When planning our Alaska cruise, one of the excursions I knew I wanted to do was dogsledding. The cruise lines offer amazing dogsledding excursions at most of the ports, some of them even involving flying a helicopter to a glacier to have a more “authentic” experience on a dog sled. I really wanted to do one of those helicopter/dogsled excursions but it was really hard to justify a single excursion that cost more than the whole cruise fare. So, I went for the compromise called dogsled and musher’s camp in Skagway.
When we docked in Skagway (at the pier that has been closed since it had a landslide just a few weeks after we docked at it) and took a bus to the Musher’s Camp. Like a lot of Skagway, this felt very cheesy and like it was built for cruise ship tourists. From the base camp, we loaded onto this giant all-terrain vehicle to get to the dogs. We were the first group of the day and the dogs were excited to get going! They were yipping, howling, and pulling at their leads. We divided up into several groups, six people to a cart, and finally got to be pulled around by a group of canines.
On the drive up, our tour guide Laryn, explained the dogs we were about to meet are professional athletes. And once we got loaded onto our cart, our musher explained that the dogs that were pulling us are her team and they actually race the Iditarod together. She explained the commands she uses (“gee” and “haw”) to tell the dogs which way to go. She also explained how important camps like this one are for the dogs. Not only do they work on strength training during the summer, but being around the all the tourists prepares them for all the people the dogs will encounter at the checkpoints along the Iditarod. So, while we were in a cart, not a sled and going over a dirt path, not snow, this time is important for these dogs. So, yes dog sledding in Alaska is a tourist activity, it has its benefits for the dogs and the musher as well.
Puppy cuddles!
After we got done with our ride, we went back down to “basecamp” where we met another musher who told us the history of the Iditarod and showed us some of the gear they carry on the race. She explained that the “Alaska Husky” is actually a mix of breeds that they breed for their racing ability.
From there, we got to go to my favorite part where we cuddled the puppies (above)! Mine fell asleep in my arms. My husband didn’t get to hold one because I wouldn’t let him go. I really wish we had more time with the puppies before we were pushed to look at “teenage” dogs sleeping.
If you are planning an Alaska cruise and want to do a dogsledding excursion, I highly recommend it! We had a great time in Skagway with Alaska X excursions! While I’m sure the helicopter/dog sled excursions are amazing, once-in-a-lifetime kinds of experiences, the dog-cart experiences are in no way “fake” and are a great way to get to experience sled dogs without paying as much as your cruise fare for a single excursion!
Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to check back next week when I review our time on the Serenade of the Seas! To read more about this trip check out my Planes, Buses, and Boats Trip Report. To read about some of our previous trips, visit my Trips Page. If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page and follow me on Instagram! You can purchase prints on Fine Art America. To see inside my camera bag, check out my updated Gear Page.
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We started our visit at a raptor talk where we met Owlison (left), a great horned owl, and Hannah, an avian care specialist. Owlison came to the Raptor Center with a fractured wrist bone and possibly some damage to her wing. Through Owlison’s rehabilitation, she is now capable of flight but not well enough to hunt on her own, so she is now a permanent resident at the Raptor Center.
After the raptor talk, we got to see the Flight Training Center where rehabilitated birds are able to practice flying from perch to perch as they would do in the wild. Rehabilitators watch the birds in the training center to determine if they are able to fly well enough to survive in the wild and be released. When we visited the birds weren’t very active but it was very good to see the steps the experts at the Raptor Center take to make sure the birds will be able to survive on their own once they are well enough to leave the center.
When planning a visit to Alaska, a bear sighting is usually high on the list of things people want to experience. But, any wildlife sighting is hard to plan, and seeing a bear in the wild can be dangerous. Fortress of the Bear in Sitka, Alaska is a bear rescue that allows visitors to view native brown and black bears from a safe distance while giving orphaned bears a second chance at life.
Fortress of the Bear is a nonprofit that does important work in Alaska! The money for their mission comes from admissions and additional donations. If you are in Sitka, I highly recommend a stop. It is not a big place, the hour they gave us on our tour was more than enough time. It was fun to see the bears and it was good knowing the admission supports Alaskan wildlife. If you want to know more about Fortress of the Bear, read about the bears, or donate to their cause, check out 