Location: Minnesota
Occupation: Dog musher
Next Race/Adventure:
My next adventure always involves dogs. So I’m really excited to run dogs in Hovland this winter. And…talking to Michele about somehow getting property in Alaska someday.
About mid-way though the 2024 Team & Trail Tour we got the pleasure to sit down with Brittany North. She and I (Robert) had spoken to each other before on our podcast but it was cool to meet in person. We talked alot about dogs, a great tasting African soup, and a crazy canoe trip.
Socials: North Paws Wilderness
The Yukon Quest. It’s so wilderness-based, unassisted, The Quest. Even though it’s not the Thousand Miles anymore.
he Yukon. And Norway. I’d love to get out there for some of their races and check that out. Maybe volunteer.
Humans.
Teddy is my husband. He’s the best human there is.
I Think I was 21. I was dating a crappy guy. And a friend at the time–I was telling her he was crappy and she says it is what it is, and that was the first time I’ve heard someone say it is what it is and I hated hearing that and it played over and over in my head for a long time. And I was like, I’m glad she said that because it’s what I needed to hear.
I have a little Risdon Rig right now. Someday I’m hoping to upgrade to a Prairie Bilt.
Listening to people that want you to live a conventional life.
And I feel like I was brainwashed for a little bit and I thought I had to just follow this conventional path and something just kept burning inside me saying that’s not for you and I’m glad I listened.
I hate to say it, I’m a freeze baby. Okay. I’m always cold.
My best advice to young mushers is be patient. The universe works the way it’s supposed to. You cannot force anything. You can try, but it ain’t going to work out the way it’s supposed to.
Getting to live this life with dogs.
an I talk about a canoe trip? Yeah, why not? This is the home of dog adventures. OK. OK. This is good then. I was probably 22. Teddy was probably 23, 24. And we were going to canoe from Taylor’s Falls, Minnesota down to Stillwater, Minnesota. Mind you, we’ve never canoed or paddled together. And we had a one year old. No, she wasn’t even one yet.
She was less than a year old Siberian Husky, Panda. She’s still with us today. And we were woefully unprepared. We probably packed oatmeal, hot dogs and Jameson.
It had rained a lot that spring so once we got on the water we learned really quick It was hard to put our canoe literally anywhere because it was the water was so high Panda was so unbelievably naughty, but not her fault. She didn’t know any better. I didn’t teach her anything then. uh, yeah, bugs were terrible. We didn’t have bug spray. Uh, we ended up calling someone to come pick us up, I think a day or two in. Also, it took you a couple of days to get 15 miles.
Being unprepared.
I make a really good potato leek soup so that’d be a good trail meal.
What a world that we get to, you know, be alive, be in nature and share it with the most fantastic dogs there is.
Another canoeing adventure. That was probably the summer after, or maybe the same summer we went canoeing with a friend in Wisconsin and we all jumped off of a bridge into the water. That was probably the dumbest thing I’ve ever done. Never again. That was scary.
