In 1925 the world was captivated by the heroic efforts of 20 men and 150 sled dogs who were racing the clock in an attempt to deliver medicine to the small, remote city of Nome, Alaska. Late in January, an outbreak of diphtheria had occurred in Nome, killing several children. The local doctor’s supply of diphtheria antitoxin had expired, leaving him with no medicine to stop the highly contagious respiratory disease. The nearest supply was in Anchorage, but at that time of year, the only way to transport the serum was by train to the town of Nenana, then by sled dog, along the Iditarod Trail, for the remaining 674 miles to Nome. With fierce winter storms bearing down, it was decided that a relay of 20 dog sled teams would brave the harsh winter conditions along a route that would normally take them 25 days to travel. Incredibly, despite many life threatening challenges, the serum safely arrived in Nome in a little over 5 days, saving thousands of lives. Every year, to commemorate this event and this historic trail, the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is run from Anchorage to Nome covering around 1000 miles.
The most famous participant of the Nome Serum Run was Balto, the lead dog of the final relay team that carried the serum into Nome. However, many in the sled dog community feel the true hero was a dog named Togo, who led his team of Siberian Huskies farther and across more treacherous terrain than any other team. Togo was the lead dog for Leonhard Seppala, a well known musher and and an accomplished dog sled driver in the All Alaska Sweepstakes races. Togo and Seppala’s team took the most dangerous leg of the route to Nome, crossing the frozen icepack of Norton Sound and climbing the 5000 foot Little McKinley Mountain. They traveled 170 miles from Nome to Shaktoolik, then picked up the serum and carried it another 91 miles to Golovin. Togo's team traveled a total of 261 miles, nearly 5 times further than any other team in the relay.
In 1927, on a tour of the US, Seppala and his heroic Siberian Huskies were invited to participate in a dog sled race in Poland Spring, Maine. They easily won the race and impressed the local mushers who had never seen Siberian Huskies before. He was persuaded to establish a kennel in Poland Springs, thus creating the foundation kennel for the Siberian Husky breed in the US. It is because of this history that Penguin Expeditions has placed this cache in honor of our two Siberian Huskies, Blizzard & Winter. They are both most likely descendants of Seppala’s Siberian Huskies. In fact, we know Blizzard’s pedigree shows he is a direct descendant of the hero dog, Togo.
To find this cache you need to transport the diphtheria serum from Shaktoolik (first waypoint) to Golovin (final cache), the same leg of the relay run by Togo and Leonhard Seppala. Fortunately, you won’t need to travel 261 miles over challenging terrain like they did. If you’re on foot, your best bet is to head out from Nome (P1). Those of you biking, skiing or mushing may want to start from Anchorage (P2) if you’re in the mood for a longer run. This is one of our favorite places to mush our Siberian Huskies, so keep an eye out for Blizzard and Winter on the trail pulling Penguins.
There’s a major storm system passing through the region, so finding Shaktoolik won’t be easy. You’ll need to do a little research and solve the puzzle below. To make sure you don't get lost, check your coordinates here before heading out into the storm.
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Hurry! The people of Nome desperately need your help!
FTF congrats to teamborder for braving the elements and the darkness! Togo would be proud.