Iditarod Insights: Windy

It’s howling windy in the Alaska Range tonight. The forecast calls for a low of -20°F and colder in Rainy Pass for the next few days with 20 to 30 mph winds and windchills down to -50°F.
That will be a tough start for this year’s competitors to Iditarod 2026.
You may ask what it feels like to be running dogs at -50°F windchills and 30 mph winds?
Well, let me tell you about our training run here in Nome yesterday. The Nome Nugget editor Diana Haecker and me left our yard with two dog teams in sunny but breezy conditions. All was well for the first three hours when suddenly a ground storm with 20-30 mph winds whipped up snow resulting in a white wall of blowing snow, screaming winds, and nearly zero visibility. This is not unusual for mushing at the Bering Sea coast and Iditarod mushers are well aware of the possibility to be caught in a wind storm here.
For two hours our safety and forward progress depended entirely on our lead dogs for finding and staying on the trail, and they did.
Dog mushers are in awe of their dogs in times like these.
As the Iditarod mushers are nearing Finger Lake, they most likely gear up for the wind. To protect the dogs from the piercing windchill mushers put protective insulated dog jackets on the dogs. Their dog’s feet are protected from the rough and abrasive cold snow by dog booties.
The mushers will be wearing every layer they carry, topped off by a light windproof overparkie.
Comfort they won’t find.
Most of the trail on the south side of the Alaska Range runs in and out of the trees and through large open swamps. Large snowdrifts can form in these kind of winds making it hard for dogs and mushers alike to find the trail. Once teams leave the checkpoint of Rainy Pass the last push to the top of the actual pass is entirely above treeline and completely exposed to the elements. The 1985 was halted in Rainy Pass for three days due to strong winds. This is one of the most challenging sections of the trail even in good conditions.
That’s why the Iditarod is called “The Last Great Race.” Running and finishing this race is truly one of the greatest challenges on earth.
And this is just the first challenge in a series of challenges to await these mushers on their quest to reach Nome.