Six Dog Night

Six Dog Night. That is an Alaskan expression for those deep, frigid days that the Alaskan Interior is famous for. Temperatures bordering -60 degrees Fahrenheit (-51 Celsius) are not unheard of in January and February.

But where did this expression come from? Why six dog night?

The dog in northern latitudes is much more than domestic companion. Throughout Alaska, and northern Canada, and I bet Scandinavia and Russia too, dogs are an excellent mode of transportation in the winter.

Dog sleds (sleighs) with anything from six to twenty dogs are a common sight in the Alaskan countryside. As rivers freeze they become important avenues that make many villages easier to access during the winter than during the summer. A pack of dogs is a lot more reliable and easier to keep running than the motorized alternative, a snow machine (aka snowmobile outside the fifthieth state). But, still, why six dog night?

Alaskan lore tells that six dogs is the amount of dogs that are quired to be brought into a tent, or cabin, to make it warm enough to survive deep sub zero temperatures. Six dogs are also the minimum amount of dogs required for a sled that carries 300 pounds, as each dog is able to drag 60 pounds on the snow.

So, six dogs are not only required to keep you alive in -60 degree weather, but also to drag you out of the wilderness and into remote country villages where help can be found if needed.

There you have it, next time the thermometer dips below negative forty, it is a Six Dog Night!