Chilly Dogs Sled Dog Trips — Local services in Morse Township

Jake runs a good ship and you and your family will most likely have a wonderful time, but working with Jake... he is extremely particular about how things are run. Very tight leash and is more in tune with dogs rather than people and social skills.

I was working alongside Jake and the Scout Camp for 2 days when suddenly he didn't want me mushing with his dogs anymore. He gave ZERO reasoning initially and told me that I should use this as a learning lesson. And when I asked for reasoning again, he still wouldn't say and made it very unclear. A week or so later he eventually gave reasoning...

Some of his examples:

I asked for a phone charger and Jake accused me of prioritizing my phone. If he was observant he would've noticed I was taking notes on mushing on my phone.

I was rebuked for asking clarifying questions to Jake and he said I wasn't paying attention. If the directive was unclear then one should be able to clarify without getting criticized. Communication is key.

He said I was good at leaning against things. That's just the way I am. I don't know what else to say that's just my personality. My tick. I don't know what to think of that one.

I got in trouble for using the wrong poop scoop. I had heard his directive not to use them but I saw fit that the shovel would've worked poorly in that moment. It's sort of a thing where no matter what hand you use it's still that same task but he's again VERY particular about how things go. I thought he'd be able to see the importance of independent decision making one needs with mushing. No only one way to skin a cat there. No exception.

There was a moment where Jake was getting into a story and it seemed like a lull in the conversation for me to quick take 2 mins to grab some water from the garage. I walked in and got some water while his other worker came in to see what I was doing. All humans need water and I shouldn't have justify and walk on egg shells just to get water. It seemed like Jake was trying to find a reason to fault find about me.

Last example he thought I wouldn't be able to function in high pressure environments to be able to be spontaneous, flexible, and care for the dogs. I shouldn't have to credit myself here at all but I'm an EMT, I've fought wildfires, and I've mushed twice before with the BSA. There's no doubt of my credibility under pressure. I felt excited about mushing and I felt I was asking a lot of good questions and was also leading the other trainnes on feeding and other tasks. Although he accused me of not having good teamwork skills. Yet if you were to ask the other trainnes I'm 100% confident they would say my teamwork skills are satisfactory.

Overall I didnt feel like I was being treated fairly and didn't feel like I was being treated like an adult. What really does it is the fact that he initially gave me NO explanations for taking me off mushing. Then later gave me  reasons I feel that were fault finding and unrealistic.

Any other person would've seen that I was very much interested. There is no room for mistakes with Jake even if you're doing nothing wrong he'll create a reason out of ill evidence.

Another small thing is he takes a long time to get to the point and often gets sidetracked in dialog. He speaks very quietly which doesn't work very well in a kennel.

I tried to write this review in the most honest way I feel. Not just hammering on em for no reason. Familes please don't let this convince you to cancel. Jake is a nice man and his operation overall is a great source of fun in the north woods. It's the people that are interested in working for him please take note on my...

Fantastic experience 100% recommend everyone go dog sledding. My girlfriend and I booked about a week in advance. We stayed in the cozy Grand Ely Lodge which was about a 12-15 minute drive from Chilly Dogs. We had cell service in Ely, so we were able to Navigate via google maps to Chilly Dogs just fine. My girlfriend was very nervous leading up to the sledding. It was the coldest Christmas in 20 years! I believe it was about -25F that morning and she wasn't sure we were prepared. We weren't..... LUCKILY however, they had a good selection of mittens, glove liners, parkas, snow pants, boots, goggles, socks etc, that people were able to rent if the apparel they brought wasn't good enough for the conditions of the day. They won't let you go out on the trail without proper gear!! They'll check your stuff if you're unsure :) We brought hand warmers, my girlfriend rented heavier boots and mittens. I rented glove liners and mittens as well as a pull over parka(that went over my base layer, t-shirt, sweatshirt, and northface shell). The small fee for renting was well worth it of course. Glove liner/mittens for example was $5 I believe. We also had a balaclava, hats and face coverings. We were all set!! After getting there at 9, we suited up, went to meet the dogs (they were great!) then we had a 20 minute course on how to ride the sled and control the speed. After that, we headed out 2 people per sled, with 2 groups of 4 sleds(8 sleds in all) with 5-6 dogs per sled. This was based on weight and dog strength etc. The trails were a little hard packed, so bumping and leaning were a thing. Only a few slight hills that required me to run next to the sled (while still holding on) Nothing super intense. You are mostly standing and applying pressure to the skid brake the whole time. I stayed warm, my GF had to deal with bumps sitting in the sled but she was fine overall. Our face protection meant our goggles fogged up too much so I didn't wear mine (I was fine) wiped the icicles off my eyelashes a few times but other than that I was warm.

We had a wonderful wonderful time. Next time I would love to go on both trails (they offer an all day trip which is just the two trails back to back) The guides were great, the owners Donna and Jeff were caring, kind, informative and helpful. Jake and the girl (forgot her name) were good guides as well. The cost may seem a little high (I think it was roughly $130 a person which may vary over time) but really the experience was most excellent and if that money goes towards keeping the gear up to date/clean, the dogs fed, and people employed to keep this facility running, then I'm all for the costs of it! Will be back...

Ever wanted to be surrounded by celebrities?! Well, now is your chance! These dogs are incredible athletes. You start your day off by meeting with one of the crew members. They give you a run down of what will be happening over the next couple hours. They also go through the gear you will need to be wearing. Piece of advice- don’t spend a bunch of money on heavy duty winter gear beforehand. Just rent it there. I promise you that you’ll want to rent their boots. Just listen to the staff on what you need and you won’t regret it. After everyone’s attire has been verified, it’s time to meet the celebrities- the dogs! There are plenty of staff mixed in so go up and listen to the background stories of some of the dogs. Be ready- those dogs are ready to show you some love! After that you’ll go into another room and get a run down on how to drive the sled, dos and donts, etc. and then…. It’s time to ride! One person goes in as cargo, the other person drives. Halfway through we stopped and switched. Everything I read previous to booking said you need to be in good cardio shape because you will be jogging up hill beside the dogs at some points. I work out more days than not and let me tell you… running in all that gear… and those boots—- wow! It’s a challenge. But so worth it. It was truly an amazing experience. The dogs, the mushers, the staff, everyone… THE BEST. If you’ve ever thought about doing it, don’t wait. Go check them out. You won’t regret it. The energy and muscles those dogs have is unmatched. Bodica was one of the lead dogs in my sled. She would turn back and whine when we were going fast enough for her liking. She was so awesome to watch in her element. One of the best experiences I’ve ever had. Can’t say enough good things. Just book...