Warning! Scenic! A Northern extension of the Rocky Mountains, the White Mountains are marked by rolling black spruce forests, rocky limestone cliffs, open river valleys, and mountain ridges adorned with mystical black granite tors. This trip is best suited to those in search of adventure, technical trails, & jaw-dropping scenery.
This six-day trip travels a scenic loop through thick boreal forest, alongside the fantastic rock arches of Limestone Gulch, across Beaver Creek (a National Wild & Scenic River), and over the mountains via a pass called Cache Mountain Divide. BLM provides beautiful log cabins dotted at regular intervals along the route.
This trip is approximately 110 miles and is the most technical of the trips we offer, due to the remote and rugged nature of the terrain traversed. 4 person limit.
No previous mushing experience is required. We will teach you everything you need to know to feel comfortable and equipped for your days on the trail. That being said, dog mushing is a physical activity...from harnessing dogs to standing on the sled all day, you will need to be reasonably able-bodied in order to fully enjoy this experience. This seven day trip goes deep into the heart of a wilderness area. Sections of trail are very technical. In order to safely enjoy this trip you must be able to:
✔️ Lift 50-60 lbs of dog sled.
✔️ Endure hard falls onto ice or hard packed snow.
✔️ Get dragged while holding onto sled handlebars (hard on shoulders).
✔️ You must be able to squat to go to the bathroom outside.
✔️ You must be able to bend down (like you are tying your shoes) dozens of times a day.
✔️ You must be able to climb stairs quickly and easily.
✔️ You must be able to jump up from a prone position on the ground or in deep snow off-piste (i.e. a snow burpee)
✔️ Be capable of walking or hiking on steep and uneven terrain for up to 8 hours.
✔️ Be prepared to wrangle strong sled dogs (hard on wrists, hands, and shoulders).
✔️ Be able to manipulate frozen snaps and clips.
✔️ Have quick reflexes to brake at appropriate moments.
✔️ Be prepared to be exposed to cold, wet, windy and otherwise adverse weather conditions sometimes found in higher latitudes.
If you are over the age of 65, we require a medical clearance from your doctor. (Click here to see our medical form.)
You do not need previous experience with cold-weather climates, but you will need to equip yourself with a proper set of winter base layers in order to ensure your comfort and safety. Even though it is spring in Alaska, weather and temperatures can still be harsh and unpredictable. We will provide you with a list of suggested & required gear -- your comfort is our utmost concern! Check out our packing list here.
Yes. You will drive and be responsible for your own small team of 4-6 dogs. On orientation day, your professional dog sledding guide will introduce you to your team, give you a lesson on how to drive the sled, and take you out on a short trip to practice your new mushing skills. You will learn how to harness a sled dog, and how to slow and stop your team. Your guide drives their own team just ahead of you, keeping an eye on the dogs, the trail, and your progress. You will drive a dog sled all seven days.
This multi-day expedition covers approximately 90–105 miles through the White Mountains National Recreation Area, traveling from the Wickersham Dome trailhead deep into the range before returning along a scenic southern route.
This route offers a dynamic progression through the White Mountains—starting in broad, open valleys, climbing into exposed ridgelines, and reaching the rugged northern mountain corridor before returning through familiar terrain from a new perspective.
Expect a diverse mix of landscapes: quiet spruce forest, frozen creek travel, rolling hills, elevated viewpoints, and the dramatic terrain surrounding Windy Gap—making this a deeply immersive and rewarding Interior Alaska dog sledding expedition.
The White Mountains National Recreation Area has 12 beautiful log cabins dotted at 10-25 mile intervals along hundreds of miles of trails frequented more commonly by caribou and wolves than people. The cabins are rustic, with an open concept design.
Each cabin is outfitted with a wood stove, a small kitchen, a large table with benches and a wall of double bunks. A favorite feature all the cabins share is a large picture window orientated toward the best view the location has to offer.
Each cabin can comfortably accommodate 6 people, the largest up to 12. There is an outhouse at each cabin.
We can accommodate all dietary needs if notified at time of registration. If we have a mixed group of meat eaters and non-meat eaters, we offer animal protein (bacon, sausages) as an add-on. If we are all meat eaters, pulled pork with coleslaw and bacon cheeseburgers are some of our favorite meals. We provide you with a snack bag filled with a mix of sweet, salty, savory and chocolatey snacks for fueling up between meals. Dessert is most often cookies or chocolate with a hot coffee, tea, or cider.
Orientation
Trail Day 1
Trail Day 2
Trail Day 3
Trail Day 4:
Trail Day 5:
Trail Day 6:
Your safety is our top priority — long before you arrive in Alaska. Every expedition is led by certified Wilderness First Responder guides and supported by detailed risk management plans, orientation sessions, and constant communication on the trail. We carry extensive first aid kits, satellite communication, and emergency transport options on every trip.
Behind the scenes, our team plans routes, monitors weather, and prepares gear so your experience feels effortless and secure. You can focus on the adventure — knowing we’ve prepared for every possibility.
Read More in our How We Keep You Safe on a Dog Sledding Trip blog.
Here is a playlist of videos that clients who adventured with us in the White Mountains National Recreation Area have created.
Your dog sledding guide for this trip is Lisbet Norris. Lisbet is the company owner and lead guide at Arctic Dog Adventure Co. Originally from Willow, Alaska, Lisbet grew up in a dog-mushing family. She is a three-time finisher of the Iditarod, the longest sled dog race in the world. Lisbet has two decades of experience guiding dog sled tours and expeditions. She is known for her leadership qualities under adverse circumstances and through sound preparation and experience, she makes the most unique and challenging adventures possible for her clients! Lisbet has a strong love for the North. A self-taught naturalist, she feels at home in the boreal forest of Interior Alaska and loves sharing the northern landscape with others. Lisbet holds a degree in Northern Studies and History from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
If you are traveling with larger luggage (suitcases, travel bags, etc.), you will not be able to bring it on the dog sledding trip. We will repack your necessary items into our provided bags and you can leave your larger suitcase behind.
You have two easy options for where to leave your luggage during our tour:
Option 1 — Leave luggage at your hotel
Most hotels in Fairbanks are happy to hold your luggage while you are out on tour. Simply ask the front desk to store it until your return.
Option 2 — Leave luggage at the kennel
If needed, we can securely store luggage at the Arctic Dog Adventure Co. kennel while you are on your trip.
You should only take the gear listed in the packing list (see the packing list task) on your dog sledding adventure.
The Northern Lights can be viewed in Fairbanks from August through April even at Kp0*. That being said, your chance of seeing the lights increases when the skies are clear, meaning little to no cloud cover. March, followed by April & February, are historically the months with the lowest precipitation in Fairbanks, meaning clear skies and good chances of spotting the aurora.
The northern lights are caused by charged particles from the sun (solar wind) hitting the Earth’s magnetosphere. Around the equinoxes (fall and spring), the Earth’s axis is side-on to the sun, which happens to sync with the magnetic field of the solar wind. That means that during the equinoxes in March and September, charged particles are more likely to be accelerated down the field lines of Earth’s magnetosphere, causing the northern lights.**
*Kp is used to measure aurora strength.
**There is no guarantee we will see the northern lights. While regularly observed in Fairbanks, they are still an unpredictable natural phenomenon highly dependent on
weather and cloud cover. We can guarantee: good food, tasty snacks, amazing scenery, comfortable cabin accommodations and lots of time with our amazing huskies!
After breakfast at your accommodations, we will pick you up and bring you to the homestead to meet your guides and your new teammates: the dogs!
We will go over gear, have a brief lesson on mushing, take a test dog sled ride through the boreal forest, and prepare our sleds for departure the next morning.
Lunch will be provided in between preparations and we will finish the evening with a relaxing dinner at Arctic Dog Adventure Co. After dinner, your guide will show you how to use your cold weather sleeping system and you will test your pad, bag & liner in the comfort of the ADAC lodge.
After breakfast, we will load up the sled dogs and start the 1-hour drive to the trailhead, where we will unload gear, hook up our dog teams, and set off. The trailhead accesses the one million-acre White Mountains National Recreation Area and its beautiful network of winter trails and log cabins. With an ocean of forest stretching hundreds of miles in either direction, we will follow ridge lines until we reach an expanse of burn — black spruce forest burnt up in a wildfire a decade ago. (7-16 miles)
This landscape is marked by candlestick-like tree trunks blackened by fire. The small vegetation that has grown up since the fire makes this area rich in wildlife: moose, grouse, ptarmigan, martin, and wolves. Limbless trees allow for good visibility in all directions.
We will pass up and over small hills and down through clumps of charmingly crooked black spruce forest before reaching an open expanse of meadow and tundra. The cabin is just above us, perched on a small bluff that overlooks the Moose Creek drainage. Once we reach the cabin we will tie the dogs out, build a fire in the cabin and enjoy the pleasure of a hot meal after miles of fresh air on our faces. The cabins are the ultimate Alaskan retreats. Remote, rustic, but beautifully crafted and warm, they are heated by large wood stoves, equipped with bunks, lanterns, table, benches and have ample room for gear and leg stretching.
After breakfast for both humans and dogs, we will gear up, hook up, and continue westward through the Moose Creek corridor.
Today’s route follows the natural flow of the landscape, with frozen creek travel, gentle rises, and stretches of spruce forest opening into wider snow-covered flats. This is beautiful, classic Interior Alaska mushing country — quiet, spacious, and deeply remote.
As the day unfolds, we leave the broader drainage and work our way toward more sheltered forested terrain. The trail rolls gently through a mix of black spruce and open patches, offering smooth travel and a chance to settle more confidently into life on the runners.
By afternoon we arrive at Lee’s Cabin, our home for the night. Here again, we’ll care for the dogs, gather wood, prepare dinner, and enjoy another cozy evening in the warmth of the cabin after a full day outside.
We will make camp at the scenic Cache Mountain, giant granite formations known as the Sled Dog Rocks watching over us nearby as we care for the dogs and prepare for the next day’s crossing of the mountain pass barely visible in the distance.
Leaving Lee’s Cabin behind, we begin climbing gradually into more open country.
Today’s trail transitions between sheltered forest and exposed ridgelines, with views opening wider as we gain elevation. We move through a striking patchwork of boreal forest and burn, where blackened trunks and regenerating vegetation create beautiful contrast against the snow.
If skies are clear, the higher ground gives us long views over the valleys and hills of the White Mountains. The dogs travel eagerly here, and by now each team is finding its rhythm — drivers and dogs beginning to move together with growing confidence and ease.
Perched on a scenic overlook, Borealis-LeFevre Cabin is one of the most beautiful stops on the route. From its position above the surrounding country, the cabin offers a true sense of the scale and remoteness of this landscape.
Meals: Breakfast in cabin, lunch on the trail, dinner at cabin.
Accommodations: Borealis-LeFevre Cabin
Mileage: Approx. 14–18 miles
Today we turn north, leaving the southern ridges behind and traveling deeper into the heart of the White Mountains.
The route from Borealis-LeFevre to Windy Gap feels increasingly wild and remote. We travel through a varied landscape of open hillsides, creek corridors, and spruce-lined trail, gradually drawing closer to the mountain country.
As we near Windy Gap, the terrain becomes more dramatic. The broad Interior landscape begins to tighten into rocky corridors and higher relief, hinting at the geologic beauty ahead. This section of trail feels like a transition into another part of the range — quieter, steeper, and shaped more by the mountains themselves.
By day’s end we arrive at Windy Gap Cabin, tucked near the pass that gives the area its name. It is a spectacular place to spend the night, surrounded by the wilder northern reaches of the route.
After our night at Windy Gap, we begin the journey south again, retracing part of our route from a new perspective.
Leaving the cabin, we move back out of the northern mountain corridor and into more open country. The day has a wonderful feeling of momentum — the dogs know their job, the teams are traveling well, and everyone now feels fully immersed in the rhythm of expedition life.
We cover good ground today, descending gradually through rolling terrain and forested sections before re-entering the country nearer Wickersham Dome. The landscape begins to feel more familiar, but the changing light, trail direction, and accumulated experience make it feel entirely fresh.
By afternoon we reach Yeager’s Cabin, where we spend our final night in the backcountry. It is a fitting last stop: warm, welcoming, and close enough to feel the journey coming full circle, while still surrounded by wilderness.
Our final morning on the trail.
After breakfast, we pack our gear one last time, harness the dogs, and set off for the trailhead at Wickersham Dome. The final stretch winds through familiar country — rolling trail, stands of spruce, and the last gentle rises and descents before the parking lot comes into view.
You will feel a burst of energy in the dogs. They know they are nearly back to the truck, and their excitement is contagious.
The final miles wind through a thick old alpine spruce forest unique to the Wickersham Dome region. The last mile is downhill and a bit bumpy. We will sweep into the parking lot seemingly all of a sudden. When we arrive at the trailhead, we will load the dogs and sleds, then drive back to the kennel to sort gear and say goodbye to the teams. From there, we will shuttle you back to your hotel in Fairbanks.
* Please note that the Cache Mountain Crossing Itinerary is subject to change due to cabin availability and significant and unpredictable shifts in weather. Due to the nature of our permitting process with BLM, there is no guarantee we will be able to secure the cabins mentioned here. Rest assured, every cabin in the Whites is a scenic delight!
Fairbanks, AK, USA 
