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McGrath Cabin, the checkpoint
Day 5
March 6, 2002
Hello Everyone!
It was yet another beautiful day here along the trail. We have had incredible weather since the day I arrived in Alaska two weeks ago. Clear blue skies and little wind. Last night it got down to 22 below zero. That was a bit chilly but it warmed up eventually. The mushers actually like it that cold because the dogs run better and don't overheat.
We didn't fly today. Instead we stayed in McGrath. I went to the grocery store and took some pictures of some of the food prices. Why do you think things cost so much?
A bag of oranges costs $9.99.
Milk costs $6.49!
I also watched some of the middle runners come in. The mushers are much more spaced out now. When we were in Skwentna there were probably about twenty mushers at the checkpoint. Here in McGrath there may be about eight at a time, and most of them are sleeping.
Some of the mushers switch to their faster sled in McGrath. Here is where they are stored.
This is where the mushers pick up their food and supplies.
Several of the mushers have decided to take their twenty-four hour layover here. I don't mind at all. This means that they are more relaxed and easier to talk to. Several of them have actually said that they were happy to have a conversation with someone. I imagine the silence of running the trail can get a little lonely at times. Today I didn't hear much information about how the mushers are doing, so I'll tell you about my discussions with the mushers instead.
Joe Runyan and Susan Butcher are reporters for the race. They both stayed here at the Tukusko House. Joe is the reporter who won the Iditarod and writes most of the news that Mr. Holmes and Mrs. Willoughby bring to you. He's great fun to talk too. I'm beginning to envy him for being the Iditarod reporter each year. It's such a learning experience to be on the trail and great fun to send the news back to you.
Here is Joe Runyan writing the news reports for you!
The first musher I ran into at the checkpoint was Charlie Boulding, once again. I offered him some Vermont beef jerky since he loves dried fish so much but he thought the maple sugar candy sounded even better. He tasted a bit and liked it so much that he decided to save it for the trail. He gave me a big thank you hug. He insisted I try his dried British Colombian salmon. It was pretty tasty. He said it is really good for a musher because it has lots of oil in it. He's a great story teller too.
Aliy Zirkle was the next musher I spoke too. She's as nice as she looks.
Aliy Zirkle treats her dogs like her best friends.
She doesn't seem to push them quite as hard as others either. They are her babies. She sang to them as she put ointment on their paws, and looked into their eyes as she rubbed their ears. She told me about each of the dogs and what races they had won. Blossom is running her first big race this year. She seems to be looking good. You'll like seeing a picture of Pedro because he is was the champion lead dog that helped her win the Yukon Quest.
Pedro was Aliy's Yukon Quest champion lead dog!
He was full of personality and was very lively. He made funny faces and seemed to understand everything that we were talking about. I talked to Aliy's dad. He said she grew up in New Hampshire, until the age of nine anyway. He said that she has always loved speed and outdoor activity. She was on skis by the age of 3 and just bombed down the hills. I know many of you are skiers already. Just think of where that skiing practice could lead you!
Nils Hahn has been consistently happy along the trail. I tease him a little in a fun way because he won't show his smile. He has braces and is a little shy about them. My teasing him makes him relax a little and smile. I wanted you to see that even big kids wear braces!
Nils Hahn gives his dog a pat.
Sweet dreams! The hay helps to keep the dogs warm.
One of his dogs lost a toenail. Nils didn't seem to know quite how it happened but the vet was going to take care of it so that the dog could continue in the race.
I've heard that John Baker's team is looking strong, as is Buser's. I was looking at the standings today and saw that Doug Swingley is doing something quite amazing. I heard that he has two mushers running his puppy teams, Daniel Vestch and Lisa Frederic. I noticed that he is running the race with one of these teams in front of him, and one of them behind him. It's my guess that he is coaching them along the way. Harmony Kanavle and Jason Barron are also mushers from Lincoln, Montana. They are just behind Swingley. They all seem to be moving as a five-team pack. I also heard rumor that not only are Harmony and Jason getting married in Nome, but that Swingley may be getting married to his girlfriend, Melanie, also. The things you hear on the trail. I guess time will tell.
A new team arrives with frosty whiskers
One of the dogs got a ride because it was tired
This team looked very patriotic under it's warming blankets
Jim Lanier says hello to everyone in Vermont!
I did a few things with the local people today. I took some photographs of the school children I met yesterday. They love having their pictures taken. Here you can see one of things they enjoy doing when they finish their school day.
They were sledding right down the chute that the mushers use to get back to the trail!
They were having fun posing for the camera. Each time they finished their run they would come back to me to see what the picture looked like.
I liked how the light hit this car.
I also went to the school's fundraiser. It was called a Chinese Auction. The announcers had a mound of boxes, each containing interesting things like a dollhouse, T-shirts, books, and beaded jewelry, that people in the town have donated. The auctioneer would hold up a box, but no one knew what was inside. She then took quarter bids on the box. As you bid higher by a quarter, you put the quarter in a can that other assistants are passing around. This continues until the exact value of the product has been collected and then whoever put the final quarter into the can wins the prize. It was a really interesting way to raise money for the school.
I was up at 3:00 a.m. for some crazy reason this morning and decided to go out to look for the Northern Lights. I quickly borrowed someone's boots and coat off of the coat rack and headed out the door. Low and behold, they were up there. They were light green in color and pretty subtle. As I stood watching they danced around in the sky. It was too cold for me to stay out there for long, plus I had to get some more sleep, so I didn't try taking a picture of them. Perhaps another night!
I hope you are all well, and I'll talk to you soon. I hope that I'll have Internet connections at the next checkpoints, but no guarantee. Keep your patience strong! I will too.
Mrs. Holmes
McGrath, - Friday, March 08, 2002 at 15:53:23 (EST)
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Mrs. Holmes
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Webspace for Mrs. Holmes Iditarod 2002 project was provided courtesy of
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