After the incredible expedition in Lake Clark and Katmai National Parks, I had a week to fill with adventure before I would board the Alaska Maritime Ferry “Columbia” in Skagway for the trip to Bellingham Washington. The reckless adventurer in me toyed with the idea of driving the Dalton Highway, a 414-mile stretch of gravel and dirt that runs from north of Fairbanks up to Prudhoe Bay. Remote it is. There are only three very small towns along the way from the midpoint Coldfoot to the end and there are no gas stations, restaurants, rest stops, or hotels the entire 240-mile stretch. It is stated that The Dalton Highway is brutal on ALL vehicles. So somehow the sane self realized that this undertaking would be sheer folly for an older adult female traveling solo in her Jeep Compass since I would have to camp, get extra tires, buy all the supplies, emergency equipment and food, so I started romanticizing a different Alaskan style adventure with a stay at an Old Roadhouse, a soak in the lauded Chena Hot Springs, a warm cozy night at Caribou Cabin in Tok, and a return visit to the beautiful Hidden Valley B & B in Whitehorse , Yukon Territory before arriving in Skagway.
I had no interest in going back to Soldotna so I booked my first two nights at the Talkeetna Roadhouse Inn. I had spent a few hours there in August of 2019 and had a meal at the roadhouse. It was a very lively bustling place known for its hearty meals, served family style at big tables, and lodging which had a tremendous amount of historical charm. It’s bakery was famous for its cinnamon rolls, pies, cookies and breads. So I was eagerly anticipating a repeat experience when I booked the ‘Lil Cabin in the Back for two nights. Much to my disappointment and dismay the place was as quiet as a tomb, unpopulated, and not a soul around. The bakery had very limited fare and only on weekends.
Seems the Roadhouse is focused on lodging only and the bakery and restaurants are the victim of COVID. A big point made in the booking information was that guest no longer had to share bathroom facilities as bathroom are now assigned. My ‘Lil Cabin in the Back was assigned a bathroom in the main building as it did not have its own water supply. It’s what is termed a “dry cabin” and this incidentally gave me a modified camping experience of trotting out of my shelter in the drizzle for a middle of the night peeing adventure. BUT aside from that, the dry Cabin was delightful with big comfy queen bed with a view of the gas fireplace, a micro-wave and small refrigerator, a french press coffee pot, wi-fi…
According to alaska.org : “Capture the feeling of bustling small-town Alaska in a stroll down Talkeetna’s Main Street, a 2-block journey through historic buildings, art shops, restaurants, coffee shops, ice cream stops and a micro-brewery.”
True, the bustling small town is there except it would be more accurate to describe my stroll as an adventure in jockeying around the several hundred passengers off-loaded from the Princess Cruise Line buses, passing on very over-priced ice cream and coffee drinks, perusing the carbon copy souvenir shops that can be found in almost every tourist city in the world (except Talkeetna Alaska is emblazoned on them), passing the acclaimed Talkeetna Roadhouse and mourning the demise of their famous food and people extravaganza, and walking through the mud puddles at Talkeetna River Park at the confluence of three wild rivers (East, West, and main stem of the Sustina River)… all the while staring into the distant horizon searching for a glimpse of Denali which of course was obscured by the massive cloud banks and rain.
To be fair there was much that I did enjoy. There were some shops filled with local art, Alaskana, and colorful characters. A walking tour of downtown area (Talkeetna Historic District) which is on the register of National Historic Places, with buildings dating from the early 1900s was quite interesting. Nagley’s General Store, the Fairview Inn and the Talkeetna Roadhouse all are still in operation. But the true highlight for the two nights there was staying in this very cozy warm cabins, propped up in bed, reading and experiencing the dancing flames in the firepalce.
After two nights in “Lil Cabin in the Back” I was off to Chena Hot Springs Resort. I was excited as it was not a total “washout” of a day with non-relenting drizzle. I thus was finally able to get a partial view of Denali from a roadside pullout
The Chena Hot Springs “resort” was not at all what I had expected. My first impression upon entering the property was positive. The main building appeared well maintained and resort-ish! Chena was described in their reservation confirmation as a “Rustic Alaskan-style resort found in the Interior, 60 miles away from Fairbanks featuring a hotel, multiple types of tours and activities, and hot springs.. Relax in the hot springs, view the Aurora, and experience Alaska as Chena Hot Springs knows it.”
But there it ended. Rustic it was …but not even in a cute backwoodsy sense but shabby Motel 6 kind of way. I had anticipated a classier accommodation for an off-season price of $162.00 per night for a Fox room. Basically this rundown Fox accommodation was a quadplex building of 8 rooms in each, 4 downstairs and 4 upstairs. Naturally my assigned room was on the second flour which I reached by negotiating the grungy entrance and dark dumpy stairwell laboriously hauling my suitcase on up. The Fox Rooms, were touted to have a unique Alaska decor. My decor was a picture of a bear on the wall. But in our inflationary economy I guess that is the going rate for shabby.
Again this was not a resort. I did not mind the small room but the cheep wood paneling on the wall was definitely not what I would consider worthy of the resort designation. There is no microwave or refrigerator so one is captive and thus needing to use their restaurant. The room was very cold and had a no functioning thermostat ( which created the illusion guest actually had power over the temperature in their room). I went to the front desk to ask if something could be done, the staff was rather rude and abrupt but said they would send someone up. Two hours later there still was no resolution or maintenance person and I tried many times calling the desk but they never answered the phone. I finally put on extra sleepwear and went to bed. I went to the desk in the morning to again complain about the cold room and phone attempts to reach front desk. I was rudely told that they are so busy they just don’t answer the calls. The positive ending to the no heat saga was that I hijacked the individual cleaning the rooms on my floor and inquired about the heat. He immediately went to their closet and produced a space heater which served nicely to provided me with a toasty sleeping experience the second night.
The mineral spring water rises from the earth at about 150 degrees. Thank goodness it is cooled down to about 106 degrees when feeding the boulder lined outdoor “lake pool”with it’s sandy bottom. Soak I did each morning before the crowds descended, all the while strolling around as there was no place to sit in the lake. Unfortunately I did not feel healed by the healing waters. What I had enchantingly pictured for a hot springs experience was a whole lot more raw nature (as pictured in my backpacker magazines out there in the wilderness) than a man-made lake. Though there was a real hot spring, it was cordoned off by a falling down fence around the hot spring that could not be used. There was also an outdoor hot tub and indoor hot tub and large pool, but I was turned off by the smell of chlorine permeating the air and thus opted out of a relaxing swim. I carefully negotiated the gym like locker room, feeding quarters to the hungry lockers, and changed out in what was akin to the locker room in an ancient gymnasium.
I was less than impressed with the restaurant. Upon entering, I asked to be seated and stated I was alone. First thing out of the hostesses’ mouth was “would you like to sit at the bar!” Seems like if I wanted to sit at the bar I would have asked to sit at the bar. . Clearly it is not quite as lucrative to have a table which could seat four occupied by this lone woman. Since there are no other food/dining options nearby, eating there was my only option. In general I found the food mediocre and overpriced BUT the one thing that was excellent was the salads. Chena is a greenhouse to table restaurant so greenhouse grown lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and herbs were on the menu. The second night I was seated in the adjacent banquet area…I figured they were opening this for additional guests but seems I was the only additional guest! Hmm! I see a pattern emerging since there were open tables in the main part of the restaurant. and there don’t take reservations. I did enjoy the fresh salad and chowder but was a tad taken aback when served a hot roll, which clearly had the temperature and texture of a bread that had been microwaved. Fortunately, in preparation for the upcoming ferry ride I had nonperishable breakfast and lunch items in my car which saved me from having to depend on the restaurant for 3 squares and since it was cold at night what perishables I did have in the cooler stayed chilled!
On the positive side, I toured the greenhouses where they grow much of their fruit, vegetables, and herbs and this left me in awe of the sustainability aspect of the property. They definitely are doing certain things right. Following that there was a geothermal energy tour of the property which was very interesting. The geothermal powering of everything in Chena, by harnessing the power of the hot springs, is incredulous. I felt like I was in a time warp though as ambling over to the geothermal plower plant I found my self in a “graveyard” of all manner of rusted out trucks, cars, machinery . I came away with the impression that anything that arrives in Chena over the years stays in Chena ad infinitum.
There was a sled dog kennel tour available but it was pricey and I discovered it was okay to wander over to the kenneling area and visit with the dogs. Exceptionally nice was the opportunity to go into the adoption yard area where the dogs who are aging and no longer able to pull the sled are available for adoption. They were all so eager to be petted. Oh, how I wished I could have taken several of them home.
The surrounding area had beautiful views of mountains. It was September and the mountains were all dressed out in their golden finery. Several hiking trail option were available but I decide to keep it simple and follow the designated nature trail around the beaver pond. But in the maize of trails around and a very unclear hiking map and trail signage, I never did discover the beaver pond. But it was a beautiful day exploring the surrounding woods and property.,
As with most resorts (I use the term loosely) the main attraction seems to be never enough and all kinds of side gigs (for a price) are available for extra bucks and a way to “soak” customers if the hot springs isn’t enough of a soak. I did not opt for a visit to the Aurora Ice Museum, a sled dog cart ride, 4 wheel drive adventure, ATV Wheeler drive….or the Apple Martini from the ice bar where you drink out of ice glasses and then smash them.
After a less than illustrious experience at Chena, I headed over to TOK, about a 250 mile drive and situated at the crossroads of the Alaska Highway (AK 2) and the Glen Highway (AK1). Much of the landscape out of Chena and, after negotiating the the urban sprawl through Fairbanks is boreal forest. It then heads east along the meandering Tanana River with the landscape opening up into a wider valley of tundra and impressive view of the Alaska Range to southwest and eventually the distant rugged peaks of the Wrangell and Mentasta Mountains. There was definitely minimal traffic (and services) on this Alaskan road through the wilderness. My traveling buddy Siri did a very poor job of directing me to my nights lodging at Caribou Cabins but after a bit of backtracking and finding accurate directions on the reservation sheet, I made it to this very quiet, wooded setting. What a great cabin, beautifully constructed and spotless, spacious, bright and very comfortable. I’d give it a five star if I were to rate it, especially because it had a great assortment of K-cup pods for the Kuerig coffee maker.
The name Caribou Cabins indicates what the favorite pets are. There are two reindeer(caribou) in a fenced in area behind the main building. Though it was quite fun seeing these large antlered hoofed ruminants, I felt sad seeing them so confined and not able romped around the lovely forests with the other 750,000 wild caribou in Alaska.
Motoring on over to Yukon territory was a re-run as I had travel this section of the Alcan Highway when I had motored up to Alaska in 2018. The route traversed skirts the Tetlin Wildlife Refuge and cuts through the valleys adjacent to the Wragell and St Elias Mountain Ranges.
It was not exactly smooth sailing as there was a significant amount of road work which appeared to be repaving but mostly a repair of the road heaves from the previous winter. I was in need of a pee stop but got stuck in construction zone just a few miles short short of the Tetlin Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center. As the minutes piled up and I was feeling more desperate, I began eyeing the port-a-potty on the roadside up ahead… of course that would be sheer desperation but I was actually considering pulling my car out of the line and braving a rather awkward encounter with the construction crew and probably a completely grungy potty. I have never wished to be a guy, but right then I would loved to have been able to step out of the car and just whip it out for instant relief. I sat there practicing the Kegalls and taking calming breaths when after 25 minutes the line of cars began to slowly move forward. Thank goodness about 15 minutes later I was at the refuge visitors center and their hygienic bathrooms.
This was to be a 400 + mile driving day so I was soon back on the road and crossing into Canada, This wilderness area is not heavily trafficked so it was quite a relaxing drive all the while being thoroughly awed by the surrounds and drinking in the scenic Kluane Mountains to the southwest and Lake Kluane to the northeast. Being mid-September the fall foliage was perking up and there was a panoply of golden hues roadside.
I arrived at Hidden Valley Bed and Breakfast around 6:00 pm. As I experienced in Talkeetna , things are not quite the same since COVID. No repeat performances here either. Being a different season (fall versus mid summer) , the grounds were void of the magniifcant flower gardens and outdoor seating areas surround by beautiful pots of flowers. It looked quite dreary arrayed in dead plants. I found a note on the door to let myself in and headed up the stairs per direction to the Blue Room. Fortunately it did not turn out to be the tomb like atmosphere of Talkeetna, but it was obvious the woman who owned the B & B had aged considerably and was not the same peppy purveyor of 5 years ago. I did ask her for a restaurant recommendation and ended up going to the recommended Whiskey Jacks’s Pub and Grill. Being around 7:30 on a Friday evening and desperately hungry, I ended up sitting at the bar (not my preference for sure as discussed in Chena Hot Springs ) so as not to have to wait an hour or more for a table. I was actually quite entertained throughout my meal by the bartender whipping up and out with a flourish hundreds of alcoholic drinks. The Blue Room slept well!
After a not very appetizing breakfast of a rubbery poached egg on toast, I head out for the final driving excursion to Skagway Alaska on a very cool, foggy rainy day. Since the distance would only be a bit over 120 miles, I could have a leisurely drive through a very picturesque and historic area. After a sort 40 minute drive just short of Carcross (Tagish First Nation) Emerald Lake came in to view…though on this day it would not be touted as a fin ‘gem’ since it was not shimmering with a brilliant emerald green hue that promotional literature states captivates so many visitors. It was lovely none-the-less with the fall foliage adding a bit of colorful contrast. Back on the road again, I was intrigued when I came upon a small dunescape , the Carcross Desert, which clearly seemed out of place in this area of snow capped mountains, lakes, and forests. It is touted as the World’s Smallest Desert.
Carcross, (previously know as Caribou Crossing), at the north end of Bennet Lake , was an encampment on the way up to Dawson City for the Klondike. I wondered why they change the name. I fantasized it was because the local caribou made a decision to avoid the gold rushers and disappeared north and the town needed to be renamed because the motorcar was doing most of the crossing in the territory. My thought process was very dense as I failed to deduce that it was a truncation of the original name to simplify postal service…a very utilitarian reason but having nothing to do with the motor car.
Carcross has a significant indigenous heritage and a whole lot of historical charm with several historical buildings lining the street. Its a mixture of artisan shops, galleries, cafes, many newer but also old decaying buildings, It also was over run on this day with Holland American Cruise Line Buses which disgorged many many passengers.. I weaved through the streets of Carcoross, visited the White Pass and Yukon Railway Station, walked a bit on the beach of Bennet lake, explored the restoration site of the S.S. Tutshi BUT avoided the packed shops and galleries. .
The territory covered, traveling beyond Carcross/Tagish First Nation on the south Klondike highway, was dressed out with snow capped rugged mountains bordering a wide wilderness valley hosting Bennett and Tutshi Lakes, rugged lichen encrusted rocks, rushing rivers, picturesque waterfalls, ascending up to White Pass and the Alaska Border. The road was steeper with many curves and a bit more of a navigation challenge that I had encounttered so far under most circumstance but more so with a steady drizzle and fog at the higher elevations. I however did find the area quite striking until I ended up with no scenery at all given the density of the fog at there top of White Pass. I had been looking forward to the panoramic vista from the White Pass summit at 3292 feet but twas not to be.
For prosperity’s sake I had to do a photo of five years later with the Welcome to Alaska sign as I did on the day I entered Alaska when I was moving to Soldotna in 2018.
I arrived in Skagway, a quaint Klondike Boom Town of 1000, which is steeped in gold rush history and situated between towering peaks and the coast line of the Inside Passage. The primary commercial street, Broadway, is lined with all manner of tourist oriented shops and restaurants and has tried hard to replicate the look of the buildings of 100 years ago. My first weave down Broadway in my car was a cautionary challenge avoiding the packs of off loaded cruisers rushing about to find end of season bargains and other tourist tchotchke emblazoned with Skagway. Smack dab at the end of the road was the cruise ship the Carnival Miracle , a Spirit Class ship accommodating 2000 + with the Sapphire Princess, a Grande Class cruiser with 2600 spots docked next to it. These two of the three massive cruising vessels in harbor this day had the potential to disgorge thousands as their capacities run fro 2000-3000 passengers each. Skagway host approximately one million visitors each summer, meaning thousands per day patrol the streets in the 4 month long season.
The good news was that most ships require passengers to be back on board by 5:00 pm so that left the streets relatively calm and unpopulated and no line for dinner at the Skagway Brewing Company either night. I normally would not revisit a restaurant except that this was the only one open on Sunday evening. The town had pretty much shut down for the season. I am sure, by now you have guessed, I don’t care to mingle amidst massive crowds. Late Saturday afternoon and on Sunday , with only one ship in port, the crowds were sparse and the streets were relatively empty. It was quite enjoyable, despite intermittent showers. The town is steeped in Klondike Gold Rush history so perusing the historic buildings was warranted.
My main goal became enjoying my spacious bright room, perusing the town after the crowds thinned, acquiring food for the ferry trip, and finding the docks and procedures for the boarding on Monday. I had visited Skagway about 15 years ago and not much had really changed visually. Below are a few photos from 2007 including the Arctic Brotherhood Hall, the Golden North Hotel and the Alaska Maritime Ferry and a large cruise ship in the harbor.
I had two days in Skagway and had booked a room at the White House Inn, a 9 room 1902 house operating as a bed and breakfast (without the breakfast now-a-days) and on the National Historic Register. Some original woodwork and the 100+ year old staircase, along with many antiques dressed the foyer. It was cozy and comfortable with all the amenities of most hotels and especially appealing was that it was in a quiet residential neighborhood just a couple of blocks from the bustling and jostling Historic District. It also had some fun and creative neighbors.
I would be boarding the Columbia the next morning. My last week in Alaska had been an excellent adventure despite it not being at all like the picture perfect descriptions presented in promotional literature.
