Iditarod 2026
Sun 8th March '26
- Sun 22nd Mar '26
Event Info
Join us for the Iditarod Restart Sunday, March 8 on Willow Lake for the Official Start of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race®. Teams begin to depart at 2 p.m., so get there early to grab a good viewing spot.
At 2 p.m., the first teams will depart on their way to Nome, leaving in 2 minute intervals until all of the teams have left. The clock starts for the mushers as they leave the starting line. The difference in starting times is made up on a musher’s 24 hour mandatory layover.
There will be a $10 charge per vehicle for parking. The general public will not be allowed to park in the Willow Community Center parking lot. Handicapped parking will be located as close as possible to the Willow Community Center entrance.
On race day, look for electronic sign boards located on the Parks Highway in Wasilla and at Houston High School advising current information on parking availability in Willow.
Follow along the trail with all of the mushers and support the Race by becoming an Iditarod Insider! Live streaming, videos, GPS tracking, email alerts, documentaries, you name it! Register today at: iditarod.com/insider
For additional details regarding Iditarod 2026, please contact Iditarod HQ at (907) 376-5155 or visit iditarod.com.
Location Info
Alaska, USA is a state known for its subarctic and arctic regions, vast wilderness, and deep association with sled dog history. While not a single venue, Alaska contains extensive trail systems, forest roads, snow routes, and established dog-sledding regions such as Anchorage, Fairbanks, and the Yukon–Kuskokwim areas.
Terrain and conditions vary widely across the state, from coastal forest to tundra. Surfaces depend on season and region, ranging from compact snow and ice in winter to gravel and forest tracks in summer-access areas.
Course Description
Snow. Lots of snow!
Directions
Sorry, not on file.
Iditarod
The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is an annual long-distance sled dog race held in Alaska, widely regarded as the most famous sled dog event in the world. The race typically runs each March, covering roughly 1,000 miles between Anchorage and Nome, with mushers and teams of up to sixteen dogs travelling through mountains, forests, frozen rivers and Arctic tundra.
First run in 1973, the race was created to test the skill of mushers and the endurance of their dogs while commemorating the historic freight routes that once connected remote communities across Alaska. These trails were originally used by Indigenous peoples and later by miners and traders during the late-nineteenth-century gold rush.
Today the Iditarod is both a major sporting event and a celebration of Alaska’s mushing heritage. Teams typically take 8 to 15 days to complete the journey, racing from checkpoint to checkpoint across some of the most challenging winter terrain in North America. The event attracts international attention each year and remains one of the defining traditions of modern sled dog racing.
Happening Now
Day 9 of 15
Day 9 of 15
Start Date
Sunday 8th March '26
End Date
Sunday 22nd March '26
Event Length
15 days
Start Time
14:00