Ashland, N.H. ? Like many identical twins, Kim and Kelly Berg of Ashland do almost everything together, even mushing.

Three to five afternoons a week, after work, they hook their 12 Siberian huskies to a sled and join the increasing number of people enjoying recreational or competitive dog sledding.

“It’s exciting. It’s an adrenaline rush, for sure,” said Kim, 23, who has been dog sledding with her sister since they were 14. “A lot of young people are getting into it; there are a ton of us out there.”

But you don’t have to have your own team of dogs to enjoy dog sledding. There are sled-dog kennels in at least 21 states, offering everything from races, training and three-week adventures for dedicated mushers, to a pleasant half-hour ride for families or beginners looking for something to do on a wintry weekend besides skiing or snowmobiling.

Dog sledding always has been a popular activity in Alaska, home of the world famous Iditarod sled-dog race, but more and more people are trying it in places such as Colorado, the upper Midwest and New England.

“The whole sport, for some reason, seems to be catching on,” said Brian Kolowich of Ouray, Colo., who organizes races.

He said there was renewed interest in the Iditarod because of animal rights advocates, and in the last few years there have been two sled-dog movies, “Snow Dogs” and “Iron Will.”

“People realized you don’t have to be in Alaska to do sled-dog racing,” he said.

As recreation, “it’s an alternative to motorized sports” and a way to enjoy the winter countryside without the noise and fumes of snowmobiles.

A dog musher and dog team climb Stony Hill in Denali National Park, Alaska. Dog sledding always has been a popular activity in Alaska, home of the world famous Iditarod sled dog race, but more people are trying it in places such as Colorado, the upper Midwest and New England.

“And the dogs are your pets, your friends, not a machine you put away for the year,” he added.

Getting acquainted

For beginners, there are many places in the snowbelt that offer rides, a chance to try it out before making any investment in a sled and dogs. Rides range from one hour to half-day, full-day and overnight trips, and rates vary.

The Earth Song Lodge in Healy, Alaska, offers day trips for $75 to $200 a person and overnight packages for $400 to $500. A three-day sampler is billed as “the perfect introduction to dog sledding,” with a day spent at the lodge on orientation and training, followed by two days in which participants drive their own dog teams to a backcountry cabin on the Sushana River in Denali National Park. The package costs $1,250 to $1,500.

Gregg and Gretchen Dubit of Durango Dog Ranch in Durango, Colo., took about 20 people sledding 12 years ago, their first year in business. In 2002 they had more than 250 riders in four months of operation. Riders book in advance, and they come from all over the country as part of an adventure vacation.

Arleigh Jorgenson has been operating Sled Dog Adventures in Grand Marais, Minn., since 1988 when he began giving 10-minute rides at the local ski area. Now his shortest ride is an hour. He gives them to more than 350 people a year, and they get a chance to drive the team.

“The market is huge,” he said. “A lot of people are looking for a significant experience, something that’s real.”

Most of his customers come from the city. They’re people who want to experience the wilderness and the adventure of breaking trail, or skiers on multiday vacations who “choose to spend a day with us,” he said.

A two-day, one-night ride for $650 includes a stay in a remote cabin or a spacious and comfortable winter tent, with all meals and lessons on driving the team.

Getting serious

For serious fans of the sport, there about 65 sanctioned races in North America and Japan, including the World Championship derby Feb. 13-15 in Laconia, N.H., one of the oldest sled-dog races in the country, according to David Steele, executive director of the International Sled Dog Racing Assn. in Merrifield, Minn. And there are many more unsanctioned races, Steele said.

Jan Carlton of the New England Sled Dog Club, whose 13-year-old daughter has been racing since she was 6, said the club had about 100 members and put on seven races in New York state, Vermont and New Hampshire. Her daughter trains with six or seven other families on a series of trails in Auburn.

Andy Norkin and his wife, Catherine, of Denmark, Maine, offer full-day training and riding sessions through the Appalachian Mountain Club for people like Linda Mahoney, 57, of Burlington, Mass., and Rebecca Lee, 29, of Wellesley, Mass.

Mahoney had read about dog sledding and had seen it on television, and thought “I’d like to try that some day,” she said. Last winter, she and Lee did.

“It was fun; it was exciting — a one-day adventure,” Mahoney said.

The Norkins offer a class in the morning to explain equipment, dog care and team-driving tips, and then give everyone a chance to mush in the afternoon.

It is a lot like cross-country skiing, Norkin said. Long-distance racing can be physically demanding, but the recreational sled-dogger should be agile and fit with some leg strength.

“It’s not just a matter of standing there,” he said.

There is a hand brake, but for novices, instructors usually run a team in front “to make sure the dogs don’t run away with them,” Steele said.

With six dogs pulling, sleds can hit 20 mph, and you have to hang on around the curves, Mahoney said.

“I would do it again. I definitely would like to do it again,” she said.