snow ledge

Plan Your Dog Sled Winter Adventure

Experience winter in Ely. There’s plenty to do in the North Woods winter. In planning your trip, here are some other opportunities to build in or around your dogsled trip.

International Wolf Center

The International Wolf Center is located in Ely is open Sat & Sun during the winter. A must for those interested in wolves.

North American Bear Center

The North American Bear Center is located in Ely is open Fri & Sat during the winter.

The Ely Winter Festival

A festive two-week celebration of art, entertainment, ice sculptures, music, special events, and more are held in early Feb

Ice Fishing

While winter blankets the lakes in snow and ice, plenty of hungry fish await your lure.  Lake Trout are much easier to catch in the winter as they move in to shallower water.  Northern Pike, Walleye and Crappie also can deliver some exciting fishing stories. Hire a guide for a day, or rent an ice fishing house for more comfort or a longer stay.

Lutsen Mountain Ski Resort

Located 1 hour and 20 minutes from our kennel, Lutsen Resort is a destination resort on the scenic North Shore of Lake Superior. This full service resort boasts something for everyone.  For skiers, choose between the 150km of groomed cross-country trails and the alpine lure of Lutsen Mountain, which is mid-America’s largest and tallest ski mountain. It is best known for wide-open, groomed cruisers and family-friendly activities. Lutsen boasts 1,000 acres, 95 runs and 825′ of vertical.

Snowshoeing

If you can walk, you can probably snowshoe. This lifetime sport is an fun and active way to enjoy the woods and lakes in the winter. One of our favorite easy winter hikes heads into the Boundary Waters wilderness, and passes several scenic islands en route to check out the ancient pictographs on the cliffs of North Hegman Lake.  Snowshoes can be rented in town at Piragis Northwoods Company. More snowshoe route options are available here.

Cross-Country Skiing

There are some great cross-country trails to ski up here.

Cross Country Ski Rentals

You can rent skis and snowshoes from Piragis Northwoods Company.

Hidden Valley

These trails, located on the edge of Ely, are a great reason to stay an extra day. Here is more information on the trails.

Flathorn-Gegoka Ski Trails

This hidden gem of a trail system is located near the kennel. Here is more information on the trails.

Kawishiwi Falls Hike

Hike in winter? This trail remains usable all year and ends in a beautiful waterfall. You can read about it here.

Snowmobile Rental

You can rent a snowmobile to head out on the vast groomed trail network. Lossings Power Sport will set you up with machines.

Snowmobiling

The Ely area is a hub of snowmobiling in northern Minnesota. With over 200 miles of groomed trails stretching through national and state forests, the scenery is not to be missed.  Visit these winter pages for more information on snowmobiling, local trails and trail conditions.

Dog sled teams , skiers and a snowmobile.
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