Picture the scene: slicing through cold, fresh air underneath crisp blue skies with only the sound of your sled runners cutting cleanly through deep snow at a powerful pace determined by your very own pack of eager huskies. Of those rare life experiences that make you feel truly alive, dog sledding is undeniably one. Contrary to what many may think, especially us Brits for whom a dog having its own place at the dinner table isn’t actually that bonkers of a notion, the dogs LOVE it. Huskies are working dogs, but they are exceptionally happy too and it is widely known throughout the sport how much their owners adore them. Your husky safari can cover a few miles, or hundreds travelled over the course of a week and you’ll be taught how to harness your own team, care for them, and snuggle them down at night – the only sad bit about dog sledding will be leaving your loyal pack, but then that’s a perfect excuse to return.

It’s likely you’ve deduced that the best time to go on a husky safari is when the ground is covered in a thick, fresh layer of soft snow and snow is very much a winter thing. Winters in Northern Europe are beautiful, but bitterly cold (we’re talking -30°C) and December is definitely an acquired taste too because day and night are dark, although for some this does add an even more atmospheric air. On the whole, winter in Alaska and Canada is warmer than winter in Northern Europe, and Canadian winter is wonderfully dramatic – a very snowy season that extends right through to July along its Arctic borders.