The deep snow has gotten a little firmer, but now has a thin icy crust, so not fun for huskies to break trail on. We took turns laying trail for them to follow. With a bit of trial and error, we managed a lead arrangement that allowed Zeena and Tonttu their own space on the trail without crowding each other out.

While listed as a "road" (even with a stop sign at the bottom!), it's difficult to see more than ORVs making their way up this path in the summer....

#Huskies #Skijoring #BackcountrySkiing

The trail was uphill nearly the whole way. Dale broke trail (and a sweat) for the first mile, then switched with Jeff for a break. After a quarter mile, that was enough for Jeff too!

According to various online maps, the road went on for another mile or more, but without any specific endpoint or destination to shoot for, we decided we'd gotten enough exercise for the day and turned back. We also resumed solo-dog skijoring.

It sure was nice to follow a packed trail mostly downhill! Much quicker going back then the trip out!

...aside from one break for Tonttu to point out a red squirrel and another for Zeena to check out some smells along the way.

The end!

Here's one parting shot of the trail we left for others to follow, which better illustrates how well hidden the stream crossing was from the road!