Boundary Waters Dog Sledding & Cross Country Skiing
Team up with exuberant sled dogs on this exhilarating dogsledding and cross-country skiing expedition in the remote wilderness of northern Minnesota.
Dogsledding is a centuries-old way of life that is more of an exciting art form than a passenger sport. It is both hard and rewarding work that allows you to travel to remote stretches of the wilderness, where the only tracks you are likely to see are your own. On this eight or 15-day expedition, your Instructors will help you develop the skills to stay warm and comfortable as you build self-confidence, self-reliance and perseverance in this magical winter wonderland. The team of dogs will provide inspiration for you and your group as you work together to travel across the frozen lakes, rivers and snow-covered forests. Work with like-minded adventurers to learn safety techniques as well as winter camping and problem-solving skills, as you cook over an open fire and sleep under the stars. No prior winter travel knowledge or experience is necessary.
Courses in the Boundary Waters have low student/staff ratios (seven or fewer students with two Instructors), allowing for more individualized attention and focus.
NOTE: Outward Bound strongly recommends that all students be vaccinated against COVID-19 and up to date as defined by the CDC prior to arriving to their course start. For all open enrollment courses beginning on or after April 15, 2023, Outward Bound will no longer require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19. For questions regarding this policy please see this page or call us at 866-467-7651.
UPCOMING COURSES
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Course # VMTD-321
Age 16 - 18
Days 8
Cost $2,900
Dates 12.28.23 - 1.4.24
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JOIN WAITLIST
Once a course has reached capacity, three waitlist positions become available. To join a course’s waitlist, click “Join Waitlist” to begin the application process. A $500 deposit is required. This $500 deposit includes a $150 non-refundable application fee and a $350 tuition payment. The $350 tuition payment is refundable only if you cancel your waitlist application or if an open position does not become available. If a position does become available, the applicant will be applied to the open position and the Application and Cancellation Policies of the Regional Outward Bound School will be followed, including forfeiture of the $500 deposit if you cancel 90 days or less prior to the course start date.
Waitlist applicants are encouraged to complete all required admissions documents while awaiting an open position. Positions may become available up to two weeks prior to the course start date. Applicants may only apply to one course. We recommend applying to a course with open positions instead of a course that is accepting waitlist applications. If you have questions, please call 866-467-7651 to speak with one of our Admissions Advisors.
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When a course has reached maximum capacity, meaning all spots and the three waitlist spots are occupied, a course will read “Course Is Full.” This means applications are no longer being accepted.
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As a course nears its start date, the availability status may read “Closed.” In this event, a course roster has been finalized and applications are no longer being accepted or processed.
Positive highlights were the dogs, the relationships made and what I am able to take away from this course. I saw a glimpse of myself as a person with compassion striving to help and serve others to reach a common goal. I now know what I can be, and walk my way there with confidence as I depart.
Together with a team of expert Instructors and lovable sled dogs, students experience a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to connect with nature, working animals and each other in this thrilling, challenging and utterly stunning wilderness environment. Using map and compass, students learn to navigate a route over frozen lakes, rivers and the overland portage trails between them. Students develop skills in dog mushing, cross-country skiing, ice reading, winter camping and sled dog care. Group members take turns mushing the dogsleds and skiing or snowshoeing throughout the course. Everyone cares for the dogs on a daily basis. Take part in a beautiful winter choreography as skiers serve as advance “scouts”—navigating, checking for safe ice conditions and tracking out a trail while mushers work with the dogs to help guide the loaded dog sleds to follow. The group comes together to maneuver the dogsleds over obstacles and steep terrain and make and enjoy camp at the end of the day.
Students learn what it takes to construct a winter camp and live comfortably in the depths of a Minnesota winter. Instructors teach students techniques for harvesting water from beneath the ice, dressing properly for freezing temperatures, felling trees for firewood, cooking over an open fire and setting up shelters and cozy winter sleeping systems. A hearty dinner and enriching conversation with fellow group members around an outdoor fire or the wood stove in a large, canvas wall tent rounds out each day. Students often enjoy clear evenings stargazing before drifting off into a well-deserved sleep. Students learn that not only can they survive, but truly thrive in an extreme and remote winter environment.
Service is a cornerstone of every Outward Bound experience. From the seemingly small daily acts of service for the environment to the regular tasks of being part of an expeditionary team, participants have ample opportunities to experience the value of giving back to the larger community. On the expedition, participants are encouraged to practice environmental stewardship in the form of Recreate Responsibly ethics. Participants also practice regular acts of service for their team including the hard-working sled dogs by preparing and serving meals, securing drinking water, breaking trail and giving the dogs plenty of affection.
At one point during the expedition students are provided a secluded spot to reflect alone, with all the food, skills and supplies they need, and are monitored by staff throughout the experience to maintain safety. We call this part of course, Solo. The Solo experience provides an important break from the rigors of the expedition and gives students the opportunity to reflect on their Outward Bound experience. Many students use this reflection time to make decisions about their future, journal and enjoy the beauty of their surroundings unencumbered by the constant external stimulation of modern life. The duration of Solo depends on the course length and type, as well as the competency and preparedness of the student group. Students find that Solo provokes profound and powerful learning in a short period of time and often becomes one of the most memorable parts of their Outward Bound course.
Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Minnesota
Established in 1978, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is a labyrinth of lakes and rock that has been specifically protected as a true American Wilderness. No roads, power lines or motorized craft may enter its borders. Therefore, the Boundary Waters Wilderness has changed little since its unveiling when the glaciers melted 10,000 years ago.
Over one million acres in size, the BWCAW extends 150 miles along the Minnesotan/Canadian border. With over 1,200 miles of canoe routes, nearly 2,200 designated campsites and more than 1,000 lakes and streams, the BWCAW is a truly amazing place to experience the wilderness. It contains portage-linked lakes and streams, interspersed with islands, forests and crags. It has no piped water, prepared shelters, or signs to point the way. Within these borders you can canoe, portage and camp as the native peoples and French-Canadian Voyageurs did before you. The Boundary Waters' paddling routes offer outstanding opportunities for solitude, remoteness, teamwork, adventure and challenge.
In the winter, the Boundary Waters transforms into an even more severe and remote wilderness. While more difficult, winter enthusiasts travel over frozen lakes and rivers by dogsled, cross-country ski and snowshoe. Winter in the Boundary Waters is mesmerizing, peaceful and exhilarating. It is a place of spectacular extremes, trackless snow, bracing cold air, glowing warm embers and powerful silence. These regions are the ancestral lands of the Anishinabewaki ᐊᓂᔑᓈᐯᐗᑭ and Očeti Šakówiŋ (Sioux) nations.
Course Stories
Positive highlights were the dogs, the relationships made and what I am able to take away from this course. I saw a glimpse of myself as a person with compassion striving to help and serve others to reach a common goal. I now know what I can be, and walk my way there with confidence as I depart.
What this trip taught me, is that every single 'I can't' is an 'I won't' and that I have the power to change that and make it an 'I can.’
Some positive highlights of my course were good times around the fire and being taught correct knowledge. I will tell other people that if you want to have a life changing experience (for the good) that will teach you more than school can, do Outward Bound.
I was pushed more than I expected. There was a lot of personal gain to be taken away if you put in the work. The Instructors were amazing. The Solo day was more than I could have ever hoped for, in terms of personal gain.
It takes extremes like sleeping under the stars next to a thermometer reading somewhere below -40 degrees Fahrenheit, watching snow blow across the Kawishiwi River after a long, hard day of travel, sitting around a stove in a canvas tent with a group of real, close friends, laughing and telling stories, and living simply in challenge and triumph, to learn some things about yourself, and without this experience, I would may have have never known them.
My Outward Bound experience was nothing short of utterly life-changing! I developed a keen self-awareness and a worldly view I never thought I’d be fortunate enough to have. My previously lack-luster set of morals and beliefs have been solidified into something I am truly proud to call my own, and my abilities to communicate my own thoughts and feelings is remarkable. Ski-joring across a frozen lake with a beautiful dog under a sunset was straight from a movie and might be the most magical thing I have ever done in my life! This course has given more to me than I ever thought I’d get out of an outdoor expedition.
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Getting Started
If you are ready to enroll on a course click the enroll button next to the course you wish to select or you can enroll over the phone by speaking with one of our Admissions Advisors (toll-free) at 866-467-7651.
To secure your spot on a course you must submit an enrollment form and $500 deposit that is applied toward the total cost of the course and includes a $150 non-refundable enrollment processing fee.