Dog Sledding in Mammoth Lakes and the Beautiful Eastern Sierra
Dogsled adventures await you!
We have exciting plans in the works, with the generous support of some amazing folks that want to
see Mammoth Dog Teams thrive! The future is bright for our staff and especially our dogs.
Did you know Dog Mushing is the second oldest means of transportation for humans? It's true, dogs
have been used by humans for transportation for over 10,000 years...
Mammoth Dog Teams is looking for handlers and mushers for the
upcoming winter season.
If you or someone you know is looking for a rewarding job, working
with a great team, and wants to spend their days outdoors with the dogs and our amazing clients, this may be the
perfert opportunity for you!
Get a paw forward and start working with the dogs this summer.
Call Jim for more details:
(760) 914-1019
A must read article by Dan Krauss posted in the NY Times:
In the mountains of Mammoth Lakes, the California drought has taken a large toll on a local
business that thrives on snow. The effects have left Jim Ouimet and his 35 dogs nearly out of work. Ouimet is
the owner of Mammoth Dog Teams, a mushing company about five miles outside of town that offers sled-dog tours,
providing a firsthand experience of one of the earliest modes of transportation... [Read More]
The Work Day at Mammoth Dog Teams
A glow develops behind the White Mountains, to the east, promising
some warmth on the day. Thirty, or so, gallons of soup have already begun to come to a boil, steaming up and
then refreezing, yes refreezing - the trails will be iced over and in great condition this morning for our
dog sledding adventures. The pack stirs, not quite awake, yet the
excitement of running dances on the cold of the morning. Soup means hydration, yet it is much deeper, it means
another day to pull sleds, and that is what they live for, echoed over thousands of years, and endless miles of
snowy trails, through each breath of their ancestors.
It is all about the sled dogs. They have accepted me, as a musher,
into the team, demanded every bit that resides within, and expect more every waking dawn. There is no choice,
for our worlds have merged, in fact, the two are so intertwined that each night they run through the darkest and
coldest parts of my mind, splashing warmth on my dreams. This is no nine to five, this is a
lifestyle.
Morning chores are done effortlessly, moving quickly to avoid the deep cold, and by the time the
team is loaded up, trucked to the trail, and setup, the sun is shining brightly with warmth. Shortly after,
the first family arrives. Many families have never met a sled dog before, and many return year after
year, asking about certain dogs by name, for each is mild mannered and possess their own lovable personality.
Excitement takes over as soon as someone sits in the sled. The family gets comfortable while the harnesses are
attached to the tug line. This is how it has always been done, spanning across boundaries of local Mammoth Lakes dog sledding history, to Alaskan and Yukon history. It was a way of life that
sustained frontier fur trappers and supplied entire towns in cold formidable climates.
The anchor is pulled, and through a high energy cloud of barks the
musher calls, “Hike!” The sled, a hand crafted original modeled after traditional Alaskan freight sleds, glides
over the still icy snow packed trail across snowy meadows with rugged mountainous backdrops and through
picturesque forests. Conversation slides gently across the snow from specific dogs and personalities, team
positions, sleds, local and natural history, to the history of the “Great Last Race”, the Iditarod and the
legend of Balto, the dog that saved the entire town of Nome, Alaska. The team, dogs and mushers, and the ride
itself, ask people to look through a window, or even step through a door, into this world, this lifestyle, see
the knowledge and warmth, feel it, for it is found in every breath of our day.