After leaving Central, mushers head west, paralleling the Steese Highway, which connects Central and Circle with Fairbanks. The trail travels through frozen swamps, mining areas, and firebreaks for about . Mushers then encounter the Steese Highway for a second time before crossing several creeks to begin the ascent of Eagle Summit. They eventually climb above the tree line and are exposed to the wind as they continue upward. The weather atop Eagle Summit is harsh as this is a convergence zone between the Yukon Flats to the north and the low ground of the Tanana Valley to the south. A differential in the weather within the two valleys causes high winds and precipitation when there is moisture in the atmosphere. The final few hundred yards of the climb consists of a 30-degree slope often scoured to bare rock and tundra by the fierce wind. The crossing point itself is a symmetrical saddle, with two peaks of similar height separated by . The south side of Eagle Summit is not as steep, and mushers generally have an easier time reaching the checkpoint at Mile 101. When descending the steep northern slope of Eagle Summit on the Fairbanks–Whitehorse route, many mushers wrap their sled runners in chains to increase friction and slow the plunge.