Canmore

Travelers' Takes

Rates and Deals

Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours

More Photos
bwesthoven guide
First Reviewer
5 out of 5
Avg. Member Rating
4
Reviews
19
Photos
Sort by: Most Recent|Positive|Negative|Most Useful
1-4 of 4
Editor Pick

Highlight of our Trip

  • February 15, 2009
  • Rated 5 of 5 by callen60 from Ozarks, Missouri
Highlight of our Trip

Before planning this trip, I never thought I’d go dogsledding. Not that I’d considered it and said no: I’d never even thought about the possibility, since it seemed such a part of a separate, foreign existence. In our increasingly homogeneous world, mushing seemed one of the few things firmly bound to its own distant, somewhat forbidding place in the Arctic and near-Arctic.

But when we decided to head for a winter climate to celebrate our anniversary, I quickly learned that several firms were happy to provide that experience to complete novices. We both agreed that mushing was one of those things we just had to do: certainly, we wouldn’t get the chance to steer our own sled through the Ozarks, and we aimed to take part in as many uniquely northern experiences as we could.

Three companies lead dogsled tours In the Banff/Canmore/Lake Louise area. We decided to make this part of our first full day, after spending the night in Canmore where two of the firms were based. Options ranged from two-hour trips for ‘powderhorns’ to half- and full-day trips, and even one-week expeditions.

Two hours seemed long (and pricey) enough for a first outing. Snowy Owl has been leading trips for nearly a quarter of a century, and I made a reservation with them for 9:30 on Monday morning. I hadn’t confirmed it with a credit card, though, and called them the day before our flight to do so. Dogsledding is very popular: by then, only the last of that day's four trips had space left, so we were booked for 3 pm instead.

We met at the offices in Canmore, where we piled into vans for the trip up over a pass into Kananaskis Country and Spray Lakes Provincial Park. Several vans carried us mushers over the ridge on the southwest edge of Canmore, past the Olympic Park and up some winding mountain roads, and then down to the river and out to the southern end of reservoir where the dogs were waiting for us.

This was the fourth outing of the day, but the dogs were anxious to get started again. During the instructions—the 20 minutes that taught us everything we would need to know about handling dogs and a sled—some pups had more trouble than others biding their time. The necessities can be boiled down to a few things: ‘Hike!’ means go, ‘Whoa!’ means stop; get off and run up hills to help them out, and make sure to use the brake when the sled ahead of you is stopping or on a steep downhill. The dogs know they’re working for amateurs, and if they sense a chance that you won’t stop get the sled stopped in time, they jump off to the side to avoid getting pinned between your vehicle and the one ahead. Be sure to shout encouragement (good puppies!), but not too often; they know when you’re overpraising. A glance backwards usually means ‘What the heck are you doing?' And if you’re still uneasy, rest assured that the dogs know far more than you about this, and essentially drive themselves.

But that doesn’t diminish the sense that you’re actually driving, or the pleasure it brings. When the lecture ended, the dogs knew it was time to go—and now every one started barking and jumping several feet off the ground, calming down only when the guides came and prepared all the lines to get us ready to head out. The driver stands balanced on the back end of the twin runners, between which lies the simple hinged metal bar with hooks that you stomp down into the snow when braking is required. In front, my wife and the grandmother of the young mushers in the sled ahead of us were wrapped up in blankets, enjoying the ride.

There were 15 sleds in our caravan, every third one including a guide, with the others piloted without professional assistance. Each sled was pulled by six dogs, arrayed in a series of three pairs, with the lead dogs often somewhat smaller than the rest. Guinevere and a partner (not Arthur) led our sled, and we gave them plenty of compliments. More than we should have, probably, but it was hard to stop.

The contrast between the excited barking of the dogs before setting off and the quiet that enveloped us as soon as the sled started moving was amazing. We headed down the road on the west side of Spray Lake, the long, narrow reservoir formed by damming Goat Creek. We were close to the shore; just enough land lay between the road and the shore for an occasional campground, and through the trees we could see the mountains beyond the east bank of the lake.

It only took about 90 seconds to realize that this outing would probably be the highlight of our trip. And that was under cloudy skies, so we missed the sunset we thought that we’d lucked into due to our late reservations. Nonetheless, it was really neat to be out as the day ended and the skies dimmed. As we pulled back into the starting area, we saw a campfire burning, and all the newly christened veterans gathered round for ‘hot’ chocolate and mystery cookies. It’s hard to keep anything too hot at 5 below, but it still tasted good, and I think the only mystery about the cookies was how many each person could score before the large supply ran out. We enjoyed chatting with Geremy, who co-owns Snowy Owl with his sister Carlin (the instructor) and his Mom.

We piled into the vans for the trip back to Canmore, excitedly reviewing our experience with the couple next to us, who also happened to be vacationing from Missouri. We ran into them repeatedly through out the Rockies, catching up on each other’s trip and reminiscing about the sled ride.

Like any outdoor activity in the winter, you need to dress warmly, but the usual winter wear will suffice on a mild day. It was between -5 and -10 that day (a range we’d usually call 14 and 23), so our usual routine of thermal underwear, jeans, and snow pants was enough. Good gloves are must, and I was glad I’d purchased a better set in Canmore that afternoon. As was true throughout our week, the nylon balaclavas we purchased were also worth it.

From journal Winter in Canada's Rockies

Editor Pick

Experience of a Lifetime!

  • June 23, 2008
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Husky21 from Edmonton, Alberta
Experience of a Lifetime!

My family and I have been going on sled dog rides for 4 years now, we have done some in Alaska, BC and Alberta. This is the first time we have gone with Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours and let me tell you, it was amazing! This was the most fantastic experience I have ever had in the outdoors. What made the trip was the dogs; what a beautiful, friendly, happy and healthy bunch they have. Our Guide, Jereme who is one of the Directors for Snowy Owl told us that they use 5 different breed 4 of which are pure breeds. For once we didn't just the the Alaskan Husky (a husky crossed with grey hound for racing.) It was nice to see some of the authentic breeds that were used years ago. A lot of the companies we had gone with prior were saying that the pure breeds are slow and hard to train, well we witnessed the contrary! These dogs were fast, happy, attentive and powerful.

Another highlight was that we actually had the option of driving our own sled behind a guide. This was fantastic, what a rush! Jereme explained that they have a maximum of 3 people per sleigh as they do not like to over load their sleds, they still want to make it fun and easy for their dogs.

All the guides were very friendly and knowledable, they all knew so much about the dogs and each dog's personality. We have learned so much about dog sledding just after this trip and we now have a whole new aproach to dog sledding. As all the guides said, "It's all about the dogs here!" Being a dog lover I sure enjoyed knowing that all these dogs were cared for with such love and respect.

For those of you looking for a once in a lifetime experience make sure you contact Snowy Owl, they have an amazing company!
Editor Pick

Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tours

  • April 27, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Pizzaman12 from Ashburn, Virginia
This was truly one of the best experiences of my life. Snowy Owl was a recommendation from the Fairmont Banff Springs when we inquired about dogsledding, and they lived up to their reputation.

We met the group and drove up the mountain in a snow that progressed from light to heavy throughout the morning. We had prepared ourselves with layers of clothing and boots, but the only part that ended up being cold were our hands. They paired us up in groups of two with their instructors, and gave us a few quick pointers. My wife and I were paired up with the daughter of the owners. We were introduced to all the dogs, including the matriarch, Shauni, and a very vivacious little guy named Tigger.

We had expected to ride on a sled, but the biggest surprise for us was after a brief training session, we were in control of our own sled. In teams of two, one person rides on the back of the sled with the instructor, while the other sits, wrapped in blankets, in the sled. Halfway through the ride, we switched positions. The dogs were extremely active, but obedient and caring. Each time we stopped, they cuddled with us as we walked up and down the line of dogs.

The scenery was absolutely wonderful, slicing along the snow, through some beautiful wooded areas around a sizable frozen lake. From start to finish (which included some hot cider and picture-taking), we were out for about 3 hours, although longer excursions are available.

This is a can’t-miss activity. Bring plenty of warm clothes, hand warmers and great gloves. A camera is absolutely essential to capture some once-in-a-lifetime moments. After 30 minutes with the dogs, they treated us as if they had known us forever.

From journal Canadian Rockies

Editor Pick

Sled dog tour

Sled dog tour

Contact info: 403-678-4369
1-888-311-6874 www.snowyowltours.com

The offices for this sled dog company (one of two, I believe, in the area) are in Canmore. You can then drive yourself or take a shuttle high up into the mountains above Canmore for the tour. The drive up is in itself an experience. It's very steep in sections, but is kept plowed by the power company so that they have access to the dams that dot the river on the way down the mountain.

Several tours are available. We took the two hour intro tour of the Spray Lakes area. There is also a 4 hour tour, a 10 hour tour and an overnight tour. Moonlight 2 hour tours and a helicopter tour are also available.

Sleds for the short tours travel in large groups (I think there were 8 on ours). Almost every sled has 3 people, so you might end up with a stranger or with your group divided. Some sleds have guides on board and you can usually travel with a guide if you request it. Still, the dogs know the routine and they know the route, so "driving" them is not difficult and the guides encourage all the interested adults to give it a try.

When you are not driving, you can sit in the sled under some blankets and enjoy the mountian views and the antics of the dogs. When they are not running, they are generally rolling in the snow, fighting, breeding or making the snow yellow. There is always a lot of activity.

The dogs are a little smaller than the movie dogs and are a cross breed of lots of different kinds of working dogs. Some have German Shepherd, some greyhound, some husky, some malimute... the list goes on and on. Most of them are very friendly and responsive.

The drive goes along a path through the woods and across a huge, gorgeous frozen lake with a mountain backdrop. It gave us our closest experience to seeing the real Canadian outback that we will probably have. If I had it to do again, I might try the add-on cross country ski option to get a little bit more of that feel.

After the ride there is a campfire, hot cider and cookies.

The cost for the 2-hour tour was $80CAD per adult. My only complaint is that I thought the group was a little too large. I would have enjoyed it much more in a group of 6, 9 or 12. The 20 or so people we had was just a little unwieldy and we had to stop frequenly along the trail to regroup.

I rated it recommend because it is clearly not for everyone, but it was a great experience and a change of pace from skiing.

From journal Spring skiing and relaxing in Canadian Rockies

Sort by: Most Recent|Positive|Negative|Most Useful
1-4 of 4

Compare Canmore Rates

1. Enter travel information

City

2. Select websites to compare rates

Each selected website will open a new window.

Helpful Canmore Links

Canmore Travel Deals