In dogged pursuit of fun travel

Wyoming company offers introductory mushing

In this story: 'Greatest adventures' Growing pastime RELATED STORIES, SITES

From Stephanie Oswald
CNN Travel Now Correspondent

(CNN) -- It's an outdoor activity that calls for the terms "gee" and "haw." Each team has 10 members and each member has four legs. It's a sport that involves trotting, sliding and braking.

If this were "Jeopardy!" the question would be: "What is dogsledding?"

What, indeed, is it?

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Frontier spirit meets high life in Jackson Hole

It's a great way to tour the beautiful wilderness of the Jackson Hole region in the northwest corner of Wyoming, where the Continental Divide Dogsled Adventures company offers an exciting lesson on a dog's life in the great outdoors.

The company will let tourists become mushers for a day, or at least for a few miles. The word "musher" comes from the French verb "marcher" (pronounced mar-SHAY), which means "to walk."

Overnight trips are also popular; the company is doing almost 10 times as many overnight trips this year as it did during its first season in 1997.

A good musher gets the dogs moving in matching gaits, their pacing comparable to sets of horses. It's best when they are trotting in formation, with the lead dogs at the top, two "tug" dogs running closest to the sled and all the ropes taut.

'Greatest adventures'

Amateur mushers say the feeling is similar to cross-country skiing, skateboarding or even snowboarding. When they're in "the bag," the cocoon-like enclosure at the front of the sled, it's like having a warm spot with a window to the scenery flying by - a bumpy ride, certainly, but cozy.

On the other hand, when mushers are standing at the rear of the sled, it's all about balance. They need to know how to work the brake, lean in the direction the dogs should turn and call out commands.

"I feel it's one of the greatest adventures I've ever been on," says expert musher Michael Dowda. "It is one of the best experiences, just the sound of nature and being out there alone with your team."

Rule No. 1 in mushing? "Don't let go," says Dowda.

Mushers like Dowda will gladly take the reins for visitors, but tourists who choose to ride in the "bag" shouldn't expect an amusement-park-type ride that lasts a few minutes. They can go for hours and even days.

Growing pastime

One sledder, a 76-year-old Virginia resident, recently took her third dogsled adventure, traveling lodge to lodge on a three-day trip. Dogsledding, she says, changed her life.

"I think more people would like it if they knew about it," she says. "If they just give it a try, they may be just as thrilled as I am."

The dogs are a furry and friendly part of the trip. They take their job seriously, but they also roll in the snow when they're hot, eat the snow when they're thirsty and, like any normal pooches, sometimes stop to sniff new scents they find along the way.

These mixed-breed animals are bred and raised in the Wind River area of Wyoming. They run about 10 miles on a half-day trip, and cover anywhere from 15 to 30 miles during a full-day trip.

Granted, dog travel at Jackson Hole is not on the same level as the Iditarod, the famed Alaskan race, but the elements of nature, teamwork and endurance are comparable.

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