Dogsledding: An Australian in Maine

By Liz McEachern Hall - New Year’s resolution # 132: Go dogsledding and quit complaining about the cold! That’s the brief version of how I ended up in -12F temperatures, five layers between me and the frostbite, and miles from any hope of a hot chocolate. Thanks to 11:59 pm, December 31st, 2003, I persuaded (read: conned) my husband and two other Aussie friends, Cassie and Simon, into taking a weekend trip to Maine to experience dogsledding. Aren’t resolutions the best? Of course I scheduled it for one of the coldest weekends of the winter (I know that all the meteorologists in Boston plotted that), but somehow it all seemed to fit.

The weather doesn’t seem so bad after making a detour to the L.L. Bean outdoor store in Freeport, Maine. The purpose of the detour is to ensure that we were fully prepared for what was about to take place, which meant purchasing thermal long underwear and 6 hour hand and feet warmers.

After managing to drive south instead of north and turning a 2 hour trip into an extended after dark drive, we arrived in Newry, Maine where one of our guides, Polly, greeted us. A seasoned professional who had spent 10 years living a subsistence lifestyle in the Yukon Territory, she seemed qualified, considering my idea of a subsistence lifestyle is getting to the supermarket once a week.

Our overnight accommodation was a rather rustic looking farmhouse with a history to match. The decor was an eclectic mixture of Native American artifacts and dogsledding paraphernalia. It was late, but not late enough that we couldn’t enjoy some non-Atkins food (fuel for our adventure) and a big screen to view the New England Patriots play off game at a nearby bar. Watching Belichick’s boys’ meant not getting to bed until three nail-biting hours later. I remember thinking, if they make it to the Super Bowl I’m going to have to take out shares in Sally Hansen.

Morning brought the first glimpse of our new surroundings, and it almost took my breath away. The property was situated in a basin enclosed by tall snow covered mountains. Though the sun was barely out, I could see and feel how isolated we were. And standing close to the window I could feel how cold it was too. I mentally refused to let that become an issue and began preparing for the exciting day ahead.

We enjoyed a hearty breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast, bacon and homemade banana scones straight out of the oven. The fact that I don’t drink coffee prompted me to chow down a second scone in the hopes of jump-starting my energy level.

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