....this is the conclusion of the three part blog entry regarding the March 2011 Three Forts Sled Dog Race
There was a clean start that morning as was the case each morning. The destination for the day was another point along the river located only 29.9 miles away at a spot called Cathy’s Cabins. It is interesting to note that dog mushers race in miles while their handlers drive their dog trucks in kilometres. We knew that the teams would arrive before the dog trucks so the timer went ahead on the river, on the back of one of the skidoos driven by the Canadian Rangers. Mushers were told that they had to take their cookers with them and some extra food for the dogs, just in case the dog trucks didn’t make it to Cathy’s Cabins. The route back along the cat trail to the winter road was primarily uphill, with one very steep hill. This hill had kept several of the drivers awake during the night but everyone made it out just fine and it was a dash down the winter road and then in on a 42 kilometre cat road to the beautiful spot known as Cathy’s Cabins, which is actually a very historic spot known as the beginning of Embarras Portage. The cat road that we followed to the river was actually the access road to the Richardson River Sand Dunes Wildland Park which is within the Athabasca Dunes Ecological Reserve, also known as the Sahara of Alberta….a very special place.
About ten kilometres before reaching the Athabasca River and the cabins, the route passed a well maintained airstrip, right in the middle of nowhere. It turns out that this airstrip was built in 1942 by the American Army to facilitate transportation along the corridor north to Normal Wells, which was the beginning point of the Canol pipeline. Virtually all of the supplies and 4000 soldiers travelled along the Athabasca River route, then down the Slave and Mackenzie Rivers north to Norman Wells and the airstrip was just one of several that were built as part of this massive construction project.
Cathy’s Cabins is actually the home of Cathy and Larry McGinnis. Both Cathy and Larry are trappers, they each have their own line, Cathy’s is across the Athabasca River in territory that is Wood Buffalo National Park. The site where we were camping for the night consists of Cathy and Larry’s very comfortable home, a couple of rental cabins as well as some outbuildings that house a generator, a shop, various vehicles and equipment and “the office”, a genuine two-holer which is something that you don’t see down south. I will let you figure out why two-holers and the north country go together. One other very special building on the property is the former Embarras Portage store that was moved from just downriver to this property and which now serves as a museum documenting the history of the area. A decal in the window notes that this building was actually a Canada Post office until the late 1980’s. Peter Pond established the first trading post for the Northwest Company just a short distance down river at a place that is now known as Old Fort in 1778. This was the first of several locations for what eventually became the Fort Chipewyan trading post. This was also the location of a First Nations cemetery which has largely disappeared due to the erosion of the river bank over the years. Just across the river and a bit downstream was the site of a sawmill run by Tom McCallum in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s. This bit of history is documented in a book called Northland Echoes by Doris Neeley Haralson.
As we expected, the teams arrived well before the trucks did so when we pulled in there were dog teams tied out everywhere. This is where the long distance and mid distance mushers had a distinct advantage over the stage racers and the sprint racers. The long distance dogs were comfortably curled up at the checkpoint as if they were “taking their 24”, while the stage and sprint dogs looked lost, they were yearning for their warm dog boxes. Unfortunately there was no prize money for the dogs that could rest the best.
Once again we performed a masterful job of parking the rigs as we settled in for another cold night. This time the cabins were all pressed into action. With the help of the Canadian Rangers, two of the mushers and their handlers replaced a malfunctioning oil furnace with a wood heater in one of the cabins. No-one slept in their car, some slept on the floor of Cathy and Larry’s living room and after a plate of moose-stew- to-kill-for along with lots of musher B.S. it was lights out.
This was probably the most isolated part of the whole trail. Up to this point there had been remarkably reliable cel phone service and so there was communication with the outside world. Cathy and Larry apparently did have a telephone but my guess is that it was a satellite phone. Once we got to Fort Chipewyan we were once again in both cel and internet contact with the rest of the world. The excellent communications along this corridor opens up all sorts of possibilities for offering on-line coverage of this race in future years. The model that has been developed by the Yukon Quest, using a Facebook site as the hub would lend itself extremely well to an event like the Three Forts Race. Photos and video as well as reports could be uploaded from the trail in most places and with the help of satellite technology, probably from anywhere.
Stage four started an hour earlier at 9:00 a.m. This was a 48.8 mile run down the Athabasca River and then over the portage and down the Embarrass River which connects with the Mamaui River, then over Mamawi Lake, down the Quatre Fourches River, across the winter road and onto Lake Athabasca and into Fort Chipewyan for the end of the race. The fact that two rivers flow into Lake Athabasca while one is flowing out, all at essentially the same place makes for a complicated series of streams through what are essentially two river deltas. This accounts for the convoluted route taken by the teams en route to Fort Chipewyan.
The early start was to facilitate the best time for spectators watching the teams come in. There was a large crowd waiting at the finish, people in the North still love their dog racing. Lake Athabasca is huge and the northern shore at Fort Chipewyan is not very sheltered. This is the oldest non First Nations settlement in Alberta, going back to the time of Peter Pond. For the fur trading companies this was the gateway to vast and very lucrative Athabasca country. This is the spot where three major rivers meet, the Athabasca, the Slave and the Peace River flowing west into British Columbia, this spot is a true crossroads.
Note, a point for discussion: To say that Fort Chipewyan is a “non First Nations” settlement is a bit misleading. It is in fact a First Nations community, with both Cree and Chipewyan Reserve lands essentially part of the community. The fact is, Peter Pond was actually an American and he wasn’t First Nations but he did open up a trading post at this site, and the town is still going strong. But the only reason he opened up the trading post at this site was because the First Nations people were already living here. Does that make Fort Chipewyan the oldest non-First Nations settlement in the province?
Things weren’t quite over yet. Everyone was hosted in the community centre to a great buffet dinner complete with live music. This event served as the closing ceremonies for the much larger Winter Play Carnival which ran for two weeks, the sled dog race being just one part of this event. It was also the venue for the awards ceremony for the race. People in this area aren’t afraid to travel and there were many people we had met in Fort MacMurray present at this event today. Following the ceremonies, it was time to start for home, a daunting drive down the ice road to Fort MacMurray and then south and west, with a four hour nap it was a 24 hour trip home…but we had a great time.
A big thank you and congratulations to the race organizers, officials and volunteers as well as Regional District staff. You succeeded in pulling off a sled dog race that was a truly unique adventure. Everyone worked extremely hard and the logistics were mind boggling. This event was extremely well organized and everything was done with the well-being and safety of the competitors, handlers and the dogs in mind. Your commitment that next year will see an even bigger and better race was very welcome….there is no question that next year’s event will surpass even this year’s enjoyable, competitive and exciting adventure.
Oh yes, who won the dog race? Here are the details.
Total prize money was $30,000.00
Day money totalled $8,000.00 (1st $1000.00, 2nd $500.00, 3rd $250.00 on each of 4 days)
Overall purse breakdown:
1st $8,000 6th $1,000 11th $400
2nd $4000 7th $ 700 12th $350
3rd 3000 8th $ 550 13th $300
4th $2000 9th $ 500 14th$250
5th $1500 10th $ 450
Unfortunately the day times are not readily available and neither are the placings for each day…I believe that the day money was shared between Buddy Streeper, Aaron Peck and John Stewart each day….Aaaron Peck was first on day 1 while Buddy Streeper was first on the following three days. Warren Palfrey finished 5th overall but was 4th on the final day….but after that the details about day placings are hazy….someone must have the times. The final times are known and are listed below.
Stage Race
176 miles
Placing Name Total Time
1. Blayne Streeper 11:35:25
2. Aaron Peck 11:54:42
3. John Stewart 12:09:49 (2nd Streeper Team)
4. Jake Golton 12:38:41 (2nd Peck Team)
5. Warren Palfrey 13:11:07
6. Gerry Walker 13:49:00
7. Ernie Campbell 15:35:21
8. Ronald Campbell 16:32:47
9. Randy McKenzie 18:18:48
10. Christina Traverse 18:38:51
NOTE: This race was to be an annual affair and there were big plans for a repeat performance in 2012...organizers even had a special organizing meeting in the spring of 2012....but alas this was not to be and the planned 2012 race never did materialize......oh well!
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