Monarch Dog Sled Rides, Monarch

We were nervous there wouldn't be enough snow but they stayed in contact with us all the way through. Once the tour started the guides were so kind and knowledgeable. We have an 8 year old and a 4 year old, they were very patient and so accommodating! They introduced us to each dog and they knew each dog personally- you can tell they care for these animals! They let our kids harness the dogs and gave us a history of snow dogs then our tour started. They were so careful with the animals and balanced an enjoyable experience for us with the best interest of the dogs. We were able to do several variations of who was on the back and who was in the sled to make sure we all got the full experience. The trail itself was incredibly beautiful!! After the tour there is hot tea, cider, and cocoa waiting for you and free stickers. It was just us and one other family so it was very personal - highly highly recommend!!!

Hands down one of the coolest experiences we've ever had! Is it pricey? Yes. Is it worth it? Absolutely. For us this is a once in a lifetime experience and we're so glad we did it! We had planned a little winter getaway when our kids were off school for a few days and had researched things to do and this popped up. Decided we HAD to do it and booked two sleds (one two person and one 3 person) about a month in advance. Drove in from Omaha, NE and they had just gotten a great snow so the powder was perfect for a sled ride. The entrance is literally just a little turn off the main road and is blocked with a sign. You park right there and walk down the hill a bit to meet the mushers (in our case Caleb, Caleb, and Jake) and also the dogs. This was such a cool experience to get to meet them and learn a little about them all...we spent so much time loving on each dog and learning about sled history (which was so cool too!) They even let us help harness the dogs! Then we loaded up and we were off! We stopped a couple of times to give the dogs a break and let the kids swap seats so they could all take a turn riding behind the mushers...I wish I could tell you how long the ride was but honestly I wasn't even paying attention. It was just so cool to see Colorado from a dog sled. They pointed out some of the mountains and an old mining cemetery... When we got back they had hot drinks and cookies and we said one last goodbye to the dogs and went on our way. Definitely recommend sunglasses/goggles for flying snow, warm clothes and boots, a hat and possibly a scarf...we all got pretty wind burned. Again, great group of people and lovely dogs! Can't recommend them enough!