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Nature's Kennel Nature's Kennel-Sled Dog Adventures-McMillan, Michigan. Tasha Stielstra-owner. For more information, visit www.natureskennel.com
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Nature's Kennel-Sled Dog Adventures and Iditarod Racing Team-McMillan, Michigan.

Girl Scouts never stop selling cookies! Several weeks ago one of our young guests talked the staff into purchasing a lot...
22/03/2025

Girl Scouts never stop selling cookies! Several weeks ago one of our young guests talked the staff into purchasing a lot of cookies (it’s the best time to ask…right after the tour when the guides are hungry!). Yesterday our cookies got delivered! I had a dog sled scout patch that another troop gave to me years ago and so I passed it onto her as she definitely earned it!

When we adopt dogs into family homes, we do our best to align the energy and needs of the family with the energy of the ...
21/03/2025

When we adopt dogs into family homes, we do our best to align the energy and needs of the family with the energy of the dog. Morgan (the dog on the right) was adopted by 7-year old J.R. because he needed a gentle, reliable leader for his team. Morgan was retired from tours and racing long distances, but he loves running the 2-3 mile youth class! J.R. ran with Morgan in several races this winter, including this one in Iron River.

Happy Spring! After another 6” of heavy snow last night, at least we can keep on dog sledding as we move it around some ...
20/03/2025

Happy Spring! After another 6” of heavy snow last night, at least we can keep on dog sledding as we move it around some more! If you haven’t made spring break plans, come on up!

Sydni offered to update our retiree/dogs for families list. Her descriptions are adorable and I love how well my staff k...
19/03/2025

Sydni offered to update our retiree/dogs for families list. Her descriptions are adorable and I love how well my staff knows and loves these dogs. If you need a companion to get you outside and moving this spring, let us know! Transportation may be available. We even have a local client who has offered to deliver a dog via airplane if you are not within driving distance. Email [email protected] if you are interested or would like this list emailed to you.

It’s dog food re-stocking day! Our  Inukshuk Professional Dog Food  gets delivered by the truckload to the local feed st...
18/03/2025

It’s dog food re-stocking day! Our Inukshuk Professional Dog Food gets delivered by the truckload to the local feed store in Newberry. I made a large purchase (8 pallets) in January so I could avoid the 25% Canadian tariff. This shipment should last until August and hopefully the trade war cools off by then so we can resume business with our favorite Canadian dog food company! (Oh…and McDonalds is next to the feed store so the boss only thought it appropriate to bring the work crew a treat!)

The forecast for the next two weeks looks spectacular for spring time dog sledding! There’s still well over two feet of ...
17/03/2025

The forecast for the next two weeks looks spectacular for spring time dog sledding! There’s still well over two feet of snow on the trails and snow in the forecast!
Our Spring Break Dogsledding Discount is going on now:
10 Mile Trip: $225 to drive your own team, $200 to ride with a guide, $50 per child to ride.
Puppy Loop 2 Mile Ride: $50 per person, kids under 5 are free.
Reservations are required!

“Do you still have enough snow for dog sledding?” —Yes, Yes we do! “It’s been warm and rainy, do you still have snow?” —...
15/03/2025

“Do you still have enough snow for dog sledding?” —Yes, Yes we do!
“It’s been warm and rainy, do you still have snow?” —Yes, we have snow.
“But there’s not snow at my house, and there’s not snow in Mackinac City…or Grand Rapids…or…”. —We have snow, trust me.
“How much snow do you have?”—These photos were taken yesterday, March 14, 2025. Do you know what those lumps are under the snow???

Jake and Orion were our wheel dogs and then took time to discuss and evaluate the enthusiasm and performance of the Luck...
14/03/2025

Jake and Orion were our wheel dogs and then took time to discuss and evaluate the enthusiasm and performance of the Lucky Puppies. All participants received 10/10 for enthusiasm. Performance evaluations ranged from “excellent” to “improving, needs some work” 😀

The girls like to bring in “rotating house dogs” to hang out in the evenings/days off. Here is Ann (on the bed) and her ...
13/03/2025

The girls like to bring in “rotating house dogs” to hang out in the evenings/days off. Here is Ann (on the bed) and her six year old son Red hanging out together. Like mother, like son!

It’s field trip season! Students from Three Lakes Academy and Big Bay de Noc recently had an awesome day of dog sledding...
12/03/2025

It’s field trip season! Students from Three Lakes Academy and Big Bay de Noc recently had an awesome day of dog sledding and snowmobile rides. Notice that we had lunch on the snowbanks…field trips in the UP are only for the hearty!

It’s been a few years since we’ve been able to offer our Spring Break Specials for dog sledding…but it’s back this year!...
11/03/2025

It’s been a few years since we’ve been able to offer our Spring Break Specials for dog sledding…but it’s back this year!! So, head north for a true Pure Michigan vacation!

Spring break rates are effective from March 17-April 6th. We have two options for spring time sledding:

10 mile trips run daily from 9-noon and 1-4 pm. Ride with a guide or drive your own team! Kids have to be 10 to drive their own team. The discounted rate is $225 to drive a team and $200 to ride with the guide.

Family dog sled rides on our 2 mile loop at 10 am and 2 pm. Trip includes kennel tour, dog sled ride, hot coco and snacks. $50 per person ages 5 and up. Children under 5 are free.

There’s still time to enjoy some fabulous mushing on A LOT of of snow!!

Call or text 906-748-0513 for a reservation.

It was a lucky day for the Lucky Puppies! Duck, Bunny, Dice, Charm, and Acorn ran in harness for the first time today! T...
11/03/2025

It was a lucky day for the Lucky Puppies! Duck, Bunny, Dice, Charm, and Acorn ran in harness for the first time today! The puppies were born 7/7/2024 so they are just a few days over 8 months. These photos show the pure joy of running with the big dogs. We ran one pup per team, with two adult leaders, two adults wheel dogs, and a little monkey in the middle. Upon returning to the kennel, all the soccer moms hovered over the new superstars!

Blue skies and sunshine! The perfect combination for spring dog sledding! Even though there’s a few warm days ahead, we ...
09/03/2025

Blue skies and sunshine! The perfect combination for spring dog sledding! Even though there’s a few warm days ahead, we have a TON of snow and will have fantastic trails for several weeks. Come on up and enjoy some great dog sledding! Reservations are required, 906-748-0513.

After a two days of wet, soggy drizzle and 6” of heavy, wet snow…today we saw some sunshine! Luckily Marquette got the b...
07/03/2025

After a two days of wet, soggy drizzle and 6” of heavy, wet snow…today we saw some sunshine! Luckily Marquette got the big dump of snow yesterday (18” or so) and we dodged that madness! It was a beautiful afternoon at camp!

The last MSU Alumni trip of the season is taking place this week. We are all a little sunburned from the blue skies and ...
04/03/2025

The last MSU Alumni trip of the season is taking place this week. We are all a little sunburned from the blue skies and sunshine yesterday!

Here are my favorite photos from Milly and Elizabeth’s race weekend. The Beargrease trail is wide enough to “mush with f...
03/03/2025

Here are my favorite photos from Milly and Elizabeth’s race weekend. The Beargrease trail is wide enough to “mush with friends” and I can remember doing the same thing with mushing friends when I ran the Beargrease marathon in 2004 and 2005…it brings back some great memories!

The wild weekend of racing is complete! Congratulations to Milly for finishing 2nd and Elizabeth for finishing 5th in th...
03/03/2025

The wild weekend of racing is complete! Congratulations to Milly for finishing 2nd and Elizabeth for finishing 5th in the 40 mile Beargrease. They stopped to water the dogs twice (it was super warm with nearly no snow for the dogs cool off), they took one wrong turn and they still did that well! I’m so proud of these girls. They have worked super hard this winter to train their race teams while still working more than full time as dog sledding guides. We’ve had a tremendous amount of snow, a super busy touring season and they have done all the training and preparation themselves. Both of their families (and many friends) came to the races to cheer them on. I have a feeling they’ve caught the “racing bug” and are going to ask me for a few more days off for racing next year 😉

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Our Story

Nature's Kennel-Sled Dog Adventures and Racing Team is owned by Ed and Tasha Stielstra. We have owned sled dogs for more than twenty years and love sharing this magical sport with others. We offer adventure tours for guests of any age and ability. We also own a competitive racing team, primarily run by Iditarod and Yukon Quest finisher Laura Neese. We are located in the Eastern Upper Peninsula, near McMillan, Michigan. For more information, visit www.natureskennel.com