The 49th Estate: Monson, Butcher made Trail Breaker Kennel a cozy home
941 views · Published 19 February 2014 · 2:53 · Indexed 2 October 2026
Channel: Anchorage Daily News · 2014 · Howto & Style
David Monson and the late Susan Butcher met on the Iditarod Trail in 1979. Monson says "she was passing" him, but the two connected after the race and married a few years later. After living in a cabin in Manly Hot Springs, about 80 miles northwest of Fairbanks on the Tanana River, they decided to have kids and move into town. The pair had several criteria for their new home site. It had to have water on it -- they have both a lake and the Chena River. It had be a large enough tract to not disturb the neighbors -- moving 100 dogs into a residential area could be disruptive. And finally, it had to have access to trails; the trails alongside the kennel go all the way to Nome without crossing a road. Read more about their home here: j.mp/akdsptchtrailbreaker
