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Turning Heads Kennel

Alaska Dog Sledding Tours

Summer Alaska Dog Sled Tour

Help Train New Lead Dogs On A Thrilling Summer Dog Sled Ride

Did you know dogs know their left from right? Find out how on our interactive dog sled ride that showcases how we train our lead dogs. Learn all about how we train and prepare our dogs for races like the 1,000 mile Iditarod, hear exciting tales from the trail, and experience Alaska’s state sport for yourself!!

HIGHLIGHTS

★ Amazing Lead Dog Demonstration and Training Exercise
★ Exciting 20-Minute Sled Dog Ride
★ Learn About Dog Sled Racing From Real Racers
★ Meet Real Racing Huskies and Take Your Picture with Iditarod Super-Stars
★ Cuddle Adorable Sled Dog Puppies
★ No Extra Gear Needed. We provide it all.
★ Appropriate for All Ages. Children 2 and Under Ride Free.
★ Upgrade To Include Lunch
★ Complimentary Pick Up and Drop Off at all Seward Area Hotels.
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“ “The best dog sledding experience in Alaska!– Grey”

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THE DETAILS

Departures: 8:45, 10:15, 11:45
Length: Approximately 75 Minutes
Price: $79 / adult, $39 / child
What To Bring:
Sunglasses, Sunscreen, Jacket, Sneakers or Boots. A rain coat is a nice piece of gear to have when petting dirty dogs!
Booking Tips:
Due to our limited departures, this tour fills up quickly. Book Early!

AS SEEN ON

YOU’LL HAVE A GREAT TIME

“ We had a really great time at the kennels, a great ride and a chance to hold the beautiful puppies. It was a small group and we were not hurried. I’m so pleased we found this tour and thoroughly recommend it.– Slyvia visited summer 2016”

“ We have visited a number of kennels before but Turning Heads Kennel is different. The dogs look very happy. Travis is very generous with stories. He and his team will do everything to let you enjoy the experience exactly the way you want. Literally everybody, from kids to grandparents, from mushers to people who have never followed dog sledding in their life, will enjoy this experience because Travis and his team can and will tailor make it the right way. This kennel is definitely a must if you are in Alaska. We drove from Anchorage and back just to do it and were ready to do it again the next day.– Jean visited August 2016”

“As dog lovers, my 9 yr old daughter, my husband and myself knew we would enjoy it. What we didn’t expect was the incredible immersion into the lifestyle. It was both fun and educational to meet Tracis, his team and his dogs. And ok let’s not forget his experience with the Iditarod was amazing! If you are in the Seward area, a visit to this kennel is a MUST! It’s a great experience for everyone in the family.– Sara visited August 2016”

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TOUR DESCRIPTION

Our ride and kennel tour is a one-of-a-kind experience. The best part? Our tours are intentionally kept small because dog sledding is all about the bond a musher has with their dogs and we want to show that to you. Because of that, Travis and Sarah, the owners give over 95% of the tours themselves. After all, they know their dogs best! Both Travis and Sarah have run the 1,000 mile Iditarod and those working with them often aspire to compete in it too. Small tours also mean that you will have plenty of time to ask questions, meet the dogs, and snuggle our husky puppies.

First, get ready for our tour. You don’t really need any special clothing, but make sure you are comfortable. We recommend closed toed shoes in the dog lot. Sled dogs can be playful. Guests that want the full kennel experience are advised to wear a rain jacket or another piece of clothing they don’t mind getting dirty — but don’t worry, this isn’t mandatory and if you show up in your Sunday Best our dogs will be sure to mind their manners.

In the event it is raining, most of our tour is covered to keep you dry. We will still go out if it rains because this is our dogs favorite weather: the cooler temperatures allow them to perform better and longer. If you are feeling the Alaskan chill, we have a nice warm fire to keep you nice and toasty. If it  is exceptionally hot out we may also do things differently to accommodate the needs of our dogs. Depending on how hot it is, we may have to stop more frequently or shorten your dog sledding experience because everything we do is about our dogs and their well-being.

At our kennel, you’ll be greeted by a plethora of wagging tails from our retirees who now hold the official title of “kennel greeters.” Give our loving older dogs a quick pet on the head, if you like, before checking in to our tour. While you wait for the tour begin, check out some of our racing memorabilia and photographs hanging on the walls or take a group photo in front of our kennel sign. Then, it’s time to start! When you meet Travis or Sarah, or perhaps one of their helpers, you will be swept up in their passion for their dogs.

Before you head into the dog yard, you’ll be given a quick over view of our dog lot rules and how to interact with our dogs. Our dogs are all very friendly but to ensure a positive experience for both our guests and our dogs, we always teach our visitors how to interact with our dogs. Under the supervision of one our guides, we invite you to pet and play with our dogs — though you certainly don’t have to. Take pictures of our sled dogs and their colorful houses. Then, it’s time to sing! Everyone loves a good husky howl and what better way to bond than by leading the canine choir in a big howl!

After our beautiful song together, it’s time learn about mushing. Hear tales from the trail as you learn about the gear both mushers and dogs need to excel on a 1,000 mile dog race. Learn how we deal with things like open water at -40 and the rigorous routine we go through to take excellent care of our dogs while we are racing and training.

We conclude our kennel tour by meeting the youngest members of the pack: our puppies. Steal kisses and cuddles from puppies from as young as 2 days old to up to 10 weeks old. Our puppies hilarious personalities and antics will have you laughing. Trust us, you won’t want to say goodbye to these guys!

After getting your fill of kisses, it’s time to mush! We have a custom built cart that we hook our dogs up to so we can run on the dirt. A lot of people think dog sledding is only done in the winter, but a majority of our training actually happens before the snow falls on carts, like the one we will go out on, and ATVs. If you are interested in mushing on snow, please check out our glacier dog sledding ride  or visit us for a winter tour.

Once you are seated on our cart, we will start hooking the team up. In their excitement, our dogs jump and bark.This is a great time to get some action shots, so while you watch us hook up the team pull out the camera. People never believe how high our dogs can jump and it’s a great memory to have on camera! See first hand the love and joy that running brings these amazing athletes.

Once the last pair of dogs are hooked up, it’s time to take off. The team instantly quiets as we set off on our training session. The commands start just a few moments into the run. Watch in amazement as our leaders respond with precision timing. At least, that’s what we hope! We often use this tour to train new lead dogs so sometimes things don’t always go according to plan. As exciting as it is to watch the dogs get it right, it is equally enthralling to watch as we work with new lead dogs and the light bulb clicks. No other dog sled tour offers this unique behind-the-scenes opportunity to watch actual training occur. We think it’s pretty special and we know you will too!

The ride will go all too quickly and when it ends, we guarantee that you will be impressed with our dogs athleticism and their intelligence. Back in the yard, we get water for the dogs and give them a scratch on the head to say thanks. Pose with our lead dogs for the day as a great souvenir post card before saying goodbye. We’ll tell you ways to continue your involvement with our dogs, if you find yourself enraptured with the sport of dog mushing and want to follow along on our training and racing journey.

We kindly ask that you do not bring treats for our dogs. We appreciate the warm thoughts and well wishes but our sled dogs are the canine equivalent of Olympic athletes and have a highly tailored nutrition program. Unfortunately, our dogs turn tend to turn their nose up at anything except the kibble we feed and, of course, meat. If you would like to reward the dogs for their hardwork, please consider donating to their booty food or purchasing a round of kibble.

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We strive to present an accurate representation of our tour. All timing is approximate. Actual tour order may differ.

WHAT SETS US APART

Other summer mushing outfits may take trails that are longer, but no one has trails that are more exciting than we do! Our summer tour is a training exercise which means you will get to see our dogs in action. We are not going out on a lollipop loop. The trail we are taking requires our dogs to constantly to listen to our vocal commands making our tour a training exercise and not a walk around a track. This is unlike any other dog mushing tour out there. During a mile and a half long tour, watch our dogs take up to eighteen commands.

We  pride ourselves on our high quality hands-on tours that focus on providing one-on-one experiences. We are a small family-owned operation that maintains minimal staff. Over 90% of our tours are performed by one of our owners. We emphasize great customer service and great dog care — our dogs absolutely love what they do.

OUR DOGS AND TOUR GUIDES RACE IN

Our Dogs and Our Mushers are Real Dog Sled Racers

turningheadskennel

Turning Heads Kennel
Sun’s out, tongues out! . . . #dogsledding #sled Sun’s out, tongues out!
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#dogsledding #sleddogs #iditarod #alaska #sewardak

📸 @its_kris_fish
Happy trails & wagging tails. We are back for anot Happy trails & wagging tails. We are back for another for season of sharing our sled dogs and passion for #dogsledding here in beautiful #sewardak 

Thanks to Azura and @its_kris_fish  for the awesome photo!
An absolutely incredibly dog team coming into the An absolutely incredibly dog team coming into the Kalskag (inbound) checkpoint of the Kuskokwim 300.

🎥 by Abby Klager

#TurningHeadsKennel #kuskokwim300 #k300 #bethelak #alaska #dogsledding #iditarod #dogsofinstagram #dogstagram #huskygram #huskylife #optoutside #kuskokwimriver #dogsled #mushing #sleddogs #sleddogsport #sleddogsofinstagram #alaskalife #alaskaoutdoors #alaskaadventure #alaskaliving #alaskanhusky 

@thealaskalife @kuskokwim300 @dogsleddingdaily
Travis putting booties on the dogs as he gets read Travis putting booties on the dogs as he gets ready to depart the halfway checkpoint of the Knik 200 sled dog race. 

There were hurricane force winds throughout the race. Semi trucks got blown off the road. Planes parked at the airport were flipped over.

Still, the dogs and Travis persevered — even when they had to go through waist deep overflow.

The team came to the finish line happy and healthy and in 2nd place. Travis also received the Humanitarian Award for Excellence in Dog Care.

We are so proud of him and Braxton, who ran the B team, and also had a strong finish.

#dogsledding #sleddogs #alaska #dogsofinsta #doglife #alaskalife #huskylife #instahusky
💯 #dogsledding #alaska 💯 #dogsledding #alaska
Getting out and enjoying the sunshine together. #d Getting out and enjoying the sunshine together. #dogsledding
Happy Birthday Travis 🥳 Happy Birthday Travis 🥳
Two by two⁠ 🐕🐾❄️⁠ ⁠ Trail breakin Two by two⁠
 🐕🐾❄️⁠
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Trail breaking :)⁠
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#turningheadskennel #iditarod #dogsledding #sleddogs ⁠
#husky #huskies #huskygram #instahusky⁠
#getoutside #explore #adventure #explorealaska #alaska⁠
#denalihighway #cantwell ⁠
#instadog #dogsofinstagram #dogslife #mustlovedogs
BB is a rock star⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #instadog #dogsofinst BB is a rock star⁠
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#instadog #dogsofinstagram #dogslife #mustlovedogs⁠
#turningheadskennel #iditarod #dogsledding #sleddogs ⁠
#husky #huskies #huskygram #instahusky⁠
#getoutside #explore #adventure #explorealaska #alaska
Baby Skunk 💕⁠ ⁠ Skunk is now almost 17 mont Baby Skunk 💕⁠
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Skunk is now almost 17 months old and is working hard at being a sled dog.⁠
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#instadog #dogsofinstagram #dogslife #mustlovedogs⁠
#turningheadskennel #iditarod #dogsledding #sleddogs ⁠
#husky #huskies #huskygram #instahusky
We were blessed with some gorgeous skies this seas We were blessed with some gorgeous skies this season. Here's just 1 of the many we enjoyed 💕⁠
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#getoutside #explore #adventure #explorealaska #alaska⁠
Time Warp! A look back at early season fall traini Time Warp! A look back at early season fall training using the side by side. ⁠
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(Also, what smells so good in the grass 🤣)⁠
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Right now, the snow is melting and spring is well on its way here but we are already thinking about this coming fall and the adventures it will bring us. 💕⁠
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#instadog #dogsofinstagram #dogslife #mustlovedogs⁠
#turningheadskennel #iditarod #dogsledding #sleddogs ⁠
#husky #huskies #huskygram #instahusky⁠
#getoutside #explore #adventure #explorealaska #alaska
Dolly & Blue. 💕⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #turningheadskennel Dolly & Blue. 💕⁠
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#turningheadskennel #iditarod #dogsledding #sleddogs ⁠
#husky #huskies #huskygram #instahusky⁠
#instadog #dogsofinstagram #dogslife #mustlovedogs⁠
#getoutside #explore #adventure #explorealaska #alaska
Old man Boston 💕⁠ ⁠ Our time left with Bost Old man Boston 💕⁠
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Our time left with Boston is slowly coming to an end but this geriatric sled dog is full of heart. He is the dad or granddad to many of the dogs in our kennel. ⁠
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Each day we have together is a gift. ⁠
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📸 by Kalani Woodlock
Travis and the dogs are in FINGERLAKE on #Iditarod Travis and the dogs are in FINGERLAKE on #Iditarod 2021 🥳 and OUT of FINGERLAKE.

Although his stats haven’t been updated as of this posting, it looks like he got there around 5:10 this morning, making it about a 4.5 hour run for him and the dogs. He rested about 3 hours and is now headed down the trail towards RAINY PASS

Here’s a fun video from one of the last training runs this year. 

🥳🎉 Go Team Go 🎉🥳
Well, he’s off! We’d hoped to livestream the s Well, he’s off!
We’d hoped to livestream the start of #Iditarod but because of the new location, we unfortunately didn’t have coverage!

The starting line up this year:
BB - Blue
Spartan - West
Krum - Granger
Melissa - Queen
Skiff - Jovie
Ohmer - Mongoose
Delta - Tug

Go Travis go!
The countdown to race day has started. Travis is g The countdown to race day has started. Travis is getting in the last few training runs before #iditarod to determine the final few dogs on the roster.

Our trail has one minor road crossing that we usually have no problem with —  as it’s in a wide open area — so we have plenty of opportunity to see cars and vice versa but with it continuing to snow day after day in Willow, the berms have gotten quite high. 

Because of this, after Travis and the team take off I drive down to play crossing guard.

Here’s a glimpse of the team from yesterday. #dogsledding #turningheadskennel
Well we got 1882 lbs of food headed out on the #id Well we got 1882 lbs of food headed out on the #iditarod trail for mushers and dogs. 

A big thanks to Caleb & Dave for helping cut meet, Victoria & Richard for letting us post up at their house, and a huge crew of human volunteers who helped cook Travis’ meals for out on the trail. @dlwalkerak for cooking and organizing and: @zudyscafe @akcarlyn @lonechicharron @woodysthaikitchenak @bakingthyme and Cristian McClain for cooking @majormarinetours for some great snacks and Portage Transport for delivering.

It’s not small feet getting a team ready to go 1,000 miles but this year— with little indoor access —- it really took a lot of careful planning to make sure Travis stays warm and well fed.

Thanks team!
A lot of the time, we are running teams of 8+ dogs A lot of the time, we are running teams of 8+ dogs. It’s more practical with a lot of dogs in training. That being said, there is something magical about breaking things down and working with the dogs one on one in smaller teams. This is especially true for our youngest teammates!

In this video, 16-month-olds Keister and Tucker are working as a lone pair. With no one else to guide them, the pups get their first experience taking commands without the pressure of having other dogs “chase” them. They also get to practice lining out and staying forward oriented.

Working at night with young leaders, a headlamp also becomes a great tool as we can easily show the trail we want the dogs to take. 

#dogsledding #mushing #iditarod #alaska
Under the pine boughs we go. Fresh snow makes fo Under the pine boughs we go. 

Fresh snow makes for fun runs and acrobatic mushing as you dip and dive to dodge the low hanging branches. On occasion, we use our axes to cut out trees too low to safely pass under. These momentary stops are an opportunity for the dogs to cool off and for us to stop and enjoy a warm thermos of tea.
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☎ (907) 362-4354

Turning Heads Kennel
31722 Herman Leirer Road
Seward, AK 99664

Info@TurningHeadsKennel.com

Recent Posts

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