Meet the Musher

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Anna Hennessey

She/Her

Born a winter lover, I first stepped on the runners of a dogsled on a blustery lake in northern Minnesota and knew that my life was forever changed. I pursued mushing for the next six years in northern MN running tours and sharing my passion for the sport, while also training and racing with Sawtooth Racing Kennel in Grand Marais, MN. In 2022 my dreams of racing brought me to Alaska and the dogs of Shameless Huskies Kennel who I am incredibly lucky to travel thousands of miles with each winter. When I am not on the runners I work as ER nurse and enjoy caring for folks in that intense environment. I am passionate about sharing outdoor experiences with youth, specifically female, non-binary, and BIPOC youth.

About Me.

Originally from the small town of Red Wing Minnesota, Anna grew up on the shores of the Mississippi River. Starting at a very young age she felt most alive when spending time outside and enjoyed canoeing, backpacking, and simply adventuring for hours in the woods behind her house.

Anna graduated from college in 2013 and after working as a nurse in Iowa for three years, she moved home to her beloved northern Minnesota where she found herself on the runners of a dogsled for the first time! This life changing moment started her relentless pursuit of dog mushing.

The next few winters she worked with sled dogs in both Minnesota and Alaska by guiding dog sled trips and sharing her newfound love of mushing with others. From 2018 to 2021 she worked and trained with Sawtooth Racing, a kennel owned by good friends in Grand Marais Minnesota.

Always dreaming about someday running the Iditarod, Anna decided to make the dream a reality and moved to Alaska in 2022 to race and train for Iditarod with Kathy Frederick’s kennel, Shameless Huskies! Together with many incredible Alaskan Husky athletes, Anna completed her mid-distance Iditarod qualifying races in January of 2023. Never one not delay a dream, Anna and her team of sixteen dogs completed the Iditarod in 2024! Anna continues to race and train with Shameless Huskies kennel and is currently supporting her partner Emily Ford and the dogs in finishing the 2025 Iditarod race.

When not training and racing dogs, Anna works as an ER nurse and wilderness guide leading expeditions for teens and fostering the adventurous spirit, resilience, and self-empowerment for other young women that she herself learned from years of outdoor pursuits.