Overview
What a way to ring in the New Year - just you, a few friends (old and new) and about 30 howling huskies! This is an excellent way to do something different this year.
After meeting the dogs, at the edge of Algonquin Park, you will be given instructions on the proper technique of controlling a team of eager sled dogs. You will help harness the dogs, hook them up the sleds, and issue a command..."Let's Go"! Off you will race as the dogs strain at their harnesses, happy to be running once again. After they settle down into their natural pace, you will steer them deep into the woods of the Algonquin area, navigating forest trails and wide open frozen lakes. On the flat parts of the trail you can relax with the wind blowing in your face, and watch the majestic forest silently glide by! In the evening, when we get to our Eco-Lodge deep inside the forests of the Algonquin Park area, everyone helps out with the chores. The first thing to do is look after our hard working dogs! This comprises of feeding and watering them. We also have to make sure they have suitable shelter from the cold night wind. We are then free to relax and enjoy a sumptuous meal. And don't forget to partake in our winter ritual - Polar Bear dips! Then jump into the outdoor hot tub or sauna! Afterwards, we sit around the old fashioned wood stove and exchanging travellers' tales and ghost stories! Or go for a midnight snowshoe hike. Either way, the wood stove and wood furnace ensure that we're all toasty warm at night!
This trip is the real thing! You get a 6-8 dog team, with only two mushers per sled. It's just the two of you, your sled, and your Huskies! We travel about 30 km each day along the twisting trails through Algonquin forests, covering some of the most majestic landscapes in the world. This is where the "Group Of Seven" painted some of their finest works.
This adventure is one you won't soon forget - New Year's Eve in the forests of Algonquin Park!
Accommodation
The Eco-Lodge, located on the southern border of Algonquin Park is a wilderness enthusiasts' dream! With over 60 km of groomed trackset and wilderness trails inside Algonquin Park, the lodge is a leader of hotels for cross country skiing and dog sledding.
Designed and built as an Algonquin Nordic Wilderness Lodge, the Ecolodge was created to give you the best wilderness experience possible, while minimizing our impact on the environment. It has the feel and atmosphere of a European mountain lodge, and is one of the most secluded hotels in Algonquin Park.
Our Eco-Lodge is beautifully located amidst remote Algonquin forests, where even hydro lines and telephone poles can't reach. And yet, with a combination of alternative energy sources, the Eco-Lodge still provides all the finer comforts, such as indoor plumbing, battery powered hot showers, an outdoor wood-fired year round sauna, and even a hot tub for use in our cold winters! And with 17 private bedrooms, there is more than enough space to comfortably hold 40 people.
All this, plus our extensive groomed wilderness trail network, a private 30 acre lake, and even a resident wolf pack, makes a visit to the Eco-Lodge an experience to remember.
