Our dog-sledding adventure in Minami-Furano Hokkaido will be re-broadcast on NHK-G Saturday January 20th, 2024 from 11:17～11:33am on local Hokkaido television.
My 6 year old daughter and had an amazing time doing this together, and we will keep this experience in our hearts forever, for sure!
It was fun right from the beginning, just mom and daughter time riding the train together to Tomamu station, excitement building for our trip. From there, with a pickup from the filming crew, we drove deeper into the woods to meet the dogs. As soon as we got out of the car, we could hear barking.
My daughter was thrilled to meet each and every canine, grinning from ear to ear, regardless of the cold. There were two young dogs that barked louder than the rest, a bit restless and edgy, eager for a run to let loose some extra energy. My daughter even wanted to pet them, but we kept our distance as they were still young and unpredictable. But each and every other dog greeted us with wagging tailed from their outdoor huts, hoping we would pick them for our driving crew.
All the staff at HAT! were wonderful. The leader Terada Shuzo reminded me of Hagrid from Harry Potter: strong and reliable, with a hearty laugh and a huge heart for animals.
The snowfall was relentless, but that didn’t stop us from our dog-sledding ride; we had a thrilling ride, way better than any roller coaster if you ask me! I was shouting with glee and my daughter was laughing even though she fell from the sleigh a few times. We hugged each dog and fed them after a good run.
Behind the scenes, we loved out stay at the LARCH log cabin hotel in Minami Furano. It’s now my daughter’s favorite hotel. The staff are wonderful in their hospitality and the food at the restaurant was spectacular. We felt like royalty! I highly recommend the dinner course for any anniversary or special date with a special someone. Larch has privacy, warmth, and a cozy cabin feel. We loved it. If you have many members in your family, you can even rent out your own larger cabin. You can also do lake ice fishing at Lake Kanayama right down the road.
Both my daughter and I dream of going back soon to Larch and Minami Furano to visit the dogs and stay at Larch!