Inside, there was an old, worn out loveseat and a wooden rocking chair, next to a small black wood stove. It was amazing how much heat was being emitted from the stove. Ben and Megan stood next to it, warming themselves, rotating their bodies every few seconds as the heat got too strong to tolerate. Sarah and Lacey went outside to a back porch area where they were packing food and chatting about life out in the wilderness.
“Hello,” a soft voice called out to Ben and Megan, they turned quickly, startled by a young woman who had approached them silently.
“Hi, I’m Ben and this is my sister, Megan.” Ben smiled at the woman.
“I’m Katie, Sarah’s sister,” she glanced nervously at the back door as she spoke.
“Oh, I didn’t even realize anyone else lived here, will you be going with us today?” Ben asked.
“Yes, I think I should, I’ll ride on the sled with you two, Sarah can ride with your aunt.”
“How did you know she is our aunt?” Megan asked shyly.
Katie looked around nervously, “oh…um, thin walls, I can hear everything.” Megan shook her head in understanding, she was just about to speak when she heard the back door creak open, as she looked back toward Katie she was gone.
“She must have had to get some stuff ready or something,” Ben said, “Kinda weird though, I didn’t even see her leave.” He moved away from the stove and sat on the old loveseat just as Sarah and Lacey walked into the room.
“Okay, so we just have to get the dog teams ready, and then we’ll be on our way, all the food will be on my sled. Lacey told me about her injury, and I think she better ride with me, I’ll teach you guys how to run the team. Really the dogs know exactly what to do without being told,” Sarah said as she pulled on an extra thick winter coat and hat.
“Yeah, it’ll be fine, it’s not like we’ll be alone.” Megan added.
“No of course not, like I said the dogs know exactly what to do, and you’ll be following me so they’ll know to stick right with my sled.”
Megan and Ben looked at each other, both wondering why Sarah hadn’t even mentioned Katie, but before they could ask Sarah was pushing them outside, loading their arms with supplies and directing them to two long dog sleds.
The sleds were about five feet long and two feet wide. The front of the sled sloped upwards the length of the base and created a triangle of fabric that connected to the handles. In the fabric covered triangle there was a lot of storage space, or extra space for passengers to ride in front of the musher, the person driving the team of dogs. That person, stood at the very back of the sled on a small platform, from this point they could help the dogs push the sled, going up a hill, or they could slow the sled down by using their foot or a brake lever that dug into the snow or ground to slow the team down. Sarah explained how the musher would lean from side to side as the dogs moved around corners on the trail, although the dogs know exactly what to do if something happens the musher gives the dogs directions, by a few simple words and whistles.
Sarah walked with Ben and Megan past a dozen dog houses, the dogs were yelping and jumping, they were so excited and seemed to be shouting, ‘PICK ME, PICK ME!’ As they were passed by, some yelped in sorrow, but then continued barking with enthusiasm. Sarah took one dog at a time and brought them back to the ropes and harnesses at the sleds. She explained how certain dogs are trained for certain positions on the team. Only a few dogs are capable of being the lead dogs out in front. These dogs cannot get distracted by anything along the path, and are in charge of the dogs following behind them. They set the pace for the entire group.
Sarah began attaching dogs to different areas along the lines, each dog was so excited to be going for a run. Sarah explained that this is what these dogs live to do, this is the most exciting part of their day, when they get to do what they are trained for.
After organizing all the dogs and creating two sled teams Sarah went over the basic commands for the dogs, and how to maneuver the sled, she explained again that the dogs were mainly going to be following her team, so this should be just a simple ride for Ben and Megan.
Sarah had Lacey climb into the sled, she covered her with a blanket and then covered her with the fabric covering and attached it on the other side of the sled. She looked as though she had just been tucked into a very large leather boot, her legs were bent and she braced her feet against the boxes of supplies in front of her.
Sarah then moved over and directed Megan to climb into the interior part of the sled. As Megan slid in she made room for Ben, “Oh no sweetie, Ben is going to be driving the team from back here,” Sarah explained. The dogs were yelping and howling, they were so eager to go that Sarah didn’t even hear Megan ask about Katie. Sarah was obviously wanting to get moving. She showed Ben how to stand on the platform, made sure he had a good grip and then headed back to her sled. She pulled a metal stake out of the ground that was anchoring the team, motioned for Ben to do the same, then whooped a few times and the dogs took off. Ben’s team started to move, following in line with Sarah’s team, directly behind her sled. Ben looked at Megan, questioning what had happened to Katie, then suddenly he felt her jump onto the platform behind him.
“Sorry about that!” Katie apologized, she pushed Ben forward a bit, but didn’t offer to stop so she could move into the interior portion of the sled with Megan. “This is okay, right? You want to learn how to drive the team, don’t you?” She called into Ben’s ear.
“Yes, uh…of course,” Ben responded, not knowing how else to answer.
The sled’s wheels rolled bumpily over the soggy surface as the dogs worked extra hard to work through the mud on the trail. Their team consisted of ten dogs. Katie explained how each was selected based on strength, personality, dominance and ability to handle stress. Ben was fascinated by their sheer strength and the fact that Katie hadn’t said one word to them and they were moving together in a smooth effort to drag the sled. These dogs were incredible, he quickly decided.
As the team ran, Megan turned and began asking Katie a few questions. Mainly, what each dog was named, something flew beside her head and landed on the fabric next to her. She screeched and with her gloved hand brushed it off the sled, “Was that poo?” Megan dramatically asked Katie.
“Oh, yes, sorry. The dogs are so well trained, they don’t even stop to go to the bathroom, it would take too much time if each of the ten dogs stopped at different moments to go, so they learn to literally, go on the run.” Katie blushed a little, not knowing how Megan would take the information.
Megan smiled and looked at Ben, “Well that’s something you don’t see every day.” She turned and settled in deeper into the sled, blocking her face.
“Will she be okay?” Katie asked Ben.
“Oh yeah, it’s good for her, plus…well it’s really funny for me to watch,” they both laughed and then settled into the movement of the sled.
The dogs moved quickly, they maneuvered bends in the trail, around rocks and trees effortlessly, Ben and Katie didn’t have to say anything to them the entire trip. As they came over a small hill, Ben saw a few tiny cabins in the distance.
“Oh what’s that?” He asked Katie.
“That’s Iditarod,” she beamed.
“It’s nothing though, is there a bigger part of the town up farther ahead or something?”
“Nope, that’s it. There’s only a few cabins left standing, it’s a ghost town now, was abandoned decades ago after the gold rush.”
“Gold rush?” Ben questioned.
“Yes, Iditarod was part of the first Alaskan gold rush, it was the lure for people from all over, they came, they mined, they built a small town. For a while it was a hub, and a lot of gold was extracted and sent away on the river. But as soon as the gold was gone, everything else was gone too. Life in the winter here is miserable, so everyone left. After years the buildings and cabins collapsed, so now there is just these ones left.” She sighed heavily. “We usually don’t see this place this much in one year, well
only every other year when the race rolls through here as a check point.”
“What do you mean?” Ben asked.
“Oh the Iditarod race, it has two routes, so on even numbered years, like 2010, it takes one route and then on odd number years, it takes another route. So on odd number years like this year, the race will go through the town of Iditarod. So today, will be my second time of seeing it this year. It’s so the trail or the surrounding landscape doesn’t get destroyed. Make sense?”
“Yeah, that’s really smart.” Ben acknowledged. “Sad about the town, though.”
“That’s what happens, people come for the wealth, and when that’s gone, they leave.”
Sarah’s team stopped on the pathway right in front of the small cabin. There was more snow here, but still the earth was soggy, and the rocks were exposed in a lot of places. Ben’s team of dogs slowed down and then halted right behind Sarah’s sled, he laughed at how effortless this whole mushing thing was turning out to be.
Lacey climbed out of the sled and walked over to Ben, “That was fast!”
“Yeah, amazing isn’t it.” He motioned behind him to introduce Katie to Lacey, but realized she had slipped away, and was nowhere to be seen. He shook his head, wondering why she was so shy. Then realized Lacey was waiting for him to get the key out and see where exactly this geocache was.
He handed Lacey the key. Just as she finished entering the coordinates into her phone, it suddenly vibrated with a response, she smiled at Ben and Megan, “It’s only ten feet away!” She turned and headed in the direction of a rickety cabin, “C’mon guys, it must be inside!”
Sarah followed the group as they entered the weathered cabin, she had seen it several times as she ran the Iditarod race but had never been inside. It was small, the floor boards creaked under their feet, slivers of sunlight shone through the wood planked walls. Ben and Megan began looking in the corners, Lacey looked above them at the beams of wood holding the roof in place. The black metal box, stood out amongst the aged wood, “Guys, over here,” she called. Megan and Ben both came to her side.
“Megan, I’ll boost you up.” Ben bent his knees and put his hands together, creating a step for Megan’s foot. She put her right foot in his hands, then they counted together to three. He lifted her easily, she reached and held onto the beam for balance with one hand, then grabbed the cold metal box with the other. Ben lowered her quickly to the floor.
Lacey took the brass key and slid it into the lock, everyone held their breath, thinking that maybe this would be the last cache of the Cache Master’s game. She twisted the key slowly and the lock popped open. Even Sarah was enthralled with what could potentially be inside. Lacey lifted the lid and revealed another key. Unlike the other boxes, under this key was a slip of paper.
Lacey unfolded the paper and read aloud the words scrawled in black ink, “You’ve done well, I promise it will be worth your while.” She looked at Ben and Megan, “Okay guys, decision time,” she paused waiting for their response.
“Well, they are getting easier,” Megan said.
“Yeah, that’s for sure, and the note does say it will be worth our time, besides we really should be getting more pics for United Cellular,” he reasoned.
“Okay, I’ll call your parents when we’re on the path back.” The group left the cabin and loaded back up into their sleds.
“We should get a move on,” Sarah said loudly as she pointed to the sky, “There’s a storm coming in from the North.”
Ben and Megan stared at the dark clouds blowing in quickly, “Yeah, let’s hurry, we definitely don’t wanna get stuck in that!” Ben called back to Sarah. With that, Sarah called out to the dogs and they barked and howled as they began pulling the sled again. Ben’s team began moving once again, and just as before he felt Katie jump on at the last minute behind him. “Where’d you go?” he was almost annoyed at her rudeness, he still hadn’t been able to introduce her to Lacey.
“Oh just wanted to check something out, sorry,” she apologized.
“No worries, just seemed like Sarah was gonna leave you behind.”
“She doesn’t even realize…” she paused and then looked away, “It’s okay, I made it, don’t you worry I won’t leave you guys behind.” Ben glanced back at her as her voice chimed through the air, he did a double take when he noticed her beautiful eyes. They were an amazing shade of crystal blue.
18
The winds from the North were blowing stronger the further they got down the Iditarod trail, a mist was developing, hinting at the proceeding storm. The path remained bumpy, the wheels of the dog sled kept getting stuck in the thick soggy ground, even the dogs were acting a bit different, perhaps from the impending storm, Ben thought.
Sarah and Lacey’s sled was about twenty feet in front of Ben and Megan’s, the trail was winding through a thicket of tall pine trees. As Sarah’s sled rounded a corner to the right, Ben’s sled went left, he called out to the dogs, to halt, but none of them stopped. They pulled harder and more furiously.
“What do we do?” Megan cried out as she gripped the thick canvas sides of the sled.
“Katie, help! Stop the dogs, they got off the path!” Ben clutched the handle bars harder and continued to yell at the dogs.
“It’s okay, they always head home.” Katie reassured them, too calmly for Ben’s taste.
“No, they are supposed to be following Sarah!” Ben yelled to her.
“Ben, calm down. I’m in control” Katie’s voice remained calm, it was so soothing, and instantly helped Ben relax. “You need to learn to enjoy the ride, Benjamin.”
“What did you just call me?” Ben asked, stunned.
“Oh sorry, Benjamin is your given name, correct?” Katie asked.
“Yes, of course, you just surprised me that’s all,” he looked at Megan, “Megz, we’ll be okay. Don’t worry.” The bumps on the ground were shaking Megan like crazy, as the dogs continued to pull the sled faster and faster Megan realized that they were headed directly into the storm.
The landscape changed quickly, suddenly the wheels of the sled were becoming stuck in the thick snow underfoot. The dogs struggled, but somehow their leaps through the snow didn’t slow the pace of the sled, if anything the snow helped it slide more easily for them. Ben began getting really nervous.
“What are we gonna do? Where are they going?” He asked Katie.
“They know where to go.” Katie said reassuringly. Ben took a deep breath, then suddenly the sled stopped. Katie hopped off the back of the sled and took large heavy steps to the sides of the sled. She knelt down and quickly took the wheels off, they snapped off with ease, she handed them to Megan.
Megan looked at her, stunned, “Okay,” she said, unamused. Just as quickly as Katie had gotten off the sled she was back on, Megan’s head whipped forward as the dogs pulled the sled harder, now they were gaining speed easily. The storm was so strong and the falling snow so thick they could hardly see the dogs at the lead of the team. It was a pure white out. Ben shivered and closed his eyes, he wasn’t sure what was happening or why.
The dogs continued to bark and pull as hard as they could, after an hour or so they came to a stop at something directly in front of them. At the sight of whatever it was, they all howled. It sounded as if they were crying with grief.
Megan turned toward Ben, ice had formed on her face where her eyes had watered in the strong freezing wind. “What do we do?”
Katie jumped off the sled into the thick snow and grabbed Ben’s arm, “Megan, you too, come quick!” they both climbed into the deep snow, which was up to their thighs. As they struggled to the front of the dog team they saw a horrible sight ahead of them. Laying in the path was a large gray colored wolf, frozen blood covered the wolf’s head and neck.
Megan let out a cry, “Oh my gosh!” She struggled through the snow as fast as she could to get to the wolf’s side. Once she was next to it, she could see that the wolf was already dead. But something at the wolf’s stomach was mov
ing. Ben and Megan both knelt down with Katie as she lifted the stomach of the dead wolf, under her on the cold snow were three tiny wolf pups.
“Oh no!” Megan cried again, “What do we do with them?”
“If we leave them here, they’ll die.” Ben said solemnly.
Katie reached down and scooped the pups into her arms, “We have to put them in our coats, to keep them warm,” she instructed Ben and Megan as she handed them each a pup. Both Ben and Megan unzipped their jackets and stuffed the tiny animals inside, where they nuzzled into their arms.
“Okay, let’s get going!” Ben yelled to Katie through the thick stinging wind.
“There’s no way we can get back now, the dogs are too cold and tired, we’ll have to stay here tonight,” Katie informed them.
“Wait, what?” Megan said, now agitated.
“C’mon, this storm is getting worse, we need to make a snow cave, it doesn’t have to be huge, but we need it to fit all of us.” Katie struggled through the snow and then about ten feet away from the sled started digging.
“She’s serious?!” Megan cried to Ben.
“Yep, looks like it, we better help, or we’ll freeze to death.” They both joined Katie and as quickly as they could, scooped handful after handful of snow out of the same spot Katie was digging. After twenty minutes they had created a deep hole, and then had moved to the side of the hole, digging in and under the snow. They left about a foot of snow on top, to create a roof. Katie used her hand to smooth the top of the roof, smoothing it enough to make the snow melt just enough to form a stronger coating of ice.
The space under the snow was only five feet wide and maybe four feet deep, it was very small, but Katie assured them that this would be sufficient. Ben started climbing into the hole, when Katie interrupted him, “Benjamin, the dogs, help me, please.” Ben looked at the dogs that were now curled into little balls, trying to stay warm. Most were almost totally covered in snow, except their snouts.
Waypoint Alaska Page 10
