Skijoring With Dogs

It’s so cold in the morning that the hair and snot in your nose freezes instantly as you walk out the door in the morning. Ice crystals shine and glisten in the snow as the morning sun shines across the new blanket of snow. After loading the wolf dogs into the back of the truck I drove out to Ririe, Idaho passing large wheat farms and cattle ranches. Horses stand still in their corrals their blankets frosted and stif with snow. Their breath is visible in the cold. The sky is a cornflower blue and the Snake River passes quickly beneath the bridge. Cottonwood tree stands line the banks and create a pristine wilderness and a quiet home for bald eagles, coyotes, beaver, moose, elk, and cougars.
When I get to the small ski resort I unload the dogs and harness them in their pulling harness and clip on my cross country skis. They pull me through the groomed trail beneath lodge pole pines. After a while I take their harness off and let them run loose while I exercise and cross country ski on my own. Cross country skiing exercises every part of your body in a low impact way. It’s a really good work out and takes you out into the gorgeous winter wonderlands! If you harness your dog and have pull you it’s called skijoring. You can find groomed trails for cross country skiing in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Sun Valley, ID, By Lake Tahoe and Running Springs, California.