Adventure 26

January 9 to 13, 2020
Leavenworth, WA

Dogsledding Adventure

Dogsledding through the woods
Snow in your face, oh the livelihood!
The lead dog listens to the musher's voice
The team will speed and you’ll rejoice!

Watch out! A moose sure can cause a traffic jam
There is no word in “Moose” for hey you, scram!
The deer and the elk you also may see
Like George of the jungle, watch out for that tree!

Dasher, and Dancer, and Prancer, I think not!
Rudolph, no way, an aforethought
But reindeer you will get to touch
A glimpse, a gaze and a stare as such

Enjoy your cabin, forested it is
Hot tub in winter, just like show biz
Shopping in a village quaint
A convivial time you’ll have with no constraint!

12 year old Samantha “Sammy”,isn’t going to tap out or be held in submission by any Complex IV Mitochondrial Disease or Mycolconus!
Sammy wanted to go on a Dogsled Adventure, and sure enough there happens to be a magnificent organization right in her home state of Washington. Before we go any further, it should be thoroughly understood that sled dogs are not driven with reins, but by spoken commands. No animals were hurt during the filming of this Adventure!

If you have ever thought about what it would be like to be part of the Iditarod or dreamed of what it would be like to be on a sled behind a team of well trained and experienced dogs, this is it!!! The dogs run forward, the sleigh starts moving, and off they go, with Sammy and her happy smile in tow! There was an awful lot of Adventure, and moments of sheer terror, and a lot of quiet and joy as the “Flying Furs” glided through the snow and over the trails..Master Musher Capt. Larry told Sammy...“You can’t force these dogs to do this, this is what they want to do,” “They want to run!.”

And run they did!!! The dogs were exuberant!
The 8 mile experience was like flying through the mountains!
Brave Young Hearts would like to thank Master Musher and Dogsled Racer Captain Larry & his wife Jeanne Roxby,and Northwest Dogsled Adventures

Thanks to Mikki Douglass of Duck Dogs Sled Team, and the Northwest Sled Dog Association, who shot the video of Sammy’s Adventure...and by Mikki’s side was her canine colleague, Capt. Jack, who sadly had Stage 4 Cancer himself and crossed over the Rainbow Bridge shortly after Sammy’s experience. Let us not forget to also thank Ms. Musher, Connie Starr.

The next day, Sammy got the VIP tour at the Leavenworth Reindeer Farm, and learned many interesting facts about reindeer. Erika and the Reindeer Farm were super friendly and incredibly attentive. Sammy and her family, got to feed, pet, and take pictures with these beautiful reindeer! (Woodland Caribou) Amazing! This was a memorable and magic experience! Sammy’s whole experience was really casual and she felt like they were getting a friends’ tour. A big thanks to Erika Bowie and the Leavenworth Reindeer Farm!

But wait, that’s not all! Then came the carriage ride with the giant draft horse!! From the forest of snow to the town of Leavenworth. You’ve never “hoofed it” through America’s version of Bavaria like this! Imagine a Bavarian village where a horse-drawn carriage leads you along cobblestone streets. As you make your way through town. Taking in the surrounding beauty of the Cascade Mountains, and listening to the clickety-clack of our horse, We were transported to a time and place where fairy tales just might exist.

Thanks also to Twila Bing for such a great Cabin In The Woods for Sammy and her family to stay during her Adventure!