone, Coot, Drake, and Brant patiently waiting for their turn in the spotlight.
2- First time being canine movie stars! I'm not sure how much I can share, so the description is going to be vague, but we'll be in a documentary with the Bondys at their incredible home of Alpine Creek Lodge. Fire, Cartel, Boone, Brant, Coot, and Drake did a spectacular job repeating scenes, patiently waiting their turn, and looking adorable for the camera. Sometimes when we were running, a snowmachine with the cameraman would be just a couple feet away, and they never once were distracted! Great job team!
I'm going to take this opportunity to promote Alpine Creek Lodge- if you're coming to Alaska, look them up! They have an incredible lodge in the middle of nowhere (68 mile of the Denali Highway to be exact), and it has all the amenities that you'd expect at a 5-star hotel and restaurant. Plus, they're dog lovers. Need I say more?
3- First time truck training! When there's not enough snow for sleds and you have a large group of dogs to train, some mushers hook up the whole team to the truck. The trails in Two Rivers are too narrow and windy for a truck, but the Denali Highway is perfect! Twenty-one dogs attached to the front of the Ford, and off we went! While it was nice to ride in the heated cab of a truck, I can't wait to come back with sleds!
