Afternoon: Plan to arrive to YMCA Camp du Nord, our program site on Burntside Lake, between 3:30 PM and 5:00 PM. Check in at the Dining Hall where you will receive your cabin assignment. Move in to your cabin, grab some warm clothes and your flashlight, and join the group for a 5:30 PM supper at the beautiful log dining hall.

Dinner: Enjoy a delicious dinner, often served family style to our small group of participants.

Evening: Following dinner, an orientation session will give you an overview of the week’s activities and an opportunity to formally meet several of the instructors and the other participants.

Lodging: YMCA Camp du Nord

Meals Included: Dinner

Note: Travel by ski and snowshoe a minimum of 1 1/2 miles each session. Difficulty is dependent upon snow, weather, and trail conditions, as well as the ability of individual members of the group. You will not be asked to ski on a trail too challenging for you.

Breakfast: A hearty breakfast served in the log dining hall is a great way to start your day of activity.

Morning: An indoor introduction to cross-country skiing covers history of the sport as well as aspects of technique and safety. Jacki Fisher has taught winter skills to Road Scholar participants for over nine years. Outdoor lessons on the flat, frozen surface of the lake follow. (Hills can be tackled later in the week!) Typically, there is one instructor or assistant for every six to ten participants. Beginning skiers---including those who have never skied previously---as well as intermediate and advanced skiers are all welcome, and lessons are tailored to the abilities of the group’s members. Plan to ski at least a half-mile this first day if not more, but distances will vary, depending upon your ability. User groomed trails allow frozen lake and forest exploration.

Lunch: Compare notes from the morning’s ski lesson over a hot lunch in the log dining hall.

Afternoon: After lunch, learn about snowshoeing, another traditional method of winter travel. See examples of several types of snowshoes used in different locations and by different people. Gain tips for negotiating snow in this equipment, and then head outdoors with your instructor for some off-the-trail exploration. Snowshoes are great for getting a closer look at things in the winter. Investigate trees, tracks, scat, sculpted snow, and more. This snowshoe hike will be a mile or two in length, depending upon the ability of the group, as well as snow and weather conditions.

Dinner: Head to the dining hall for a well deserved, and scrumptious meal.

Evening: With a Vermilion Community College instructor or naturalist, learn about the plants and animals that call northern Minnesota home. Some of what’s found here (and what’s not) might surprise you. Although not common to see the animals of the north woods, evidence of their existence is bountiful. Learn to identify this and use it on the rest of your outdoor sessions.

Lodging: YMCA Camp du Nord

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: A full day of being invigorated outdoors, expect to travel by dog team (riding as well as standing mushing) for 10 to 15 miles over the course of four hours.

Breakfast: Another hearty breakfast in the dining hall starts the day off on the right foot.

Morning: After breakfast, prepare a bag lunch from the nutritious lunch items provided. Pack a small bag with your lunch, a water bottle, an extra layer, and anything else you want to bring on your day of dogsledding. Peter McClelland and other staff of White Wilderness Sled Dog Adventures lead day and multi-day dogsledding excursions all winter. They have taught dogsledding to Road Scholar participants in programs each winter since 1996. The kennel is located just over an hour away, by windy scenic road. At the kennel, meet your instructor guides, who will teach you the basics of steering and navigating your sled. Load up your sled, try the brakes, and get a feel for standing on the runners. Regroup to learn how to harness the dogs. A completely hands-on experience, expect to harness half of the four to six Alaskan huskies on your team (your partner will get the others). Either you or a partner will drive the team, while the other rides (an opportunity to take in scenery or to take photos). Together with the other teams, explore 10 to 15 miles of trails in the Superior National Forest.

Lunch: Depending upon the day and the weather, stop at a sunny spot protected from the wind to eat. Enjoy what you packed plus hot chocolate, a perfect complement to a winter lunch.

Afternoon: After lunch, trade places with your partner for the trip back home. Now it’s your turn to stand on the runners and navigate the sled on the snow covered trails, or if not, then it’s your turn to enjoy the scenery and snap a few winter shots from the sled basket as a passenger. Note that while on the trail in this remote location, our bathroom facilities consist of cat-holes in the snow with evergreen trees providing shelter and privacy.

Dinner: Return to camp about an hour before heading to the log dining hall for dinner. Share dogsledding stories over another scrumptious meal.

Evening: Conclude the dogsledding portion of the program, with a presentation on the history of dogsledding, as well as current aspects of the sport of sled dog racing. Gain a glimpse of what it might be like to participate in a race lasting several days. This is also your chance to ask any additional questions you might have about the dogs or this unique sport.

Lodging: YMCA Camp du Nord

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: A full day of being invigorated outdoors, expect to travel by dog team (riding as well as standing mushing) for 10 to 15 miles over the course of four hours.

Breakfast: Another hearty breakfast in the dining hall provides fuel for the day.

Morning: After breakfast, prepare another bag lunch from the nutritious lunch items provided. This time when packing for your dogsledding trip, be sure to include everything you will need for the overnight. Include your lunch, a water bottle, an extra layer or two, and warm slippers for the yurt. Head back to the dog kennel in the Superior National Forest to connect with your team. The morning’s lesson will include less introductory material and more focus on refining techniques for corners plus anything else the group wants to review more in depth. Then, hit a new set of snowy trails.

Lunch: Select a lakeside location for your lunch and hot chocolate. Reflect on the differences between the two days of travel, particularly how it relates to the skills you have acquired and your increased level of confidence.

Afternoon: Continue to explore the border lakes region by trail and over lakes. The quietness of the north woods in winter experienced with this mode of travel is refreshing. Reach the remote yurt by mid-afternoon. The Mongolian style yurt is a 20-foot diameter canvas structure set on a wooden platform. Heated, insulated, and furnished simply, the lakeside yurt is a wonderful way to integrate with our natural environment, but yet remain very comfortable. Bathroom facilities here consist of a small tent shelter outhouse.

Dinner: Sit down with your small group of fellow dogsledders to a nourishing dinner.

Evening: Wander out on the lake to enjoy the fresh air, quiet woods, and possibly some spectacular stars. Although certainly no guarantee, you might have a good night for viewing the northern lights. Relax in the yurt with others in the group, telling stories or playing games at a lantern-lit table. At bedtime, sleep on a cot in the yurt, or if you are the adventureous type, you can requst to sleep out under the stars. Whatever your choice, you will be staying warm in winter sleeping bags (provided).

Lodging: Remote Yurt

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: A full day of being invigorated outdoors, expect to travel by dog team (riding as well as standing mushing) for 10 to 15 miles over the course of four hours.

Breakfast: Wake up at the yurt and enjoy a hot breakfast.

Morning: After breakfast, load up the sleds, harness the dogs, and hit the snowy trails. Recognize the skills you have obtained as you more successfully negotiate turns, and stay evenly on the trail. Relaxed and confident, you will be more comfortable now taking in the wonderful winter scenery.

Lunch: Your last meal on the trail is a hot lunch, usually including locally-made bratwursts roasted over a crackling fire.

Afternoon: A mid-afternoon return from the dogsledding overnight gives you some free time to relax and take a hot shower before dinner.

Dinner: Enjoy one more scrumptious dinner in the beautiful log dining hall.

Evening: After the Closing Ceremonies (unbelievably, the program is nearly over!), enjoy a free evening or relax in a wood fired Finnish sauna. A hole is prepared in the ice of the frozen lake for those wishing for the authentic dip in the lake experience---optional, of course!

Lodging: YMCA Camp du Nord

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Enjoy one more hearty breakfast in the beautiful log dining hall.

Morning: After packing a lunch, head out for a quick final ski or snowshoe. Then, depart by van for a field trip to the International Wolf Center. Learn additional wolf behavior and physical adaptations from naturalists at the Center and their resident pack of wolves. Take in the award-winning exhibit.

Lunch: Prior to departure from the International Wolf Center, remember to eat your lunch.

Afternoon: Check out from YMCA Camp du Nord is by 12:00 PM.

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch