TABLES SHOW DISTANCES
OVER NORTHERN “TRAILS”
Distances Between Towns and Settlements in
Interior Alaska, Over Summer and Winter
"Trails”—Remote Stations Almost Entirely De
pendent Upon Boats for Their Supplies—Broad
Pass Trail Shortens Distance Between Interior
Alaska and Coast.
S'.
DISTANCE TABLES.
On Tanana River Above Nenana.
From Nenana to— Miles.
Wood river . 20
Chena . 63
Fairbanks . 77
On Tanana River Below Nenana.
From Nenana to— Miles.
Minto . 15
Tolovana .:. 65
Kantishna mouth . 75
Hot Springs .128
Tanana (Fort Gibbon) 19S
On Yukon River Above Tanana.
From Nenana to— Miles.
Rampart . 273
Stevens Village .. 363
Beaver . 448
Fort Yukon . 536
Circle . 621
Charley creek . 711
Nation . 743
Eagle . 796
Fortymile, Y. T. 845
Dawson, Y. T. 898
Whitehorse, Y. T. '.1358
From Whitehorse to Skagway by
rail (White Pass & Yukon rail
road), 111 miles, where passengers
from Interior Alaska for the States J
connect with the ocean boats. Dis-j
tance from Nenana to Skagway,
1469 miles; from Skagway to Seat
tle, 1000 miles.
On Yukon River Below Tanana.
From Nenana to— Miles.[
Birches . 253 i
Kokrines .. 313
Ruby . 343
Louden .*. 393 !
Koyukuk mouth . 447
Nulato . 471 :
Kaltag .. 5)1'
Anvik . . 676
Holy Cross. 723 ;
Russian Mission . 798
Marshall .. 858
Andreafsky . 918
Kotlik ...1032
From Kotlik, the mouth of the
Yukon, to St. Michael, where the
river boats connect with the ocean
steamers, it is 67 miles. The dis
tance from Nenana to St. Michael is
1099 miles. The distance from St.
Michael to Seattle by sea direct is
2487 miles.
On Innoko and Iditarod Rivers.
From Nenana to— Miles.
Dimenti . 883
Dikeman .1063
Iditarod ..1154
Dimenti is at the confluence of
the Innoko with the Iditarod river.
Dikeman is the head of navigation
on the Iditarod river for the steam
ers operated by the American-Yu
kon Navigation company. Passen
gers, mail, and freight for Iditarod
connect at Dikeman with gasoline
boats and small light-draft steam
ers. A.-Y. N. steamers running on
the Innoko and Iditarod rivers con
nect with the boats from St. Michael
and Whitehorse at Holy Cross.
Thare are no way stations between
Holy Cross and Dikeman. Two In
dian settlements of Shageluk and
Holikachuk, the former about 60
miles and the latter about 120 miles
from Holy Cross, are passed en
route to Dimenti and beyond. Dim
enti merely marks the confluence of
the Iditarod and Innoko rivers.
There is no settlement here.
The entire journey to Dikeman,
which consumes about four days,
leads through low-lying meadowland
containing myriads of ducks, geese.
Swans, and loons. Only a small
stretch of wooded country occurs
within a few miles of Dikeman.
On the Koyukuk River.
From Nenana to— Miles.
Koyukuk mouth . 447
Betties .1011
Betties is the head of navigation
on the Koyukuk river for the steam
ers operated by the American-Yu
kon Navigation company. Passen
gers, mail, and freight destined to
Wiseman,. Coldfoot and points be
| yond connect at Betties with gaso
| line and horse scows. Wiseman is
j approximately 80 miles above Bet
i ties. Between the mouth of the
! Koyukuk river and Betties there are
| small settlements of Kobuk Indians
| at Ho? River, Hughes, Alatna. and
[South Fork. There arc stirei at
; Hughes and Alatna. \hout half a
i mile from Alatna, on ‘he opposite
| side of the river from the store
| there, is situated the Anglican Mis
jgion of St. John’s-in-the-Wilderness.
! Mail is landed at the mission for
itho Alatna district.
Table of Distances on Government
Railroad.
|
i Seward to— Miles.
| Kern creek . 71.00
I Anchorage . 114.35
Chickaloon .188.35
Broad Pass .314.53
Lignite ..364.00
: Nenana .413.83
Fairbanks . 470-56
Anchorage to—
j Chickaloon . 74.00
Montana creek . 94.90
| Matanuska . 36.32
Talkeetna .112.35
Broad Pass .200.18
j Nenana .299.48
Fairbanks .356.21 j
Broad Pass to—
i Lignite .49.47 j
; Nenana .99.30
' Lignite to—
Nenana . 49.83
Fairbanks .106.561
| Nenana to—
Fairbanks .56.73 j
Tsnans Valley Railroad
Fairbanks to—
Chena Junction . 4 1
Chena .. 5.0
Happy Junction . 7.3
Chatanika .39.2
Matanuska is the junction for the
branch line to the coal fields, and
Chickaloon is the terminus of that
line. i
i
Talkeetna is at present the end
of steel on the coast division j
Grade has been completed for a dis j
tance of twenty miles beyond Tal-j
keetna to Deadhorse. Grading is j
under way to the Susitna crossing
at Indian river, approximately 20!
miles from Deadhorse.
The distance between railheads j
at the end of this summer’s work j
will be a trifle less than 100 miles. I
Approximately ten miles of rails ;
have been laid from Happy Junction j
toward Nenana.
Fairbanks Summer Trail.
Miles from Fairbanks.
Nine-Mile . 9
Bergman’s . 18
Piledriver . 28
Munson’s . 40
Taylor's Fox Farm . 52
Birch Lake . 59.5
Richardson . 71
Tenderfoot . 74.2
Shaw Creek . 79.7
McCarthy . 91.8
Beale’s Cache .110
Donnelly’s .126.9
Rapids .138.2
Yost’s ..'.164.2
Miller’s .152.1
Parson’s .181.3
Meiers . 197.5
Our Home .206
Sourdough .222.3
Poplar Grove .232
Gulkana .....243.5
Dry Creek .254.3
Simpson’s .259
Tazlina ..261
Copper Center ...269
Willow Creek .279.5
Kenny Lake .291.4
Tonsina ..*.303.5
Bull’s ....310
Chitina .319
WINTER TRAILS.
There are two winter trails avail
able for travelers during this sea
A
son of the year, from Nenana to
Fairbanks. One of them is on the
river ice nearly all the way, except
where advantage is taken of cutoff?
to shorten the journey, at the nu
merous bends in the Tanana river.
The river trail is almost exclusively
used by dog teams and mushers.
'Dog teams very rarely take the land
| trail.
The land trail from Nenana to
| Fairbanks leads across the river
1 from this town and extends along
[the right-of-way of the government
[railroad to the Joyce Lake road
house (Dunbar’s), a distance of IS
miles. At this point it converges
on the regular mail trail from Tan
ana to Fairbanks. The Ohio road
house, ten miles distant from the
Joyce Lake roadhouse, is a regular
stopping place for the stages oper
ating between the two towns. From
this point the balance of the jour
ney to Fairbanks by way of Ester
City is accomplished without a stop.
When the weather is not too cold
(not less than about 20 degrees
below zero), and an early start is
made from either end of the trail,
the journey can be easily accom
plished in a day, before darkness
falls on the land and renders travel
impossible or dangerous by reason
of open water that cannot be readi
ly seen and avoided in the dark
ness. The time when winter travel
is possible largely depends, in the
various latitudes, on the daylight
available for the purpose.
Nenana is situated a few minutes
south of the 65th parallel of north
latitude and the apparent (sundial)
time of the rising and setting of
the sun’s upper limb, on an unob
structed horizon on the first day of
each of the winter months in this
latitude, based on the sun's av
erage declination, and showing the
beginning of morning twilight and
the ending of evening twilight, is
as follows:
Twilight
Sunrise
Sunset
Twilight
Twilight
Sunrise
Sunset
Twilight
Twilight
Sunrise
Sunset
Twilight
Oct.
begins..5:28 a.m.
.6:16 a.m.
.5:42 p.m.
.6:31 a.m.
Dec.
.8:28 a.m.
.9:36 a.m.
.2:24 p.m.
..3:32 p.m.
Feb.
.7:37 a.m.
.8 :37 a.m.
.3:25 p.m.
.4:25 p.m.
ends.
begins.
ends....;
begins
ends..
Nov.
7:02 agn.
8:06 a.m.
3:57 p.m.
4:55 p.m.
Jan.
8:51 a.m.
10:02 a.m.
1:59 p.m.
3:10 p.m.
March
6:06 a.m.
7 :00 a.m.
5:02 p.m.
5:58 p.m.
The time of beginning and ending
of twilight as given above is the
moment when the sun’s cent«- is
six degrees below the horizon, at
which time the brighest stars a^
visible on a clear day.
The hours during which travel is
safe occur from the beginning of
morning twilight to the ending of
evening twilight. This varies in the
more northerly and southerly lati
tudes respectively.
During the month of April and
up to about the last of that month,
the trails, though soft, are fairly
igood for travel. The river ice
[breaks up, winter trails disinteg
jrate and all winter travel stops
' after this.
In this latitude the breakup has
occurred on the rivers, for the past
twelve years, between April 29th
and May 11th. The time of the
breakup varies but little in ether
latitudes both north and south of
Nenana. The temperature also va
ries in this latitude, during the
winter months. The weather ob
servation bureau in Nenana shows
that from October 1st, 1918, to
April 10th, 1919, the maximum
temperature was 52 above and the
minimum 55 below zero; mean, 17
above.
The distances given in the trail
tables to the different mining camps
and settlements in the Interior are
approximate at best. Most of the
trails are such as the miners and
settlers themselves have built, and
the distances, in most cases, fairly
accurately guessed on the basis of
the time taken in covering them.
Horse-drawn stages and automo
biles are operated on the land trail
between Nenana and Fairbanks, and
run almost daily, except when the
weather turns exceptionally cold.
Regular horse and automobile
stages are also operated on the trail
between Fairbanks and Chitina, a
distance of 319 miles.
This trail, at the present time,
serves as the regular mail trail con
necting the coast at Cordova with
'the Interior at Fairbanks. The Cop
per River & Northwestern railroad
connects Cordova with Chitina.
With the commencement of the
construction of the government rail
road from Nenana toward the coast,
i a very serviceable trail has been
j opened from Lignite, the end of steel
on the Interior division of the gov
jernment railroad, to Talkeetna, the
end of steel on-the coast division,
i which bids fair to be the main trail
connecting the coast with the Interi
' or until the railroad has been com
pleted.
There was considerable travel over
^the Xenana-Talkeetna trail during
' last winter. With the extension of
j the road during this summer, it is
I expected that the gap between rail
| heads on the coast and interior di
jvisions will be less than 100 miles,
and that the trail connecting these
I two points will be put in such shape
;as to render travel by almost any
i mode of conveyance safe, easy, and
. pleasant.
Travelers who have come ani
gone over this route are loud in
their praises of the scenic grandeur
of the country traversed by 9the
trail. Comfortable roadhouses have
I been established at convenient dis
tances along this trail, and the
| Cooney stage line operated dog
: sleds during the past winter in a
manner very satisfactory to the
travelers. Several other private dog
; teams also operated on this new
| trail.
Roadhouses on the route are be
: ing enlarged and made more com
jfortable, the free accommodations
j furnished for the dogs are also
being considerably added to, and
| every effort is being put forth by
the owners of the roadhouses to
j take care of the increased volume
of traffic expected during next win
■ ter, as a result of the shortening
jof the gap between railheads. One
! or two roadhouses are being built
! at points between roadhouses where
i the distance between them is in
j excess of twenty miles, and there is
also a strong possibility that the
i mail and express will be routed over
the Broad Pass trail next winter.
i _ _
Nenana to Talkeetna—Distance
Table.
Talkeetna is the end of steel on
(the coast division.
[ Nenana to— Miles.
| Nenana Crossing (by rail). 43
1 Lignite . 52
Riley creek . 70
•lack river . 90
iBroad Pass summit .110
! Sullivan’s . 128
Indian river . 162
Dead Horse .182
Talkeetna . 202
; Rails on the Interior division of
'the government railroad have been
Maid up to mile 365, which is within
ja mile of Lignite roadhouse. The
‘ Broad Pass trail may be said to
j begin at this point. The distances
given in the above table are ap
j proximate.
■ With the extension of the gov
i ernment railroad, on the Nenana
1 Fairbanks line, to Joyce Lake road
house (Dunbar’s), it is certain that
the trail from this point into the
Tolovana country, known as the
Happy trail, will be opened up. re
j paired and put into shape for trav
i el. This route leads over a chain
| of lakes and is good for travel in
j winter only.
i Nenana to— Miles.
Joyce Lake (Dunbar’s) by rail. .18
Log Jam .41
West Fork .59
Livengood .66
Kantishna Traill.
The old trail, before the railroad
was built south of Nenana, led up
! the Nenana river for a distance of
approximately thirty miles to the
foothills, where a roadhouse run
by a Japanese is established. This
trail has now been abandoned, as
the journey to within half a mile
of the Jap roadhouse can be made
on the train. From the roadhouse
the trail runs in a westerly direc
tion along the base of the foothills
for a distance of approximately
twenty-six miles to Knight’s road
house, on the Toklat river. From
this point two trails lead into the
heart of the Kantishna country.
One ascends the Toklat river and
Clearwater creek to Myrtle creek
and across a low divide to Spruce
creek, thence down Spruce creek to
the mining district tributary to
Moose creek. The other trail fol
lows the base of Chitsia mountain,
crosses Flume and Otter creeks,
reaching Diamond City at the con
fluence of the Bearpaw river with
Moose creek. From Diamond the
trail lies between Moose creek and
the Bearpaw river to Glacier, with
several trails from this point to the
mines a few miles farther south.
Diamond Trail.
Nenana to— Miles.
Jap Roadhouse, by rail. 30 !
iKnight’s Roadhouse (Toklati.56
Diamond . 88
Glacier . 100
Chitsia Trail.
X’enana to— Miles.
i Knight’s Roadhouse (Toklat). 56
1 Eureka .110
There are trappers’ and prospec
tors’ cabins along both trails at
j irregular distances of from ten to
leighteen miles apart, where the
| traveler can take shelter from
•storms or stress of weather.
From Fort Gibbon to Arctic City,
on the Koyukuk river, it is 109 I
miles, with no regular roadhouses;
between. There are relief cabins,
however, at 12-mile. 24-mile. 45-;
i mile, 65-mile, 71-mile, 90-mile, 102
'mile, and Arctic City. These cab
ins are small rough shelters built
(by the mail carriers, and have very
.few conveniences for the traveler.
;They are about 8x12 feet in size,
(have canvas flaps for doors, no win
. dows. and have fairly good stoves
jin them. They are built in shel
tered spots along the trail and,
although not meant for anything
5 more than a place of shelter for
| the mail carrier during a storm,
(travelers are welcome to make them
] selves as comfortable as possible in
(them when on the trail,
j The trail runs most of the way
i through open, bleak and windy
(country where the trail will pack
• harder—cabins are located in patch
I es of timber. The distances are
jas follows:
; N’enana to— Miles.
Tanana .137
| Arctic City .246
Alatna ........ 258
(South Fork .282
Betties .308
(King’s Fox Farm 324
jXorth Fork (mail cabin) .332
(Relief Cabin 346
(Windy Arm (mail cabin)__359
Coldfoot .371
j Wiseman . 383
! The river trail between Betties
and Wiseman is rarely used, owing
to the great frequency of over
i flows. There are roadhouses on
the river trail.
On the regular land trail (win
ter) between Betties and Wiseman,
habitable roadhouses are found only
at King’s fox farm and Coldfoot.
the cabins at X'orth Fork, Relief
(Cabin and Windy Arm being mere
I ly shelters where the traveler may
(rest for a while. The cabins are
'poorly and hastily constructed and
afford only the roughest kind of
• shelter, at the best of times, on the
I long trail.
The entire Koyukuk country,
which has contributed so largely to
the gold output of Alaska, is singu
larly unfortunate in the matter of
roads, trails and telegraphic com
munication, and would appear to be
the most sadly neglected portion of
Uncle Sam’s Far Northern domain.
There is no telegraph station in all
the Koyukuk country, the nearest
one being the station at Xulato,
situated a few miles below the
mouth of the Koyukuk river.
The principal mining centers in
the Koyukuk are all located north
of the Arctic circle, although the
country bordering the Koyukuk riv
er and its many tributaries, south
of the Circle, notably in the Hughes
and Hog river sections, is known to
be highly mineralized and has con
tributed to some extent to the
wealth of the Northland.
Forced to have recourse to al
most primitive mining methods, and
bearing the burden of a heavy toll
on such supplies as they can get
hauled over the roads and trails
which they have themselves built,
the Koyukuk miners, severely han
dicapped as they are, have worked
hard every season, and added ma
terially to Alaska's yearly showing
in her splendid gold output.
Representations have been made
from time to time for aid in the
way of roads, but, so far, the min
ers’ efforts to benefit the country
by adding to its wealth have, met
with scant appreciation and they
are still forced to labor under the
almost intolerable conditions, hop
4
ing that, some day, federal aid will
be forthcoming and that the roads
and trails will be built by the gov
ernment.
In the summer season, the steam
er Reliance, of the A.-Y. N\ fleet,
may make four trips up the river
as far as Betties, which is the head
of navigation on this river, and in
these four trips must bring all the
freight of the season. The trips
made by the steamer also depend
largely on the vagaries of the river,
which is swift and shallow. It is
sometimes possible for three trips
only to be made by the steamer.
The freight is all landed at Bet
ties and as much of it as possible
is freighted to Wiseman on power
scows, and from this point hauled
to the mining claims by dog team
The freight rate on goods from
Betties to W iseman is seven cents
I
per pound.
The Koyukuk river above Bet
ties is swift and very shallow in
places, necessitating the carrying of
horses on each power scow to pull
them over the shallow places. Th.;
horses are carried on a sort of plat
form in the bow of the scow, and
they are so well trained that, just
as soon as the scow grounds, indi
cating that a shallow place has
been struck, they walk off the scow
and haul it over. Each scow car
ries from three to four horses.
Nenana to Taiuna.
Xenar.a to— Miles.
Joyce Lake (Dunbar’s) . IS
Minto . 3tj
Tolovana . 5o
Dugan creek . 74
Hot Springs . 8*>
Ford's .. 91
Woodchopper 101
American creek 109
McMullen’s or Long lake _12.1
Tanana 137
, There is a good trail all the way
< to Tanana, and the roadhouses en
route at the places mentioned have
jgood accommodations and serve
! good meals. There is a divide be
tween Tolovana and Dugan creek,
| with a gentle slope leading up to
t the summit.
Tanana to Ruby.
I Tanana to— Miles.
; Hub roadhouse (Grider’s) . 32
; Miller’s . 60
Kokrines . 90
Ruby .120
The trail from Tanana to Rubv
is on the river ice all the way, ex
cept at a few small cutoffs; the
trail from Ruby to Poorman is
good all the way through. The
! roadhouses for the entire distane:
from Tanana to Poorman have very
i good accommodations and serve
■good meals; they also have ample
kennel space for dogs,
i Ruby to Long and Poorman.
Ruby to— Miles
LaRue roadhouse 11
Long creek (Hoxie’s roadhouse) 29
Greenstone .39
Salatna .4 *
Jesse’s ...-. 5.5
Poorman 57
~
*
w
►
4
*
*
4
4
Start
Right
Boost your
home town
industries
by spending
your money
at home.
Help The
News help
Nenana by
becoming a
regular
subscriber
to your
j home town
paper.
SEND IN YOUR
NAME TODAY
THE PRICE IS
$2 a month;
$9 for six months.
.. P
1