Travel

MUSH IS BEAUTIFUL IN MARCH!

by Jeff Schultz. “Iditarod Siberians.” Iditarod. Alaska.

IDITAROD

Mush is beautiful!

“The Last Great Race on Earth®” is taking place right now, as it does every year at the beginning of March. It’s the amazing Iditarod, a 1,000 mile race that pits humans and animals against nature in the wilds of Alaska.

Image by Jeff Schultz

Men and women, known as “mushers” each lead teams of 16 sled dogs across the roughest, most beautiful frozen terrain -- across desolate tundra, through dense forests, over frozen rivers and jagged mountains, from Anchorage, in south central Alaska, to Nome, along the western coastline on the Bering Sea.

Image by Jeff Schultz

JEFF SCHULTZ

Photographer Jeff Schultz has been the official photographer of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race since 1982. His images are breathtaking.

Image by Jeff Schultz

Schultz, a native of California, first fell in love with photography when he was in the 7th grade. He first fell in love with Alaska when he was 15 years old, inspired by a book about a man living there off the grid. Schultz used to accompany his older brother Larry on wilderness adventures, and quickly became enamored with outdoor thrills.

Image by Jeff Schultz

Shortly after graduating high school, Schultz moved to Alaska and he has been photographing Alaskan landscapes, wildlife, and people, ever since.

Image by Jeff Schultz

Passion, experience, talent, and skill are what Schultz brings to his Iditarod photos. The images reflect the Passion, experience, talent, and skill of the mushers and the sheer exuberance and power of the dogs.

Image by Jeff Schultz

The Iditarod takes place over a two week span. Schultz photographs all of the preplanning, the start, and all 1,000+ miles of the trail.

Image by Jeff Schultz

The Iditarod Trail is now a National Historic Trail. It began as a mail, supply, and gold mining route from the coastal towns of Seward and Knik to the interior mining camps, led to the west coast communities of Unalakleet, Elim, Golovin, White Mountain and Nome.

Image by Jeff Schultz

Joe Redington, Sr. is affectionately known as “Father of the Iditarod.” His original mission, when he co-founded the race, in 1973, was to save the sled dog culture and Alaskan huskies, which were being phased out of existence due to the introduction of snowmobiles in Alaska.

Image by Jeff Schultz

Each year, Schultz covers more than 50 mushers and about 1,000 dogs as they race through blizzards, whiteouts, sub-zero temperatures, and gale-force winds which can cause the wind chill to reach −100 °F (−73 °C).

Image by Jeff Schultz

In 1985, Libby Riddles, became the first woman to win the race. The next year, Susan Butcher became the 2nd woman to win the race and went on to win three more years.

Image by Jeff Schultz

Check out this video, including an interview with Schultz and a presentation of more of his images. And check out Schultz’s book, “Chasing Dogs,” for loads of images and wonderful stories from the Iditarod.

See Schultz’s facebook, instagram, twitter, website, and sign up for his newsletter.

Image by Jeff Schultz

And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact Daily Fix posts.

Image by Jeff Schultz

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Image by Jeff Schultz

IMAGE CREDITS:

Image: by Jeff Schultz. “Iditarod Siberians.” Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. “Aerial Ice.” Iditarod. Farewell Lakes, Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. “Blue Eye.” Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. “Andrew Nolan on the trail heading toward the finish line in Willow during the 2017 Junior Iditarod.” Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by Jeff Schultz. Iditarod. Alaska.
Image: by BN App - Download now!
Image: by Jeff Schultz. “Happy Dog.” Iditarod. Alaska.