Tag Archives: Iditarod Trail

Alaskan History Magazine Vol. 5, No. 1

Posted on December 23, 2025 by Helen Hegener

In this issue: Colonel Walter Goodwin and the Iditarod Trail, 1929 Report on Cattle Breeding in Alaska, Harry de Windt on the Yukon River, Falcon Joslin and the Tanana Valley Railway, All Alaska Sweepstakes Champions Baldy of Nome and A. … Continue reading →

In Gentler Valleys Roaming

Posted on August 17, 2025 by Helen Hegener

Julie Verrette’s Summer Place Kennel provided a safe haven for retired sled dogs from some of the premier racers in the world, such as four-time Iditarod Champion Susan Butcher and Yukon Quest Champion Aliy Zirkle. Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Books, Iditarod, Memoirs, News & Information, Sled Dog Races | Tagged Alaska, Aliy Zirkle, Iditarod, Iditarod Trail, Julie Verrette, sled dog race, sled dogs, Susan Butcher | Leave a comment

Sled Dogs in America

Posted on October 27, 2024 by Helen Hegener

The important place of sled dogs in American history as portrayed by the sled dog paintings of Veryl Goodnight is the subject of this new book from Northern Light Media: Sled Dogs in America: The Art of Veryl Goodnight, by Veryl Goodnight and Helen Hegener. The historically accurate paintings by the award-winning Colorado artist have elevated the history of sled dogs to an exhibit at the prestigious Smithsonian-associated Western Spirit Museum in Scottsdale, Arizona. Continue reading →

Posted in Alaska History, Books, Gold Rush History, Iditarod, News & Information, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races, Transportation | Tagged Alaska, Balto, Helen Hegener, Iditarod Trail, mushing, mushing history, Nome, Northern Light Media, sled dog race, sled dogs, travel, Veryl Goodnight, writing | Leave a comment

Sled Dogs in America

Posted on September 27, 2024 by Helen Hegener

The sled dog paintings of Veryl Goodnight are the subject of this new book from Northern Light Media: Sled Dogs in America: The Art of Veryl Goodnight, by Veryl Goodnight and Helen Hegener. Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Gold Rush History, News & Information, Sled Dog History | Tagged Alaska, Arctic, art, Denali National Park, gold rush, Helen Hegener, huskies, Iditarod, Iditarod Trail, Jack London, Klondike, mushing, Northern Light Media, paintings, Serum Run, sled dogs, The Call of the Wild, Veryl Goodnight, Western Spirit Museum | Leave a comment

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail

Posted on December 4, 2023 by Helen Hegener

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail: Fast Dogs, Freezing Mushers and the Alaska Wild, by Lew Freedman, features engaging interviews with mushers from several decades of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. In his introduction, Lew Freedman writes, “March in Alaska belongs to the Iditarod. The throwback nature of the event in a hurry-up world, the romance of the wilderness, the challenge of conquering the elements, all figure into why the Iditarod is so popular.” Continue reading →

Posted in Alaska History, Books, Iditarod, News & Information, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races | Tagged Alaska, Anna and Kristy Berington, Bob Chlupach, Brent Sass, Bruce Lee, Burt Bomhoff, Cindy Abbott, Dave Monson, Dick Mackey, Frank Teasley, Iditarod, Iditarod Trail, Jeff King, Jessie Holmes, Joe May, John Baker, Last Great Race, Lew Freedman, Libby Riddles, Martin Buser, Mille Porsild, mushing, mushing history, Nicholas Petit, Northern Light Media, Ramey Smyth, Raymie Redington, Richard Burmeister, Ritchie Diehl, Rod Perry, sled dog race, sled dogs, Sonny Lindner, Susan Whiton, Vern Halter | Leave a comment

Ordering Books

Posted on September 14, 2023 by Helen Hegener

Books by Alaskan author Helen Hegener, including The History of Sled Dogs in North America, The Alaska Railroad, Alaskan Roadhouses, The First Iditarod, The Matanuska Colony Project and many more. Continue reading →

Posted in Alaska History, Alaska Railroad, Book Reviews, Books, Colony Barns, Explorers, Gold Rush History, Iditarod, Matanuska Colony, Matanuska Valley, Roadhouses, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races, Yukon Quest | Tagged Alaska, Alaska History, Alaska Railroad, All Alaska Sweepstakes, barns, gold rush, Helen Hegener, Iditarod, Iditarod Trail, Klondike gold rush, Matanuska Colony, mushing history, Nome, Northern Light Media, Revenue Cutter Service, Roadhouses, sled dogs, Yukon Quest | Leave a comment

Togo’s Serum Run

Posted on April 18, 2020 by Helen Hegener

As the worldwide fight against the coronavirus goes on we are reminded almost daily that pandemics and epidemics have happened before, and we have struggled through them with far fewer resources and much less medical and scientific knowledge than we have now. That is a very real comfort, and lends a bit of perspective to what we are facing. One such epidemic was a deadly diphtheria outbreak which raged across Alaska almost 100 years ago. Continue reading →

Posted in Alaska History, News & Information, Sled Dog History | Tagged Bering Sea, Bluff Roadhouse, Dexter Roadhouse, diphtheria, Dr. Curtis Welch, Elizabeth Ricker, Golovin, Governor Bone, Iditarod Trail, Isaac's Point, Kaltag, Leonhard Seppala, Manley Roadhouse, Minto Roadhouse, Nenana, Nome, Nulato, Olson Roadhouse, Port Safety Roadhouse, Scott Bone, Seppala, Serum Run, Shaktoolik, Siberian huskies, Solomon Roadhouse, The Cruelest Miles, Togo, Tolovana Roadhouse, Unalakleet, Unlakleet | 1 Comment

Sled Dog Mail

Posted on March 9, 2019 by Helen Hegener

Dogs were capable of covering long distances, day or night, and could travel over frozen lakes and rivers and pass through dense forests. By 1901, a network of mail trails throughout Alaska was in use, including a system that followed almost the entire length of the Yukon River. The historic 2,300-mile Iditarod Trail was the main dog trail that carried mail from Seward to Nome. Continue reading →

Posted in Alaska History, Gold Rush History, Iditarod, News & Information, Sled Dog History | Tagged Chester Noongwook, DeeDee Jonrowe, dog team mail, Eagle, Iditarod Trail, Jeff Schultz, sled dog mail, stamps, USPS, Yukon mail | Leave a comment

Iditarod National Historic Trail

Posted on March 8, 2019 by Helen Hegener

Nationally, our Historic Trails commemorate major routes of exploration, migration, trade, communications, and military actions that formed America, and only 16 trails in the U.S. have been honored as National Historic Trails. The Iditarod is the only Alaskan trail in the National system, and the only Historic Trail celebrating the indispensable role played by man’s best friend in America’s Last Great Gold Rush. Without dependable sled dogs hauling freight, passengers, mail and more, the history of Alaska and the north country would have been quite different. Continue reading →

Posted in Alaska History, Gold Rush History, Iditarod, News & Information, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races | Tagged Alaska, Iditarod Trail, Seward, Seward-Nome Trail, sled dogs | Leave a comment

1967 Centennial Race

Posted on January 11, 2019 by Helen Hegener

The 1967 race was billed as ‘the biggest event in racing history,’ with an unprecedented purse of $25,000, richer than any purse offered for a sled dog race until then. It attracted mushers from all around Alaska, respected dog drivers such as George Attla, Gareth Wright, Earl Norris, Jerry Riley, Orville Lake, Herbie Nayokpuk, Dick Mackey, and even two champion sprint mushers from Massachusetts: Dr. Roland Lombard and Dr. Charles Belford. Continue reading →