Eagle Cap Extreme Sled Dog Race

02/17/2026

Massive congratulations to Josi Shelley and There & Back Again Sleddogs for an impressive 1st place finish in the Yukon Quest Alaska 750-mile race! The team persevered through blown in trail and a trail reroute due to a winter storm to finish 100 miles ahead of 2nd place.

On Saturday, March 2, 2026, a number of ECX veteran mushers will set off on an adventure from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska as they take on the 1000+ mile Iditarod:
- Josi Shelley
- Gabe Dunham
- Jessie Royer

Additionally, our very own Head Veterinarian, Dr. Kimberly McCreedy, will be in Anchorage caring for two Iditarod team's returned dogs as they come off the trail: Michelle Phillips of Tagish Lake Kennel and Richie Beattie of Wildthingz Dog Mushing.

02/14/2026

EXCITING CHANGES COMING 🎉

After having to cancel the Eagle Cap Extreme sled dog race for the second time due to poor trail conditions - the first being 2024 - our Board of Directors took a comprehensive look at the future of our race. A growing trend of low to no snow at lower elevations in the Wallowa Mountains presents significant challenges for the race start/finish at Ferguson Ridge Ski Area and the Ollokot Campground checkpoint. From the New Year to race start, we hold our collective breath, hoping that conditions allow for a safe race and good rest at Ollokot.

The Eagle Cap Extreme will live on with some exciting changes to keep race courses at snow elevation! ECX 2027 will start and finish at Salt Creek Summit SnoPark. Three races will be hosted:
- 100 mile course
- 31 mile course: 2 days of racing 31 miles each day
- 15 mile course: 2 days of racing 15 miles each day

For the foreseeable future, a 200 mile race will not be held. We will focus on logistics for the new start/finish and checkpoint as well as community and spectator engagement!

The 'remote' checkpoint will be stationed at the snowmobile cabin just a half-mile snowshoe or ski from the parking lot at Salt Creek Summit. A viewing area will be staged for spectators to safely watch behind-the-scenes race activity! The race will no longer reach Ollokot Campground.

More details to come as we make this fresh direction come to life!

📷 Board members on a reconnaissance mission to Salt Creek Summit during race week 2026

02/13/2026

With all of the PNW sled dog races being cancelled, what other races are you following, volunteering for, or participating in?

The Midwest and Alaska are still able to run many of their events. The Donaldsons of Bear Ridge Adventures are hosting a new race this season: Utah Uinta Ultimate. Wade, Dallin, and Natalie, along with Ryan Clegg, are all ECX veterans!

Utah Uinta Ultimate sled dog race features two divisions. The first is a 6-dog class running a 15 mile course each day. The second is a 10-dog class running a 100 miles over two days. The fastest overall time wins.  

02/09/2026

02/09/2026

Josi Shelley (Thyr) and There & Back Again Sleddogs are currently CRUSHING the 750-mile Yukon Quest Alaska Sled Dog Race. You can follow along here:

Yukon Quest Alaska 2026 live tracking app by trackleaders.com https://share.google/l27UTfNJLkRogySJ9

In 2020, Josi and Gabe Dunham battled to the finish of the ECX 200-mile course. There & Back Again took 2nd place, then returned in 2023 to become our 200-mile champions!

This year's Yukon Quest Alaska marathon 750-mile course is the longest since the disbandment of the 1000-mile Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race in 2020.

GO JOSI AND THERE & BACK AGAIN SLEDDOGS!

Trackleaders provides live tracking for events. SPOT based live maps with replays, statistics and advanced tracking features.

01/07/2026

2026 EAGLE CAP EXTREME SLED DOG RACE CANCELLED

*******

We want to thank all of our sponsors, volunteers, and the Wallowa County community for their commitment to making this race a success. Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans. We look forward to working with you all for ECX 2027!

MUSHERS: If you have questions, please reach out to the Musher Coordinator (Gary) or message us through the ECX website.

*******

"After careful consideration we have cancelled the ECX 2026 due to a lack of snow conditions. This decision was not taken lightly as we had a full slate of mushers and an active and engaged volunteer group. Thank you all!

As the New Year approached the conditions looked poor. Our trail officials confirmed our worst fears about the conditions at Ollokot on Sunday. There is essentially no snow in the camp. The same can be said for the start area around Fergi, with lots of bare grass areas and slushy snow elsewhere.

We held off making this decision for a few days because of the current storm cycle approaching the area. I spoke with a forecaster at the National Weather Service yesterday to get a better idea as to the storm track and timing. It turns out the forecast was pretty accurate and the storm has tracked well north of us leaving us with rain and a very light dusting of snow. This morning saw lots of blue sky in Wallowa County. Going into next week, we are seeing a warming trend with no additional significant moisture.

We will be reaching out to mushers and sponsors in the coming days. The online meeting tonight is also cancelled.

Thank you all again for the help and time many of you have already invested into the race!

Julian"

01/05/2026

If you are looking for a way to support our race, this is a great option! Thank you!

Help us by continuing to support our great race. For only $50 you can sponsor one of 200 miles! Your name will be shown on the mileage map at Race Central, you get a cool sticker and bragging rights. If you have a favorite mile, let us know! Join Today!
When you donate just give us your first three picks for mile markers and we will let you know which one your name will be on. If you want us to thank your business, send a copy of your logo, to [email protected]

Thank you!

Donation Link: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/sponsor-the-eagle-cap-extreme

01/05/2026

We would like to thank the Appleton Family for their sponsorship of this great race, for one more year! They are consistently there for us!

01/03/2026

Official evaluation of potential trail conditions on January 1 from Julian Pridmore-Brown, ECX Race VP

Our Trail Boss will have eyes on the trail over the weekend and will share an official trail report with the ECX Board of Directors.

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"Happy New Year to all of you!!

We have received a lot of questions about the state of the snowpack. I wanted to share with you where we stand today. RIght now the snow at the higher elevations looks good. We are seeing around 3 feet at the 6500 ft elevation band, give or take. The problem areas are lower elevations around the start and around Ollokot.

Our top priority is safety. We need a good dump of snow to establish the base layer needed for a safe course. Mushers require a solid base to sink their brake hook into. This requires a certain amount of consolidation in the snowpack beyond just some loose snow even several inches thick.

We have a storm cycle that is just starting and will continue into next week, and we will monitor that closely. Our timeline for making a decision about the race is no later than January 12.

Many of you probably know, the Idaho Sled Dog Challenge (IDSC) cancelled their long races yesterday for lack of snow.

For now we are planning another volunteer meeting next week in person on January 6th and online on Thursday January 8. I'll send out more info next week on the online meeting.

For those that are interested in snow depth info, I have compiled the snow depth for 2 of the SNOTEL sites I watch the most for the race. Schneider Meadows is the most representative site at 5400 feet south and west of our Twin Lakes turnaround. Aneroid Lake #2 is a higher elevation site closer to Joseph and gives a better indication of the snow in the higher elevations in the heart of the Wallowa Mountains.

If you are interested in looking at all the weather stations in the Wallowa Mountains area:

https://wallowaavalanchecenter.org/weather-station-map/ #/station-table

Happy New Year!
Julian"

01/02/2026

Thank you Wallowa Mountain Properties for your continued support of our race! We appreciate your community support!

01/02/2026

Thank you Wallowa County Grain Growers for your support of our race! The dogs love to bed down in all the wonderful straw you supply!