Hut tour

Today we have to prepare our luggage for the big tour. We can only take the most important things with us, because we have to take our things on the sledge.

Allocation of the dogs
After breakfast we drive back to the dog camp together. There each of us is assigned a team with 4 dogs for the 4-day hut tour.

The first stage
The first stage is about 50 kilometers long and takes us across lakes and snowy forests. Towards the evening we reach the first hut, where we will spend the first snack. But first the dogs have to be tied up and looked after, because of course they sleep outside.

The first hut
Then we divide up the upcoming work. Wood has to be chopped, the oven has to be heated, water has to be fetched. There is even a separate spring here for drinking water. The water can easily be drawn from a shaft. We will soon find out that this is not always so easy.

Soon everything is done and we enjoy our dinner, which we only have to cook. There is soup, meat and noodles and even biscuits for dessert.

By the time we go to sleep, it is really warm in the hut, the upper beds are almost like a sauna.
Of course we also have to feed our dogs. They get chopped pieces of meat.

Northern Lights
On the first evening we are able to watch the beautiful northern lights flickering in the sky right above us. It is very impressive to be able to experience something like that live in nature.

The second hut
The second hut that we reach is a bit smaller than the first. Nevertheless, we make ourselves comfortable. Today we even eat reindeer meat. Here we have to fetch water from a frozen lake. First the hole has to be cleared with an ice pick and then the water has to be scooped out with a bucket, which is not entirely safe. Because who wants to bathe in ice water involuntarily in this cold!

Unless you use the sauna first, which is available in all the huts here. Some say that the toilet house here is very small. I don't care, because you don't stay sitting in the cold for long.

The longest stage
In the morning, after breakfast, we get ready to continue our journey. Today's tour is supposed to be the longest and we'll be on the sledge for about 6 hours. Harnessing the dogs is already easier now and soon we're off, again through the huge landscape of ice and snow. Today it's about minus 23 degrees, but the icy wind makes me feel at least minus 30 degrees. Luckily we're wearing good clothes and my feet will soon warm up again.

The last stage
Today we tackle the last part of the tour. The last hut where we stayed was the smallest, but that was OK for one night.

After a drive of about 50 kilometers, we're back at our starting point. Unfortunately, we now have to say goodbye to our dogs. Then we drive back to the lodge and look forward to a 5-course dinner.

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