ETHICAL SLED DOG SANCTUARY EXPERIENCE. Thank you to all our patrons who make this sled dog sanctuary possible! Your support make this sanctuary possible, the cost for tours does not cover the yearly expenses. But for this to go on for future generations we have more to do. Eden Ethical Sled Dog Sanctuary stands for principaled, respectful care of sled dogs for over 25 years. OUR GUESTS come for our vision and ETHICAL dog sledding!
If you love sled dogs and want a dream experience with our beloved sled dogs-who live chain free and happy year-round on our gorgeous 140-acre sanctuary with engineered miles of trails through scenic Vermont mountains-please call. We don't chain or cage our race and beloved hard working sled dogs, we give them a lifetime of care AND pay our limited staff living wages- which includes visits, hands on learning and a dog sledding adventure with the UN-Chained Gang! We also offer groups and custom tours. Call with questions and to reserve a spot.
When you come here knowing the dogs are treated as celebrities with love and respect as the incredible beings they are, our sanctuary allows the dogs room to play and enjoy life off chains. A discovery Channel type experience, our popular tours includes interaction with our very friendly Alaskan sled dogs, Doggy meet and greet with our exclusive hands-on harnessing indoors and outdoors hitching your team of the incredible, one of a kind UN-Chained Gang. Including a spirited ride, our center maintains the only million-dollar trailsystem for miles of sledding on our 140 privately owned acres, Winter season snow filled and gorgeous. Afterwards, give plenty of treats for the dogs, refreshments for you.
NOW OPEN - hands on harnessing our friendly doggy interaction LIMITED TOURS Couple or family taking turns on the ride. 10:30 am, 1 pm. (3 pm if and when available). All tours are limited, with your private guide.
Listed below find the RATES and tour choices, then call 802-635-9070 to discuss the details and options.
DAILY SPECIALS. Ask for your TOUR TODAY ONLY SPECIAL(not for a future reservation)! Must be for a tour the day of calling only, when available.
We cannot answer email or never text messages at this time. Please call 802-635-9070 after viewing our rates.
*The UN-Chained Gang gratefully accept donations for our Canine Consciousness & educational VISION - and our Sled Dog Sanctuary.
Members of the Military we offer a 10% discount.
The UN-Chained Gang. Ethical Sled Dog Sanctuary Experience. Changing the way the world thinks about sled dogs!Our 30 Alaskan Huskies find joy in running, hugging, and giving you a ride for an educational experience you will cherish for a lifetime! Please call 802-635-9070 to discuss your options and how we can assist you. No online reservations taken.
WE HAVE MORE SNOW!!!Our micro climate and elevation promises reliable mountain snow from January(possibly December) to April, and lots of it. Don't let your plans be foiled by lack of snow elsewhere; Eden VT boasts some of the highest snowfall amounts in the state of VT and New England!
Please go to our direction page or ask us for directions so that you don't find yourself on seasonal roads. 4WD or AWD is required due to winter snow covered roads or Springtime mud season. *Please USE GOOGLE MAPS ONLY* DO NOT use std. GPS or Map Quest, ETC. WE DO NOT TOW or want you to get lost/stuck on a nearby snowmobile trail! Costs plenty to be towed out! *GOOGLE MAPS FINDS US CORRECTLY and ON YOUR SMART PHONE*
AFTER viewing the rates, PLEASE call 802-635-9070. This form is to save time on the phone, No questions.
CLICK HERE TO REQUEST A TOUR RESERVATION
PLEASE CALL! We do not answer emails and text messages are undelivered. Call for questions, availability, reservations.
Please do not arrive more than 10 minutes before appointment. Thank you.
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We also offer lodging STAY AND SLED PACKAGES for our prefered guests visiting for Jims incredible dog sledding experience. Come stay with us at our Eden Mountain Larkspur Lodge, Foxglove and Buttercup cabins. http://www.edenmtnlodge.com |
PRICE IS PER SLED TEAM WITH A PRO GUIDE |
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THE UN-CHAINED GANG TOUR - Choice of either an Educational or Ride-the-Runners Tour if available due to conditions and schedule. Limited $2500. Standard sled up to 350 lbs passenger weight, XLARGE sled up to MAXIMUM 380 lbs pasenger weight. |
3 hrs incl. harnessing $2500+tax
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ALPHA TOUR. Alpha Tour is for up to 6 family members, adults and/or children taking turns on the ride. Tour ride time is split with a passsenger exchange if more than 2 adults. Standard sled capacity 350 lbs passenger weight. Extra large sled up to 380 lbs. passenger weight no additional $50. CLICK HERE If there are more people in your party or if weight limit is exceeded. Extra persons add $50 each, maximum 6 persons including split ride times. |
2-1/2 hrs + incl. harnessing PER FAMILY
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BETA TOUR, very popular upgrade from Omega. $1195-$1495 On SNOW sleds or when NO SNOW on our unique German made Sled-On-Wheels! Genuine and authetic with hands on featuring more doggy interaction plus a longer ride time.
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2+ hrs incl. harnessing $1195-$1495 2-6 persons incl. Kids 10:30am/1pm 3:00pm IF available PER FAMILY, NOT per PERSON
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OMEGA RIDE the RUNNERS TOUR for TWO- Limited Times and days, never available during holiday periods.
OMEGA. For Kids only or with their family.
Our most popular tour's price point features friendly and fun doggy interaction for kids including the ride.
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$2000 plus tax |
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THE UNCHAINED GANG DONATION TOUR |
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Want to include more family and friends on your tour?Please CALL US. KIDS LOVE OUR TOURS! If there are kids in your party please call us to find out if they can fit with you in a sled or if you have to consider the options below.KIDS dogsledding, $895 Max 6 kids 18yo or under taking ride turns. The same tour as our popular OMEGA. Just for kids and Teens! No adults sledding :)
X-LARGE SLED add $50 - Our X-LARGE Sled can accommodate up to MAXIMUM 380 lbs passenger weight. Available when schedules and proper snow conditions with a base allow. Because certain consideration for which dogs are required, tough on equipment and to steer the sled, there is an additional charge for this service to make it possible. SPLIT TOUR - To any tour you can add a SPLIT, meaning we split the sled ride so all the members of your party can take turns. Additional ride time is added so all of you can enjoy a thrilling ride. For ex. The regular Beta tour ride time is 40 min, but when you add a SPLIT the ride becomes Two 20 to 25 min rides. Maximum 6 family or friends splitting two to three ride times per sled up to 350 lbs. total passenger weight. You can also purchase another tour and have 2 sleds if available, so your family and friends can all enjoy the full tour ride time together! Large Group Tours -We can offer large group experiences for schools, scouts, and tour groups. Please call us to discuss your Alpha tour, plans and needs and see our guidelines. 20% Gratuity will be added to the charge. VERMONT residents, SINGLES and active miltary can receive a 10% discount on many of our magical dogsledding tours. BLACKOUT PERIODS MAY APPLY. VT ID required. Vermonter tour |
Kids Only $895 + tax incls up to 6 kids
XL Sled $100 additional. Split ride cost depends on size of group
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ADD ON Bonus Ride-The-Runners SUSPENDED DUE TO STAFFING SHORTAGE Want to feel the rush of driving your own dog team? Then our Bonus Ride the Runners option is for you and can be added to the end of certain tours. A once in a lifetime mushing experience! 10 - 15 minutes Includes brief instruction and driving your team with our professional guide at the end of the tour, AVAILABLE MIDWEEK ONLY. Available certain times and conditions. Not available with groups due to time limits. We also offer full Mushing lessons. |
add $-N/A per person |
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Kennel Tour Want to learn about dogsledding & mushing, but your not so keen on the sled ride? The Kennel Tour is for you! Come and see how Jim Blair raises the UN-Chained Gang to be his sled dogs who love to run, but who are also healthy, friendly, and sociable. See how the dogs interact within a pack dynamic and how this sixth generation has evolved to display a collective Canine Consciousness. Donation to support Ethical, sustainable Eden Dogsledding sanctuary. |
$395plus tax |
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Ride The Runners Lessons Call for more information, not always available. You don't want to just ride in the sled-you want to ride the runners and learn how to drive your own dog team and control the sled! CLICK HERE for more details. 1 LESSON-A beginner lesson or an advanced lesson dependant on your skill level, $Call for 1 person or for a shared lesson (2 person MAX, 1 sled will be shared) 2 LESSON VALUE PACKAGE-2 Lessons for a discount price of $( save $)! $ Call for 2 persons. Gets you a beginner lesson and your advanced lesson, or 2 people can share and get 1 separate lesson each. 4 LESSON VALUE PACKAGE-Four lessons for the great price of $ (save $)! This is a great value for families or couples who want to learn to mush and who want their own lesson with a private guide. Junior Ride the Runners Lessons Kids will be considered on a case by case basis. CLICK HERE for more details. |
$Callper lesson $Call for 2 person shared lesson see Package Deals!! |
DOGSLEDDING RESERVATION/ STRICT CANCELLATION POLICY
Reservations are necessary. During busy holiday and vacation periods early booking is encouraged.
A credit card number is due upon booking a tour. FOR ANY REASON INCLUDING ILLNESS AND COLD WEATHER, if your tour is not cancelled by you with more than 24 hours notice (48 hours Holiday periods) a 50% cancellation fee of that tour price will be charged to your credit card. We still have to pay our limited staff that has come in to work for you that day!
We are not a FAIR WEATHER ONLY business! We run tours 99.9% of the time in all types of weather conditions INCLUDING below 0* in Vermont! It is wintertime. In the event of extreme weather we reserve the right to alter your tour for your comfort and safety.
We accept all Major Credit Cards. To save on credit card bank fees we offer a 5% discount for CASH payments.
Tour times are every day at 10:30/ 1pm. 3:00pm(additional fee) November - April, and 10:30 am, 1pm, March -April(see Summer Tours). Other times by special appointment. Reservations required.
Warm Clothes; socks, boots, mittens, scarves, hats, goggles - we do supply hand and toe warmers and have extra goggles if you do not have them or forget. Do bring your cameras and extra batteries and media cards as the number one complaint we get from our guests is that they wished they could have taken more pictures!
The ultimate dog sledding experience! This is one of our premier experience and educational tour. You will arrive and park in our designated parking area. Bring your goggles, hats, gloves, boots and warmer clothes to our heated, finished Barn and Learning Center.
For the Premium Alpha tour you can expect to be visiting with us for 2 1/2 hours. The first part of your tour is about an hour of meeting the dogs, learning about the sport of dog sledding, the roles each dog plays on the team, the care and breeding of our amazing dogs, our distinctive ethical and humane dog husbandry and the various dog powered sports that people participate in. You will be able to ask questions, get on a sled to see how it handles and take lots of pictures as you interact with our dogs. Next you learn to harness and help to hitch the team to the sled.
The second part of your tour is spent on our wonderful, specially engineered trails that are kept well groomed for your fun and safety. The long range views here are really spectacular. There are many opportunities to stop to take pictures. At the end of the ride time there will be the oportunity to drive the sled with your musher as passenger. Afterward you can give treats to your canine friends as a reward for the adventure they have just given you - and take more pictures!
The last part of your tour is spent back in the warmth of our learning center. At your request, children receive a colorful Certificate, signed by their musher, this is great for framing and taking to show and tell. We offer hot beverages and cookies while relaxing by the woodstove. A slide show of our huge photo collection is playing on the large screen television and we will answer any further questions that you might have. You may wish to use our changing rooms so that you can go on to a meal in one of the fine area eateries or restaurants. Call 802-635-9070 for any questions that you may have!
The split tour is the same as the Premium - Standard tour as far as the fun, dog centered, educational component for the first hour. The difference is that when you have more than two passengers, and do not wish to book two sleds, we allow your family or group to split the second hour and share ride time with two 30 minute rides. This is accomplished by having some members of your tour start the ride with the dogs for the first half of the tour. The rest of your group accompanies a guide who takes you to a scenic portion of the trail where the dogs and musher will stop so that you can exchange places and take the rest of the tour. Our guests find that this is a way that family and/or two couples can both have the great experience of our dogs and our scenic ride in the midst of three thousand acres of wilderness at a lower cost than booking two sleds. Please note: Booking two or more sleds is fun also because it means that your group will go out together and each member will enjoy a full hour tour with the dogs! Please call 802-635-9070 to answer any questions you may have!
Our most popular tour is 2 hours long and for people who want to experience our wonderful, loving dogs and a great sled dog adventure at our pristine and scenic retreat but not have the extensive educational information of the UnChained Gang Tour. It is also great for families with small children who are not yet old enough to appreciate the educational component that we try to offer here but can still thrill to the ride. You get to meet the dogs, harness and hitch them and then go for a 45 -50 minute sled ride on our beautiful trails - we simply remove part of the educational component of the first hour. After your ride and feeding the dogs their cookie treats, you are welcome in our wood stove heated lounge to sip hot beverages and munch cookies.
The split tour is 2 hours long and accommodates a family or group who cannot fit in one sled and do not want to book two sleds. The rest of your group accompanies a guide who takes you to a scenic portion of the trail where the dogs and musher will stop so that you can exchange places and take the rest of the tour. When the dogs come by they will stop to let you trade places. Each half of your group will be receiving a ride of 25 to 30 minutes - it is a fun packed and a memorable experience. Afterward you can reward the dogs with treats and then warm up in our wood stove heated lounge while enjoying a hot beverage.
Come and feel the adrenaline rush of driving your own dog team! Our facility is unique in its ability to offer this lifetime experience. Your first lesson is an orientation of how a dog team is put together, the role each dog plays on the team, driving tips and how the sled functions. You will ride in the sled and get a sense of the trails' terrain, the speed of the dog team and the feel of the sled. During that lesson you will have an opportunity to ride the runners with your experienced guide. If there are two people you will share this experience together with one sled dog team and one guide. On the second lesson we will give you your own team to drive with the background you gained in your first day's experience, with your guide riding as passenger in the sled giving you instruction and helping you to gain confidence. No extra guests are allowed to ride in sleds driven by our students. Each lesson is up to 2 1/2 hours long and includes 1 hr sled time, plus personal intruction, harnessing & hitching, and watering of your team. The two lesson series may be done on consecutive days, or on a 
single day with a mid-day break for lunch (lunch is not provided, please provide your own meal).
For the prospective musher this tour gives a young person the opportunity to learn to drive a 4 sled dog team along with an experienced guide on your sled! We start with an orientation, then you meet and learn to harness and hitch your team. The next 30 minutes to an hour will be spent on our trails with you driving your team. Lesson includes sled driving instructions, harnessing dogs, hitching to the sled, mushing on the trail, afterwards watering, un-harnessing and tossing out dog treats. Each Junior Musher receives a certificate of achievement!
Same as the Junior Ride the Runners experience but includes our longer intermediate trail system lasting between 1 to 1 ½ hours. A higher level of fitness and strength are important for this adventure. Also includes information on care, feeding and training. Each Junior Musher receives a certificate of achievement!
OUR COVETED LOVE OF OUR SLED DOGS DONATION TOUR! ($$$$ for 2 people) For those of you who love sled dogs and sledding and want to give that thrill to others. After deducting the cost of the Un-Chained Gang Tour center where we are providing ethical dog care - your donation will go towards providing underpriveledged Vermont children the experience of a lifetime.
Your tour begins with meeting your 10 dog team, learning about the UN-Chained Gang's unique husbandry, harnessing and hitching them to the sled and proceeding on the tour of our magical trails! Afterward we will water dogs, thank them with treats and put them away in their yards! Don't worry, we won't ask you to clean the dog yard or scoop poop!
Currently we support SledDogWatchDog.com dedicated to bring awareness to the public of abuses at all levels of the sled dog racing and commercial tour industry; and we are building towards founding a non-profit that will support research into dog consciousness, how pack raised/human raised dogs differ from traditionally raised dogs in their ability to interact with humans and aid in supporting challenged adults and children; legislation to specify ethical dog care at all sled dog facilities and kennels; public awareness campaign. Come have fun and make a difference! (Please Note: We welcome donations at all levels - whether or not you come to visit the dogs and take a tour! Please support the Facebook page, HugASledDogToday! and show your support by writing legislators, resorts and tourism boards to let them know that you will only support Ethical Sled Dog Care.
Please get DIRECTIONS from our website or call us at 802-635-9070 if you have questions. GOOGLE MAPS ONLY on your smart phones DOES WORK!!! DO NOT use DASH mounted GPS or MAPQUEST, as they can send you down seasonal closed roads. CELL signals are not great in our area, please inform yourself beforehand.
More Questions? - Please call 802-635-9070. Please note: we are usually busy with doggie chores. It is often easier to get an immediate response from us on the phone by giving us a call, thank you!