Finally, after 8 years!

In 2010 we drove over 25,000 to and around Alaska, seeing everything we could in our 5-month visit. Unfortunately, we were challenged by massive fires that closed several roads and highways, as well as heavy rains that washed out and closed some as well. We were able to find out about small caravans escorted by the DOT through a few of these roads, but the wash outs on the Taylor Highway were so many that there was actually no way to get to Eagle Alaska, one of few Alaska cities on the Yukon River, by vehicle. Fortunately for us, this year there is extensive road constructions, but no complete closures that are affecting us.

Eagle was fascinating. In 1898 it was the largest city in interior Alaska, boasting a population of nearly 2,000. US Customs in the region was headquartered there – in 1898 the only effective way into internal Alaska from Canada was to walk or take the Yukon River, so Canadian’s poured into the US through here. There were 3 federal court districts in the state of Alaska in 1898 – the 3^rd district housed in Eagle under Judge Wickersham. There was an Army base – Fort Egbert – at its peak with over 250 enlisted men and officers. At the turn of the century, all arrows pointed to this being the growth of central Alaska.

The advent of rail and road building, along with the car, changed all that. By 1903, Judge Wickersham and the 3^rd district court was moved to Fairbanks. By 1905 the customs office was closed. In 1911, Fort Egbert was abandoned. It looked like it was possible that Eagle would become a ghost town, but many of its hearty residents refused to be daunted. Today the official population of Eagle is under 200, with around half of those residents being Cheechakoes – an Alaskan term for a summer only resident.

In 1947 the state of Alaska began construction of the Taylor Highway, 161 miles from Tok to Eagle. It was opened to all traffic in 1953 – so it’s my age – but when I look in the mirror, I think I have weathered my 65 years a bit better than the Taylor. About half the highways length has never been paved – permafrost issues – which is part of the reason it so readily washed out in 2010 and prevented our visit that year. Fortunately, we chose to leave Colectiva in Chicken this year and found the Falcon B&B to stay at for a couple of nights in Eagle. The road is so narrow and primitive I don’t know if we would have made it in 2010.

Eagle was gearing up for a whopping 4^th of July celebration. Local pilots were practicing for their planned flyover during the afternoon celebrations. In addition to the historic buildings in town, there are several other historical artifacts. The local museum has a 1913 Jeffrey Quad, apparently the first 4WD articulated steering vehicle ever built, and one of only two in the US that are in operation. The museum director plans to have the Quad running for the parade. Interestingly enough, this 1913 vehicle had solid rubber, in essence “flat proof” tires on steel rims – Amerityre is a company I was the audit committee chair for a few years, and I had been of the impression that they had invented that technology.

Among the other non-building artifacts, this Stearman Biplane that was built in the late 1920’s. The owner was a bush pilot in northern Alaska and settled in Eagle, moving most all of his aircraft here. He was practicing all the time we were in Eagle, making sure he was ready for his time at the flyover the afternoon of the 4^th.

Heading back Chicken where we had parked Colectiva, we enjoyed what for us has become synonymous with Alaska. We had picked up a list of important places near Eagle to see at the BLM visitor center, and at mile marker 143.5 on the Taylor Highway was a restaurant, gift shop and liquor store. When we had found out Eagle was dry, we had briefly considered picking up a bottle of wine for dinner here, but quickly dismissed it. Good thing! When we arrived at MM 143.5, the building was boarded up. We learned later that the owner had died over 5 years ago and his wife had just shut the place down. Is that any reason to remove it from the official list in the BLM office? Not in Alaska. Closed businesses that are still on the map is a staple here.

While we had spent more time in Chicken back in 2010 waiting to find out the highway conditions, and the availability of escorted caravans. However, we still enjoyed being back in this odd and quirky place, maybe only still here as a stopping point between Tok and Eagle, or Tok and Dawson City, being about half way.

We learned about the big music festival that is held in Chicken every year. In fact, we had only missed it by a bit. While I didn’t recognize any of the names of the artists on the list of entertainers in this year’s festival, there was something very familiar about the name of it. Rings a bell just a bit.

Believe it or not, the census in Chicken is considerably smaller than Eagle today. The 2010 census in Chicken came up with 7! However, the planned 4^th of July picnic must have drawn folks from all over the area. A state senator was scheduled to be present, kid’s games, some raffles, and a huge grilled steak along with Dutch oven potatoes drew a sizable crowd. We decided to pass – we didn’t need to visit a town with a total of 7 residents to stand in a long line for food!

Talk to you soon!