Summer with the Dalton Highway Gang

It has been awhile since our last update. The pups have been named after places on the Dalton Highway or the "Haul Road" as many folks call it. This is the highway that goes from Fairbanks all the way to the Arctic Ocean and oil fields at Prudhoe Bay. It is also the road that we make a pilgrimage on each spring to run dogs on the north side of the Brooks Range and hunt for caribou. So we have the two girls, Kanuti, after the Kanuti River and Atigun, after Atigun Pass, River and Gorge. The boys are Wiseman, for the old mining town, Coldfoot for the truck stop that Dick Mackey started and the start of the old dogsled race the "coldfoot classic" and Galbraith, for Galbraith Lake where we head out from for our mushing/hunting expeditions.

Pups from left to right, Galbraith, Atigun, Kanuti, Wiseman, Coldfoot.

The video shows their energy level when they aren't sleeping. This is the fun time with the pups as we get to take them out for walks and see what they are made of. They seem tough for 14 lb animals and they sure talk the talk and walk the walk. We'll see what they are made mid winter when they get harness broke. These photos show how they take out aggression in the house.. thanks for the puppy toys Su Su!

The pups have graduated from the whelping kennel to the bigger free run pen that attaches to our deck.. They are loving the exploring the large pen with all its trees and vegetation. Momma Lucy is just a visitor now and then and the pups are hanging with some of the other dogs in the pen and learning their place in the squid acres hierarchy.

One more month at least until temperatures will be cool enough to start training with the 4 wheeler.. The dogs are ready and we can't wait to get ready for another season of running dogs. We would like to thank Chef Billy for helping us feed our dogs with fabulous beef stew that makes their summer meals more interesting than dry kibble. Tune in soon for more... Stumpy is pregnant and will be having a litter around memorial day.. check back for fall puppy fun!