It seems like just yesterday the howling of sled dogs filled the air as Alaska celebrated her official winter sport, but before we knew it our summer is now half over! Alaskan summers may only last a few months, but the long days allow us to go nonstop. As our partners have been busy with field work and preparing for the next school year, we thought it was a good time to reflect on the year so far.
The Iditarod Trail Invitational human powered bike race had another record breaking year, and the Alliance was happy to have had a booth along with the BLM at the Inaugural Fat Bike Expo the two days before! The following weekend the Alliance participated for the first time at the Willow Community Center during the Iditarod Sled Dog Race Restart, and we had a great time! While many people were excited to learn that Alaska has a National Trail and its gold rush history, others knew all about the trail and showed us photos of the Mile 0 sign in Seward! Many of our visitors were excited to pick up a souvenir from the event, and we went home with only a few of the books, dvds, and mugs we came with!
The Iditarod Trail Invitational human powered bike race had another record breaking year, and the Alliance was happy to have had a booth along with the BLM at the Inaugural Fat Bike Expo the two days before! The following weekend the Alliance participated for the first time at the Willow Community Center during the Iditarod Sled Dog Race Restart, and we had a great time! While many people were excited to learn that Alaska has a National Trail and its gold rush history, others knew all about the trail and showed us photos of the Mile 0 sign in Seward! Many of our visitors were excited to pick up a souvenir from the event, and we went home with only a few of the books, dvds, and mugs we came with!
Iditarod NHT products could also be found along the trail this year. The Museum in McGrath currently has a selection of our exclusive Jon Van Zyle mugs. Further up the Trail the community of Galena also sold some of our product during the race this year as a fundraiser for their Winter Carnival! We were so happy to partner with Galena, and their Carnival looks like it was a blast! |
In a partnership with the Iditarod Trail Committee, a copy of The Frozen Trail and The Reports of Walter L. Goodwin Trail Blazer was available at each community checkpoint for volunteers and community members to read during their downtime. After the race, the books were donated to the local community. BLM Trail Administrator Kevin Keeler also delivered a copy of each book to Tripod Flat and Old Woman Shelter Cabins for travelers to read during their stay. |
After race season officially ended, preparations for summer started! Down in Seward, a new Mile 0 sign, landscaping to several of the statues, and Iditarod NHT logos along the first mile of the bike path are all planned for this year. On National Trails Day, a guided historic walking tour was led by the Seward Iditarod Trail Blazers of the first mile of the Trail.
The Bureau of Land Management is excited to welcome a new SCA Intern, Nathan for the summer! Nathan is assisting the INHT Trail Administrator Kevin Keeler with field work, including delivering tripods, shelter cabin maintenance, and assessing sections of the trail that were impacted by last summer’s fire season.
The Bureau of Land Management is excited to welcome a new SCA Intern, Nathan for the summer! Nathan is assisting the INHT Trail Administrator Kevin Keeler with field work, including delivering tripods, shelter cabin maintenance, and assessing sections of the trail that were impacted by last summer’s fire season.
The Fish and Wildlife Service in Galena will be hosting their first ever artist-in-residence – we can’t wait to see their work!
Here at the Alliance, we are continuing our mission to educate the public and spread awareness about the Iditarod National Historic Trail! August will mark the start of our sixth year of iTREC, the Iditarod Trail to Every Classroom, and we cannot wait to start this transformative training with our next group of teachers. New this summer, our DVD The Iditarod National Historic Trail: A History will be shown at several locations! In Seward, the movie will be shown in the Community Room at 2pm, Monday-Saturday, with the exception of occasional Library Museum programming. Free admission (donations accepted.) Out at sea, the movie will be shown on the Seven Seas Mariner cruise ship as a part of their interpretive program. We are excited for the expanding opportunities for the public to see our great film!
Keep an eye on our Current Events page for events, and we hope you have a great summer!
Do you love the Iditarod National Historic Trail, and wish you could stay up to date on the Alliance all the time? Join the Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance! You will receive our monthly newsletter The Tripod as a member benefit.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
Here at the Alliance, we are continuing our mission to educate the public and spread awareness about the Iditarod National Historic Trail! August will mark the start of our sixth year of iTREC, the Iditarod Trail to Every Classroom, and we cannot wait to start this transformative training with our next group of teachers. New this summer, our DVD The Iditarod National Historic Trail: A History will be shown at several locations! In Seward, the movie will be shown in the Community Room at 2pm, Monday-Saturday, with the exception of occasional Library Museum programming. Free admission (donations accepted.) Out at sea, the movie will be shown on the Seven Seas Mariner cruise ship as a part of their interpretive program. We are excited for the expanding opportunities for the public to see our great film!
Keep an eye on our Current Events page for events, and we hope you have a great summer!
Do you love the Iditarod National Historic Trail, and wish you could stay up to date on the Alliance all the time? Join the Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance! You will receive our monthly newsletter The Tripod as a member benefit.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!