Back In The US of A

Sunday, June 22, day 20

Elevation 2,276’

Partly sunny 50°

144 miles to Tok, Alaska

Yippee, we got there!

In 1825 the line that constitutes the current border between the Canadian Yukon and Alaska was first described in a treaty between Russia and England. The US accepted that boundary in 1867 when it purchased Alaska from Russia.  It took 50 years before this border was actually marked on the ground.  

 

The boundary between the United States and Canada is identified as the longest undefended border in the world.

 At historical mile marker 1221 of the Alaska Highway, we crossed from Canada into the state of Alaska. We had heard many tales about US Customs and restrictions. We were prepared to stop and have our unit inspected and searched. 

 I pulled up to the gate, shut down the diesel, and gave the border patrol officer my best smile as he, with raised eyebrows, appraised our passports.  Nothing happened. He only asked us where we were coming from, the purpose of our trip from Arkansas, purchases we had made in Canada, specifically about any alcohol purchased in Canada, and what firearms we had. I gave him my best smile as I answered each question succinctly, and he said “have a good day.” We quickly started  the engine and rumbled away.

The road to Tok, Alaska, has many interesting surprises for the viewing.

Permafrost, frost heaves, and telephone phones do not mix

This is in US dollars and a bargain compared to Canadian prices.

There is a passenger in this cart..a dog!

The ever-present rugged high country

It was 1 pm when we arrived in Tok, Alaska, which is 92 miles from the Canadian  border.  We had to reset our time pieces in that Alaskan time is an hour earlier than Yukon time.  Tok originated as an Alaska Road Commission camp for the construction of the Alcan Highway in the 1940s.  It is the first town you visit in Alaska coming from Canada.  It is also the other end of the Top of the World Highway that we decided to not take out of Whitehorse.   

We went to the Sourdough RV Park and got our site before going back into town and having lunch at the recommended food stop.

Yep, we got dirty, but no need to wash.

After a halibut sandwich (good) we went to a 100% self serve gas station.  There was no attendant, so purchases were made only on credit or debit cards. Next we visited the only grocery store and the visitor center, then returned to the campground for a nap.

That evening we ate at the campground “café” which was featuring caribou chili served in a sourdough bread bowl.

We were entertained that evening with a Johnny Cash tribute performer who did other oldies as well. We waltzed, 2-stepped, and slow danced in the sawdust-covered, dirt-floored outdoor pavilion.   

Looks a bit like Willy

Johnny Lee and Sara Jean

Daisy was flat-footing on sawdust.

Waltzing

Part of the evening’s festivities was an opportunity to win a sourdough pancake breakfast. The object was to toss that morning’s left-over dry pancakes into a bucket. We got to throw one as a test, then two attempts to earn a breakfast.  

Stale sourdough hotcakes for frisbees

You could toss the pancakes folded, flat, or balled up.  

We failed.

The next morning we headed out.

The road ahead of us still had some surprises and beauty to discover.

Monday June 23, day 21

54°

In route to Fairbanks via Delta Junction and North Pole

216 miles

Mid-route rest area for the truck...

...and for us. Pits with bear-proof trash cans

Mile 1392 recognizes the contribution of the five US Army  regimental units of black soldiers that worked on the Alaskan Highway.  There were 11,000 men in total; 3,695 were African American.  At that time in the American military, many felt that the African American engineers, because of their race, could not be as skilled and industrious as Caucasians so the road building units were kept segregated. The African American engineers were often shortchanged in their allotment of equipment. In one case, the 95th Engineer Regiment, the final African American unit transferred to the highway, was not equipped with bulldozers and other machinery. Although the 95th had more experience operating the equipment, the machinery was given to the all-white 35th Regiment. The African Americans were given hand tools to use and they did.

Black Veterans Memorial Bridge

US. Army corp of Engineers photo

On October 25, 1942, an African American soldier and a white bulldozing soldier  shook hands, cementing the final link of the Alaska Highway.
This was an important event for the Corps of Engineers and for the war effort. It was especially important for the African American soldiers in that in this picture the two men are shaking hands as equals.  Historian Ken Coats stated that "they (African American soldier engineers) did work nobody thought they could do, they did it in an area that nobody thought they could survive in."

 

Delta Junction is the end of the Alaskan Highway.  It started out as a telegraph and trading post in 1904 and in the 1940s served as a transfer point for American and Russian pilots. US pilots would fly aircraft there from the lower 48 states and Russian pilots would pick them up to take to Russia, as part of the lend-lease agreement.   

In the 1920s, bison were transplanted to the Delta Junction area in order to provide sportsmen with a game that would be easier to handle than moose.  Twenty-three animals were brought in from Montana, and the herd today is maintained at about 500 in number.

We got caribou and bison treats here.

Where else would you demonstrate pride with mosquito art?

Tanana River

We stopped at the Big Delta State Historical Park for a break and for lunch. Rika’s Roadhouse is the centerpiece of the park and served as a travelers’ stop for prospectors, hunters, traders, and the military from 1909 to 1947.  A telegraph station, trading post, and post office were also established here.   It is located at a historically important ferry crossing of the Tanana River in southeast Alaska. 

A place to rest

The story goes that Rika was a Swedish immigrant hired to operate the roadhouse, which had 11 bedrooms, a common living room, and a large kitchen.  It appears that her food was excellent and her company was pleasant.

 She was one of the first to have wallpaper and a ventilated barn that was cooled and heated for the milk cows, goats, and sheep. Being from a similar climate in Sweden, she was able to figure out a way to successfully grow crops.

Sleeping room

Some had a private bath.

Sod-roofed cabin

Original outhouse had wallpaper on the walls. However each wall was different!

Life was hard on all things--people and machinery.

Rika did so well that she eventually purchased the roadhouse in 1923, but with the advent of the Alcan Highway and a newly constructed bridge, her business eventually failed.

Original ferry crossing near the roadhouse

Alcan highway crossing

We continued on down the road heading to North Pole.

North Pole, Alaska, is not really at the North Pole, but it was given that name in 1944 by a toy development company that wanted to attract developers to placing an industry there to manufacture toys made “at North Pole.”  That effort failed, but the city is known as the place where the spirit of Christmas lives all year.  Streets bear holiday names like Kris Kringle Drive and Snowman Lane, and Santa is present every day of the year.

North Pole is only 15 miles from Fairbanks. 

Stay tuned!