A field of 16 mushers checked into the Aniak checkpoint. Aniak is the halfway point in the Kuskokwim 300 sled dog race.
Slideshow: K300 mushers at the Aniak checkpoint
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The K300 race committee tightened COVID-mitigation measures ahead of the race amid the region’s largest surge in case counts.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Aaron Burmeister leaving the Aniak halfway checkpoint.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Joar Leifseth Ulsom of Willow prepares his dogs to leave.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Nate DeHaan left Aniak in 13th position with all 12 dogs.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Reigning champion Richie Diehl departing his hometown of Aniak.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Pete Kaiser’s daughter watches her dad’s dog team as they rest at the Aniak halfway checkpoint.
Sam Elliot / KYUK
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Pete Kaiser heading back out on the trail after the Aniak checkpoint.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Sam Brewer's dropped dog howls as its team leaves without it.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Matthew Failor puts straw down for his dogs during his hour-long rest in Aniak.
Sam Elliot / KYUK
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Father Alexander Larson puts booties on his dogs at the Aniak halfway checkpoint.
Sam Elliot / KYUK
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18-year-old Jason Pavila of Kwethluk is the youngest musher in the field and the fourth one into the Aniak halfway checkpoint.
Sam Elliot / KYUK
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Eddie Burke Jr. of Nenana outbound from Aniak.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Father Alexander Larson of Napaskiak heads out on the trail, iconic wolf fur mittens in tow.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Local Aniak fan Roxanne Evan cheers on Aniak musher and reigning champion Richie Diehl.
Sam Elliot / KYUK
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Rookie John Snyder of Akiachak is the last musher to make it out of the halfway point in Aniak.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Rookie Sam Brewer high fives Joar Leifseth Ulsom on the way out of Aniak.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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Aaron Burmeister of Nome and Nenana arrives at the Aniak halfway checkpoint, closely followed by Isaac Underwood of Aniak and Crooked Creek.
Sam Elliot / KYUK
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Joar Leifseth Ulsom of Willow and his team leave Aniak.
Olivia Ebertz / KYUK
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A fan in Aniak cheers on local musher Isaac Underwood, who moved from Crooked Creek to Aniak as a kid, and back to Crooked Creek in the summer of 2021.
Sam Elliot / KYUK
