Dog Sled Traditions for a New Generation
Sled dogs ready to run. Photo courtesy of Evelyn Beeter.
Dog Sleds and Digital Stories is a program aimed at giving Alaska Natives aged 14-24 from the MSTC and CRNA-served villages intensive experience with both dog mushing and filmmaking. There are currently a handful of students participating, and there is room for more to join. The program is funded by a grant from the Administration for Native Americans awarded to the MSTC Behavioral Health Department with the expectation they will work with CRNA. The grant’s stated goals are for youth to “experience healing through increased pride in and connection to self, community and culture,” and to be “respectfully engaged in culture, community, and the workforce without dependence on harmful substances.”
Evelyn Beeter, MSTC CEO and competitive mushing sprinter, explained how experience with mushing helps young people. “I’m glad we got this program [funded] because it teaches you a lot,” she said, “You have to do things on your own. Your dog team gets off trail, you have to get them back on. You have to hook up your dog team. You have to take care of your dogs- they can’t feed themselves. It gives the kids a sense of responsibility, a sense of ‘I can do this.’” Beeter says she can see how mushing builds resilience in her own grandson, Finn. “He gets turned over, flips the sled, he’s halfway dragging but he makes it back over to me with himself and the sled all intact,” she said, adding he knows, “‘I’m not going to just fall off and lay here.’”
Young people who participate in the program participate in all aspects of mushing including taking care of the dogs. Before the coronavirus pandemic, the program held events to teach trail skills such as building fires and setting up tents. Students also learn to document their work and create digital stories about the experience. Carson Tortorige, the project director for the program with a background in outdoor education, has big dreams for the future. He wonders, “How great would it be if we had a Copper Basin Native youth mushing team?”
I asked Beeter to share more about the traditional use of dogs in the Copper Basin. “That’s our way of transportation,” she said. “We’ve always been connected to dogs, either using them in summer for pack animals or winter transport. I’m doing it, my mom had dogs, and before her they had dogs,” she said. “They didn’t have as many dogs, just 3 or 4 apiece, but they were bigger dogs so they could haul stuff.” Beeter continued, “Now dog mushing is on its way down, not too many people do it. It would be nice if some of these kids were interested.”
Harnessed dogs staged on a line, ready to be hooked up to a sled. Photo courtesy of Evelyn Beeter.
Beeter reminisced about riding up the Chistochina trail to check traplines in a sled filled with furs when she was as little as four years old. She also recalled her family using dog sleds to haul firewood, taking a big sled through the woods. Her mother Lena Charley had one dog named Smith who was “her sidekick.” Smith went everywhere with her, and helped her pack out meat when she hunted. “Everybody used dogs back then,” she said.
In addition to using dogs for transportation, the Copper Valley has a long tradition of dog racing. Beeter’s racing comes from her mom. “Mom ran sprint races growing up and made sure all us kids ran Junior races,” she said. “In her 50s she decided to do long distance races like the Yukon Quest. It reminded her of being out there in the woods with the dogs: camping, building a fire to melt snow and cook the food… It reminded her of how her lifestyle was. She came in the top 5 that one year, and ran it four years in a row. She wasn’t doing it competitively. She did it because she enjoyed the trip.”
Taking care of dogs and building relationships with them is a big part of the mushing lifestyle. When we spoke, Beeter said her staff was currently preparing for an activity with students where they would practice putting a harness on a puppy with staff members Melvin Captain and Dorene Northway. The kids would have a chance to walk around with the dog and build trust with the animal, which Beeter said is a little bit shy. “Kids and animals tend to get along,” she said. She added the activities “tie back to the mental health side of things. When you work with animals it helps you heal and discover things about yourself.”
Before the coronavirus pandemic, youth got together to build a fish wheel as part of the program. I asked Beeter about the traditional relationship between fishing and feeding a dog team. “That’s a really big part of it,” she said. “When we were growing up we used to fish for ourselves and our dogs. We had this big cache that would be full of fish for the winter. You’d boil it and add cornmeal or whatever you had. Now I couldn’t do it. There’s not enough fish coming up. You barely get enough for yourself. Everything’s so expensive. Even my little kennel is expensive.”
Dogsleds and Digital Stories is open to Alaska Natives aged 14-24 from Mentasta, Chistochina, Gakona, Gulkana, Cantwell, Tazlina, and Kluti-Kaah. Organizers would enthusiastically welcome new participants. Contact Carson Tortorige at MSTC for more information.
An upcoming event open to a wide range of youth is Chistochina Fun Days. There will be sprint races for adult teams, followed by Junior Class races. Kids aged 4-17 can participate. Eighteen year olds can participate in either Junior Class or adult races depending on their experience. There are some dogs from local kennels on loan for the event. Families are encouraged to contact MSTC ahead of time so that children can work with the dogs before they run. Ideally, the children will learn to put the harness on and know the dog’s name.
Article by Allison Sayer