Epic Travel → Europe → Finland → Dog Sledding

♦ Intrepid Top Pick!

Location: Finnish Lapland

Time Required: 3 hours – 2 days

Red Tape/Notes: Winter clothes are included if you don’t have appropriate attire of your own; for more info visit the activities section of the Kakslauttenen website. There are a couple of different options for “husky safaris” depending on what you’d like to see/do.

What’s Nearby?: Kakslauttenen, Horseback Riding, Reindeer Sleigh Ride, Snowmobiling, Nordic Skiing

Although the winter activities are technically available starting on the 1st of November, you should be aware that not all the activities listed are available early in the season. They have to wait for sufficient snow and hard enough freezes to safely access many of the trails and areas, so if you want to do a long trek (the overnight, specifically) then you should wait to visit until late December or January to make sure you can go. March is apparently one of the best times to go – there’s plenty of snow, but the weather is clearing up and you have a better chance of clear days. We weren’t able to do an overnight trek, so we did a couple of longer 4 hour treks and one nighttime outing, which was kind of cool because it meant we got to try a couple of different companies and different teams.

The teams have two different types of huskies – Alaskan huskies and Siberian huskies, which have been bred for different types of pulling. Alaskan huskies are mainly used for this type of sledding, but you’ll see Siberian huskies in the teams as well. Regardless, the dogs are all really cute – all they want to do is pull that sled. They have to actually tie down your sled to prevent the dogs from running off with it before you’re ready. Animal lovers are probably wondering what happens if the dogs don’t want to pull the sled. No one forces them to pull the sleds, and not all dogs are interested in it. They start training them when they’re a few months old to see if they like it (they give them a little Coke bottle to pull…I really want to see a little husky puppy pulling a soda bottle) and if they don’t take to it, then they go off and become pets.

The biggest thing about dogsledding that will surprise some people is that it’s a lot of work – for the humans. You have to help your team. Whenever there’s a hill, you get off your skis and you run and push the sled. No lazing about expecting the dogs to schlep you up every hill.  If you choose to run in pairs, like we did, you’re pushing the weight of your sled and your partner. It gives you marked appreciation for your team of dogs, that’s for sure. Our team was exhausted on one trip, and I ended up running virtually the entire time. I don’t think I’ve been so exhausted in my life. Despite the frigid temperature, I took my jacket off and rolled in the snow like the dogs do at the end. It was quite refreshing.

Oh…and if you’re lucky, they might have puppies that you can visit. Puppies apparently love Tom. It was pure joy watching him be covered in adorable, wiggling puppies.

Epic Travel → Europe → Finland → Dog Sledding