Your first time on the husky runners in Levi
Most people who drive a husky team near Levi have never stood on a sled before. The dogs know the trail and the guide sets the pace. Your job is mostly to hold on and brake when told, leaning into the bends as you go. This guide follows a first ride from the meeting point to the puppies at the end.
Getting to the dogs
Keo Wilderness's 5 km husky ride, from ~$167, starts at Burger King Levi, Levintie 1590, in the village. The listing asks you to arrive 10 minutes early, then a 15-minute drive takes the group out to the husky base.
There is no hotel pickup on this tour, so you make your own way to the meeting point. The whole tour runs about 2 hours, and the ride itself is 5 km (about 3 miles) across a frozen lake and through pine forest.
At the base you hear the dogs before you see them. A team waiting to go is loud and restless, which can surprise a first-timer, but the noise is excitement and it stops almost the moment the sled moves.
The safety briefing
Every tour on this site starts with a safety briefing, and it is the part to listen to most closely. The guide shows you the brake, explains the hand signals for stopping, and tells you how far to keep from the sled in front.
What follows here is general mushing practice, not any operator's rulebook. Where it differs from what your guide says at the base, follow the guide, since they know the dogs and the trail.
Ask questions at the briefing rather than on the trail. Once the teams are moving the dogs are hard to hear over, and a guide at the front of the line cannot stop to explain the brake a second time.
Standing on the runners
A dog sled has two long runners at the back, and the driver stands with one foot on each, holding a handlebar at about waist height. Bend your knees a little and let your legs soak up the bumps.
The passenger sits in front of you, low in the sled. On Keo's 5 km ride two people share a sled with one driving while the other sits, so decide between you who takes the runners first.
You do not steer the way you steer a bike. The lead dogs follow the trail and the team follows them, so your work is balance and braking. Our guide to driving the team or riding along helps if you are unsure which seat to take.
The brake and the snow hook
Most sleds have a brake you step on with one foot. It is a bar or claw that digs into the snow between the runners. Press harder to slow down more, and step off it when the guide waves you on.
The snow hook is a heavy metal hook on a line, used to anchor the team when you stop. Your guide shows whether you set it yourself or whether the guides handle it, and when you are allowed to step off the sled.
A first drive with a small group
Keo Wilderness keeps its 5 km ride to a standard group of up to 12, with a live guide in English and a safety briefing before you take the runners. On GetYourGuide it scores 4.8 from 590+ reviews, and Viator shows 4.7 from 10+.
Bends and hills, plus the sled in front
In a bend, shift your weight toward the inside of the curve, as you would on a bicycle. On a downhill stretch ride the brake gently so the sled does not run into the dogs.
On a climb the dogs work hard, and a common habit is to step off one runner and push with your foot, like a scooter. Ask at the briefing whether your guide wants you to do that.
Keep the gap to the sled in front that the guide asks for. Teams that bunch up can tangle, and a few lengths of space give you time to brake if the sled ahead stops.
The one rule every musher repeats
Never let go of the handlebar. If you fall off, the dogs do not stop to wait, they run on with an empty sled, so hold the bar even if you end up on your knees in the snow.
Falls happen mostly in bends and mostly at low speed into soft snow. The usual damage is snow down the collar and a laugh from the passenger, but the dogs running off alone is the thing to prevent.
Mittens that let you grip the bar make this much easier. Our guide on what to wear on a husky sled covers mittens and liner gloves, and why bulky ones tire your hands.
Keo's listing for this ride sets limits worth checking before you book. The ride is closed to children under 4 and anyone over 70, and Keo caps weight at 95 kg (209 lb). Heart problems or high blood pressure also rule you out.
How long you spend on the sled
A team on a groomed trail covers very roughly 10–15 km (6–9 miles) an hour, so 5 km is somewhere around half an hour on the runners with stops. The rest of the 2 hours goes on the drive out and the briefing, plus time with the dogs.
The 7 km and 15 km rides give you longer on the sled, though you share the distance with a partner. Our guide to how far your husky ride should be sets the lengths side by side. For the prices, see what a husky ride in Levi costs.
After the ride
Back at the base, Keo's listing promises 4-month-old husky puppies to play with, and a reindeer spot nearby for photos. The Viator listing adds a warm shelter with hot drinks and cookies.
Feeding the animals is not allowed, so keep any snacks for yourself. For more on the dogs, read how the Levi sled dogs live, and if you are bringing children, see husky sledding with children first.