The Icelandic Canadian - 01.04.2007, Side 11

Vol. 61 #1
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
9
Gimli sled dogs in the early 1900s
by Gail Halldorson
Dog sleds came into use very early in
the history of New Iceland—this mode of
transportation being common among the
native peoples and the Hudson’s Bay
employees with whom the Icelandic set-
tlers came in contact. These were working
dogs, whose primary job was to bring the
crates of fish in off the Lake Winnipeg ice
during the winter. The teams were also reli-
able transportation for individuals and
families. They went for supplies; they
delivered the mail. They were well looked
after and highly prized. Gimli sled dogs
were of mixed breed, including St. Bernard
and Newfoundland dogs, ranging from
stocky, low-legged huskies (rather slow
but powerful), to high-legged wolfhounds
(long, lean and speedy). A team would usu-
ally number five or six dogs, and could pull
a load of 300-500 pounds on the ice. The
sleds had runners, measured about twelve
by three feet, and had a crate on top. (J.B.
Johnson had a sled with steel runners and a
dog team that once pulled 1200 pounds.)
The dogs’ lives were without freedom. If
not in harness in a team, they were often
tethered with metal chains to their kennels.
Perhaps that’s why they enjoyed doing
their job. They could run! The dogs had
many adventures—in the Antarctic, in the
U.S.A., in Winnipeg, in Northern
Manitoba and in the Arctic. This is the
story of our dogs in the early 1900s, as best
we know it at this time (March, 2007).
In the Antarctic
Referring to husky sled dogs in Polar
Regions, The Fan Hitch (2003), newsletter
of the Inuit Sled Dog International, said:
“The contribution of the huskies lasted
some ninety-six years, from the first expe-
dition in 1898 under Borgevink to 1994
when the last dog team was flown out and
driven the last 300 miles to an Inuit settle-
ment in Arctic Canada. Intruders we were,
but we traveled with reverence for the
scenery, understanding for its dangers, and
a great partnership between us and our dog
teams.” Dogs will not be in Antarctica
again; since 1994 they have been banned as
a foreign species. Antarctica is treated as a
scientific laboratory, with only men and
machines allowed.
The Shackleton Dogs (1914-1917)
Ernest Shackleton said: “After the con-
quest of the South Pole by Amundsen who,
by a narrow margin of days only, was in
advance of the British Expedition under
Scott, there remained but one great main
object of Antarctic journeyings—the cross-
ing of the South Polar continent from sea
to sea”. The plan was to travel the roughly
1800 miles by sending two groups of men
and sled dogs, in two different ships, to the
Weddell Sea and the Ross Sea respectively.
The Ross Sea Party would set up supply
depots for the Weddell Sea Party to com-
plete the journey across Antarctica. And so
the adventure began.
The expedition was announced
January 13, 1914. Shackleton’s want ad
read as follows:
“Men wanted: For hazardous journey.
Small wages. Bitter cold. Long months of
complete darkness. Constant danger. Safe
return doubtful. Honour and recognition
in case of success.”
- Sir Ernest Shackleton.
He got 5000 replies, from which he
chose 56 men. The 99 sled dogs that went
on the Imperial Trans Antarctic Expedition
with Sir Ernest Shackleton in 1914 were all
from the Gimli area. Sir Ernest hired the
Hudson’s Bay Company to oversee the
collection of 100 sled dogs from Canada to
go on the expedition. Sandy McNab, of