{"id":3819224,"date":"2021-07-23T09:11:25","date_gmt":"2021-07-23T07:11:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/escales.ponant.com\/?p=3819224"},"modified":"2024-06-26T14:39:03","modified_gmt":"2024-06-26T12:39:03","slug":"dog-sledding-north-pole","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/escales.ponant.com\/us\/dog-sledding-north-pole\/","title":{"rendered":"The History of the Polar Practice of Dog Sledding"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Of Dogs and Men<\/b><\/h2>\n
\n

Alaskan Malamutes, Siberian Huskies, Greenland Dogs and Samoyeds: all these sled dogs are emblematic of the Far North<\/strong>, descended from wolves with whom they share their pack and survival instincts. These robust, powerful animals have incredible stamina and have accompanied mushers in the polar regions<\/strong> for thousands of years. The Inuit, gold prospectors, explorers and lovers of the great outdoors have all added their own chapter to the dog sledding story<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Dog sledding: <\/b>an ancestral practice<\/b><\/h3>\n

Although the term \u201cmusher\u201d<\/b> is relatively new*, dog sledding<\/b> is an ancestral practice with roots dating back roughly 5,000 to 6,000 years. \u201cFor the inhabitants of the Arctic, <\/i>this was the only way to get around<\/i><\/b>,\u201d<\/i> explains John Perrolaz, who has worked as a musher in the Queyras since 2008. The practice goes back to the domestication of wolves who, once tamed and harnessed to a sled, gave these indigenous peoples the opportunity to expand their hunting and fishing grounds. \u201cThese sleds enabled them to <\/i>colonise the hostile areas of the Far North<\/i><\/b>. Without dogs, they couldn\u2019t have survived.\u201d<\/i> Dog sledding is an ancient practice, but in some of Greenland\u2019s most remote regions, such as Qaanaaq in the North and Ittoqqortoormiit in the East, it is still part of the daily lives of the Inuit populations<\/a>. These areas are surrounded by sea ice nine months of the year, so mushing<\/b> is taught from an early age, and sled dogs<\/b> are still hunting and fishing companions, essential for the survival of the inhabitants of these extreme environments.<\/p>\n

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Prospectors: working like a dog\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n

In the late 19th century, the promised land for nearly 100,000 prospectors was called the Klondike<\/a>, a region of the western Yukon territory in Canada. It was the famous Gold Rush<\/i><\/b> era, and between 1896 and 1898, nearly 5,000 dogs<\/b> arrived at Dawson City, the base camp. Why? To provide transport<\/b>. Tens of thousands of migrants who came to seek their fortune and new adventures incorporated mushing<\/b> into their way of life. Sled dogs<\/b> were everywhere and increasingly became part of popular culture. In addition to gold and men, they tirelessly carried food, equipment, wood and mail. It was around this time, in August 1897, that a penniless young Jack London reached Dawson City. Although he did not return home a rich man, he later turned his experiences into literary gold, namely The Call of the Wild<\/i> and White Fang<\/i>.<\/p>\n

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Dogs in \u201cpole\u201d position<\/b><\/h3>\n

Reaching the Poles<\/b> has always been a challenge for humanity, even more so than finding gold. Yet, without sled dogs<\/b>, there would have been no polar exploration<\/a>. They were involved in the excitement of the race to terra incognita <\/i>from the very beginning in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Five tireless Greenland Dogs accompanied Jean-Baptiste Charcot aboard Le Fran\u00e7ais <\/i>on his first expedition to Antarctica (1903-1905). Dogs <\/b>also pulled Paul-\u00c9mile Victor\u2019s sled <\/b>during his exploration of Ad\u00e9lie Land in 1956. Between these two expeditions were two other notable feats. In 1909, Robert Peary and Frederick Cook both claimed to have reached the North Pole first (this remains controversial to this day), and in 1911, Roald Amundsen was the first to reach the South Pole. All these explorers had sled dogs<\/b> who proved to be valuable allies, whether for transporting equipment<\/b> or guiding men<\/b>. \u201cDuring a whiteout in the middle of a storm<\/i>, you can\u2019t see anything<\/i>,\u201d explains John Perrolaz. \u201cWe have neither their sense of smell nor their ability to see and get our bearings in the snow. Without dogs, the men would have been lost.\u201d <\/i><\/p>\n

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