Getting The Dog Out

Of course living in a northern clime isn't all long nights, hot drinks and hockey. There is lots more to do and here is an example. If you own a dog or two and they're large enough, then hitching them up to something or someone is a natural. I haven't actually tried this myself for fear of wrecking my back and ruining my kayaking career, but ski-joring with your dog is lots of fun.

I highly recommend you begin on a wide open area, say a forty acre pasture or something. That way the dog or dogs can be trained to go straight, and turn in the proper direction without you managing to hit something hard and immobile. The next step to try is shown in the above photo. Follow a deer path in the woods. The dog will usually stay on the path, nose to the ground. Finally, when all is in a controlled state, one can try heading off the path and into the trees. On this particular day, a few centimeters of snow over a hard crust allowed for some pretty exhilarating high speed slalom runs through the trees! Gee! Haw!