Dog sledding my way to a one year "re-birthday" and celebrating with the best present of all- great blood results!

March 3rd marked my one year surgery anniversary.  I wanted to celebrate with a BIG adventure.  A 5 day, 100 mile dog sled trip on the outskirts of Denali National Park sounded like just the right amount of crazy.  Thankfully my long time friend Andrea is the kind of person who thinks spending a week mushing across the frozen tiaga in 20 below sounds like fun.  We had a fabulous time!  

Before I get into the weeds, or snowbank as it were, of the trip details, medical news..... It is with a the biggest sigh of relief that I share my 6 months post chemo blood results.  My Cancer Antigen 125 marker from Monday's blood draw was 4, just like 3 months ago.  A great result!  This means there is no active cancer growing now; it does not mean it won't recur in the years to come. I still need tests every 3 months for 4 more years.  From what I understand, getting 6 months post chemo means my specific tumor cells were sensitive to the platinum-based chemotherapy I received.  So if Porlock does return, another course of chemo is a treatment option, which is good.  For now, I AM HEALTHY and I get another three month lease on life.  I am thrilled.  My spirit feels so light I could float away.  I am holding on to this carefree joy as long as I can.  But enough of that; back to the frozen North and the dogs. 

Andrea and I flew to Fairbanks, and Jon, owner of Earthsong Lodge and Dogsledding adventures picked us up and drove us to Healy.  We met his dogs, learned how to harness up, and had a 20 mile practice run with a trainer.  I crashed my sled and the powder was so deep I couldn't get it righted, I was worried -- whose idea was this!  Oh yeah, my crazy life-affirming idea.  Jon gave me a pep talk and we persevered.  The following 4 days Andrea and I mushed our own team over 100 miles!  The plan was to stay at Sushana Cabin, on the Denali Park border, but the 30 mile one day run from the kennel proved too far given the very slow and heavy snow conditions.  As a backup plan we stayed in a cabin 8 miles from the kennel and make day trips from there on the Stampede Trail.  Traveling by dog sled is magical.  The frenzied energy and barking of the dogs quiets down as soon as they are off and running, the only sound is a light clang of the harness line.  The 8 mile an hour pace is just the right speed to appreciate the changing landscape yet still travel to a destination.  One high-light of the trip was the mamma and baby moose.  The dogs barked and pulled with force, my adrenaline kicked in, my heart was pounding as I stood with my full weight on my claw break, hoping to keep the dogs "parked."    We played hide and seek with the moose for a few intense minutes but eventually they wandered far off the trail and we could pass and continue on our way. WOW, that I will never forget.  Another thrill were the northern lights.  WOW again -- that may be the most amazing natural phenomenon.  It was 30 below and Andrea and I would dash out of the cabin to watch for a few minutes.  If it's not on your bucket list ,add it to the top!  Thanks to Courtney and Brian for taking great care of us.  Thanks to all the amazing dogs!  Basil, Ahab, Trixi, Cisco and Tin: courageous athletes with hearts of gold.  

My pictures aren't great -- once those dogs are harnessed up they like to GO and stopping to compose a picture isn't really an option.  The iPhone froze most days an hour or so after leaving the cabin.  The cold was too much. Ipopsicle!  Even when it was working, that darn button only works with bare skin, so it meant taking my over mitts and gloves off.  The big Nikon also proved problematic; it lost most of its battery in the cold and it was too bulky and delicate to hold while also gripping the sled for dear life.  So the GoPro really shone as the tool of choice.  I will edit my videos and get them posted soon.  Check back.  For a more exciting video here is a crazy and wild ride with Iditarod Champion Jeff King.

After mushing 100 miles we topped off the trip with a quick visit to Anchorage to see the start of the Iditarod.  What an amazing race!  I was also grateful to spend a day with my brother and his wife Nahanni.  We had a great visit, complete with a sauna and beer volcano!  I rarely see them so it was special.  

My new goal in life is to be old and poor. So for now I go from blood test to blood test one adventure at a time. I am so grateful to Bruce, who just might be the world's best husband. He is so supportive of my insatiable appetite for adventures.  Everyone with a life threatening diagnosis deserves to appease their whims.   The next blood test is mid June.  I'll give a health update then, but maybe a travel post sooner  :)    Thank to everyone for cheering me on.  Take care of one another and create some joy.