Lonely?

Team of six: Tor and his gang.

"Don't you ever get lonely?" is probably the question I get asked the most. As if loneliness somehow was dictated by the physical distance to your next door neighbour.
Of course I don't get lonely. For one thing, how lonely can you be if you're surrounded by eight dogs and a cat. They might not be great for those deep, intellectual discussions but neither are most people.
And I get visits every now and then. At least as often as my friends in town get visits. Tor came by the other day. I didn't know one of his bitches had puppies this spring, he kept all three and dropped by with his whole team.
Tor walks with his dogs an hour each morning, and exercises them every goddamn evening. For heavens sake.
Knowing other mushers is probably one of the most important thing a dog driver can do for his team. There's always somebody around to be inspired by. Someone who makes you feel pretty horribly inadequate.