Skwentna to Rainy Pass – How ‘Bout Them Steps?

We departed Skwentna in the daylight and shortly left the river and started heading toward the mountains. Moguls and heavy, wet snow characterized most of the passage. Initially when we left the river we passed through forest and intermittent swamp trails, where you could see the Alaska Range drawing ever closer. Skirting lakes, occasional overflow, and it started snowing. More moguls…endless moguls. We all learned quickly that while the front part of the team might be able to skirt some of the holes, the sled was going in – just aim straight so you don’t tip.

We pulled into Finger Lake amidst some fairly heavy snow – didn’t plan to stay long, as I wanted to get through the Steps in the daylight. We ended up staying a bit longer than planned…the vets had to look over the team, I had to use the outhouse, and I chatted a bit with Laura Daugereau, whom they parked us beside when we stopped. Then of course we needed to put on new booties, as the dogs were getting to be quite efficient at pulling them off the instant we got into a checkpoint. However they also were getting quite proficient at “surfing” the ground where we were parked for snacks, and a few remaining kibble that might remain where a previous team had been parked. They would get the chance to perfect their surfing techniques during the upcoming checkpoints.

An hour later we pulled the hook and started toward the Steps…with much trepidation. We were rapidly losing our light and it was going to be dark by the time we hit the Steps – oh well, gotta go, certainly don’t want the dogs to be rested when we did them. That didn’t seem to matter…the dogs love running at night, and they got a new burst of energy as we started into the trail going through the Steps. The great news is that there was LOTS of snow. LOTS! Sinclair and Coast were in lead, the trail was twisty turny, and the 16 dog team were in high gear. And it was fun! It would have been even moreso had I not been thinking about the Steps drawing ever closer.

The Happy River Steps are a series of drops (“steps) bringing the trail down off the mountainside onto the Happy River, where it stays for just a short while, then starts climbing again toward Puntilla Lake and Rainy Pass. The drops are more like short cliffs, and once you start, down you go. I’d seen various pictures from summertime and from previous years, but really had no idea what it was going to look like or how you started them. The difficulty/dangers of the trail vary tremendously depending on the snow level. Why? In low/no snow years, your team is steamrolling down the mountainsides on rocks and ice, and with sharp turns there’s nothing to keep the team and sled on the trail. Deep snow is a blessing because you have a well-worn trail “slot” to follow. This year it was really a chute, sometimes with walls over my head. So as long as the sled got into the chute, you were golden – just ride it and hang on and have fun! I discovered this once I got in the first Step, but the anticipation was nearly killing me as we drew closer and closer.

The team was motoring along the winding trail when it seemed all of a sudden Sinclair looked to her left, spied the first step and DOVE for it. Literally lunged and jumped into it, and of course dragging the whole team with her. Me too…here we go! As soon as we got into the chute I realized how deep it was and that while I couldn’t really brake and control the speed, there was very little we could do to get into real trouble, as there was nowhere else to go. The sides of the first chute towered well over my head. I saw fleeting vignettes of walls of snow, flying feet, twisting dog butts, and kept ever focused on ensuring the bow of the sled followed my wheel dogs and stayed in the slot of a trail. Down we went. And it WAS fun! We were committed now, so there was no point in worrying any more…might as well enjoy it. The dogs certainly were – they always run silently, but if they had been teenagers on a rollercoaster, I can imagine they would have been hooting and hollering. They were clearly in their element. Swish! Whoosh! Whump! Slide…. Whip turn. Whoosh again! Accelerate!! Let’s go!!!

It was completely dark and I figured we were done with all the looky-loos and videographers looking to capture teams in trouble. Wrong! How naïve of me…that’s what lights are for! As we approached the last Step, I noticed a glow above the trail ahead of us – how odd, being out here in the wilderness. We rounded a corner and there was a guy standing there at the top of the Step – as we zoomed by, he commented dryly “Have fun!” Great…so this one is worse than the others. The lights were set up to video the bottom of the Step, and yes, we dumped for a split second. I’m not sure how dramatic it was however, since the snow was so deep we landed on our left side, I stood up, up righted the sled, and off we went. It didn’t seem like that big a deal to me, and the snow was certainly soft and cushy…

Suddenly and dramatically we were down on the Happy River, and the trail was eerily flat. Deep snow down here in this gorge too. Then as we started to climb out, the trail got twisty again, and LOTS of really deep mogul holes…it was to be like this the entire way to Puntilla Lake, although I didn’t know it at the time. I was travelling with a couple of guys who were also rookies, and so we all helped each other out if one got stuck or tangled. It was a fun trail. Up and down, round and round, in and out. Finally got to a side trail where there was a tent where someone was set up to provide hot water you could put in your cooler to take into the checkpoint, a couple of miles ahead. Since it was dark and no moon, it was hard to tell exactly what we were passing through, but that area seemed wide open, maybe another lake or meadow. Then we dropped down onto Puntilla Lake and pulled into the Rainy Pass checkpoint. We were all pretty happy with ourselves, having enjoyed the Steps…so what was the big deal, anyway? ;-)