At Grouse Mountain Lodge guests come up to the front desk to inquire
about activities they should do throughout their stay all winter long. There is downhill skiing
on Big Mountain just 20 minutes away, cross country skiing right out the back door
of the hotel, and sleigh rides at the Bar W Guest Ranch just up the road. One
activity, however, always interested me as an employee more than any of the
others. That activity was dog sledding.
Dog Sled Adventures is just 30 minutes north on Highway 93, and
I had sent guests there the whole previous winter whenever they asked where to
go. Whenever a guest would come back from their ride they would without doubt
have huge smiles on their faces and have only positive feedback to give. That
alone may have interested me more than any other aspect of dog sledding.
I met the owner, Jeff, one day when he was driving his “dog
truck” through town. It’s a truck that has a wooden covering in the bed with
dog face-shaped holes cut out so when he makes a drive through Whitefish people
can see a few of his friendly huskies with their curious and excited faces
sticking out to gawk at cars and passerby's. Jeff immediately invited me to come up for a ride
sometime after knowing all the business we try to give him at Grouse. It wasn't until this past month that I was able to finally get up there and see for
myself what all the buzz was about.
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| Standing in front of Dog Truck with owner; Jeff (Left) and Musher; Adam (Right) |
Pulling up to the yard was something I’ll never forget. 138
huskies each equipped with their own doghouses were jumping, barking, and all
hoping to be a part of the team that got to pull the sleds next. Jeff gave us a
big smile; “They’re all friendly,” he said. Boy was he right. These dogs were
each incredibly sweet. It’s as if the term “puppy dog eyes” was coined at this
very spot, as each dog begged to get a sniff as you marched past them towards your
sled.
Our mushers name was Adam; he was extremely helpful and good at
what he does. He answered all of our weird questions without hesitation; “What
do you feed them?” “How much do you feed them?” “Where did they all come from?”
Each litter has a theme for their names. Pulling us that day was
Brownie, Jell-O, and Cobbler. We also had a few from the “Adam’s Family” theme
& some from the group of famous rock stars. Each dog is known by name and
they also know their ages & personalities. I could understand how a dog
could get lost in the mix because there are so many of them but I was very impressed with the amount of individual attention Jeff & his staff
give to each dog.
The ride itself was about an hour long, and definitely worth the
money. Winding through back paths in the snowy forest, I could only imagine how
gorgeous it would be after a fresh snowfall. Sometimes they need to bring the
snowmobiles out to carve a track for the dogs to run on, but other times they just
forge ahead themselves. Alaskan huskies love to work. Adam said that even when
he pulls the brakes on the sled they never stop running.
Jeff has been doing his business for 30 years. I am so glad I
was able to step into his world for an hour long cruise, and enjoy hot cocoa
& chocolate chip cookies with the team afterwards. After having this
experience I would recommend Dog Sled Adventures as a Northwest Montana “must”
for activities in the valley.
For further questions on dog sledding call them directly at
406-881-BARK! (2275)
