When Tonya was growing up sled dogs were often her family’s only form of transportation. When she was 9 years old she had her own 3 dog team to use to dog mush to the 2 room school that was 2 miles away in the village of Manley Hot Springs. Later, they moved further into the wilderness where she and her sister were “Home schooled” by their Mom. Her Step-dad gave her a 5 mile long Trapline near their home. If it snowed a lot sometimes she would snowshoe in front of the dogs in order to make a packed down trail for the dogs to travel on.
When Tonya was 11 years old she watched the start of the inaugural 1,000 mile long Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race that went from Fairbanks, Alaska to Whitehorse, Yukon Territories in Canada. So, as soon as she turned 18 she participated in the 1991 Yukon Quest. She finished 23rd out of 24 finishers. Twelve mushers “scratched” (did not finish the race) during that years race. She is proud that she trained her own team and that 6 of her 12 dogs she had raised from puppies.
Although she has finished some other races Tonya prefers to spend her time teaching people of all ages how to become dog mushers. She likes to take go on “Spring Trips” in March. Usually the trips are about 150 miles long and consist of spending several nights along the trail. She usually sleeps in her sled in her warm Slumberjack sleeping bag. If she brings friends along then she usually brings a tent that can be heated with a wood stove. Traveling through the Alaskan Wilderness by dog team is her favorite past-time. Currently she divides her time between the wilderness village of Lake Minchumina and the city of Fairbanks, both in Interior Alaska.