Six miles out of Ophir it’s CRITICAL to know if it’s an odd or even year. In odds years, teams go left at the fork in the trail, taking the “southern” route but in even years, teams fork right and travel along the “northern” route. Aren’t you wondering why there are two routes? Iditarod is a SIGNIFICANT event that requires a monumental amount of work but provides great excitement in the everlasting winter for the villagers of interior Alaska. It’s a wise choice to divide the work as well as the excitement between the small interior villages along the alternate year routes.

The ninety miles of trail between Ophir and Iditarod has many large spruce, birch and cottonwood trees. Mushers will climb from 800 feet in elevation to 1,100 when crossing the Beaver Mountains. There are many creeks – some with over flow, frozen swamps and lakes as well as tundra, large timber and brush along this section of trail. If a musher wishes to rest the team, there’s a cabin not quite half way to Iditarod. Don Bowers in Trail Notes describes the cabin as a dilapidated plywood shack with a very basic stove and says, “There’s not much there but it’s way ahead of what’s in second place.”

Except for one trapper, nobody has lived in Iditarod since 1935. The checkpoint is set up in an old house that until a few years ago, that trapper used. But like the miners, the trapper has also moved on. Besides the trapper’s house, there is a bank vault and a few other shelters still standing.

Gold was discovered on Christmas Day of 1908 in Flat located just a short distance from the Iditarod River. News traveled and those seeking riches and adventure found their way either by land on the frozen Iditarod Trail or by river on steamers and then established a mining camp on the river bank that became known as Iditarod. Iditarod and Flat were called the Twin Cities. After reading a story in the SitNews by June Allen published in March of 2005, I learned a few things about the Twin Cities that I want to share. The folks living in Flat and Iditarod enjoyed the conveniences of gaslights, telephones, newspapers, banks, restaurants and hotels and even a motor car. A tramway connected Iditarod and Flat. This turned out to be the last great strike of Alaska’s Gold Rush. The mines were depleted within a few years and the miners left but not before $33 million dollars of gold had been mined.. The post office closed in 1925. Don Bowers claims that back in 1910, Iditarod had a population of 10,000. But today with a population of zero it’s a lonely, haunted place even during the activity of Iditarod. Flat has a population of four.

Well, there you have it – some history and information about Iditarod, the second ghost town on the Iditarod Trail. Do you suppose the that mushers, dogs and volunteers can feel the “spirits” of the departed miners as they pass through Iditarod? Handler just brought me a new book. It’s called Gold Rush Dogs by Murphy and Haigh. It can’t wait to read and share stories about those AMAZING dogs as soon as I have a little break from all the action of Leader School. Thanks to my friend, Kim Slade the 2007 Teacher on the Trail for sharing her pictures of Iditarod. Next Handler is going to tell us about Shageluk (it’s not a ghost town). Stay tuned for that story and remember in everything do your best everyday and have a plan.

Born to Run,
Sanka

 

McGrath has a population of 400 with a few more than half being Native Alaskans – Athapaskan (Athabascan) and Eskimo. There are two stores, one for groceries and one for dry goods, along with a restaurant. The school in McGrath has 181 students. Nearly all the houses in McGrath are hooked up to the village water system but most have their own septic systems. There is village garbage service and electricity is provided by McGrath Light & Power. The village has a public library, a regional health clinic and a well developed air strip. A person traveling to or from McGrath would go by plane, boat, snowmachine or during Iditarod – dog team as there are no roads leading to the village. There are some local roads and winter trails are marked for travel to Nikolai and Takotna. People and businesses in McGrath receive cargo and supplies by air and water. Being a major supply center, there are many cash jobs but some people still rely on subsistence activities. They hunt moose, caribou, bear and rabbits; fish for salmon; trap; tend gardens and harvest berries and other natural crops.

The Kuskokwim River is almost always open from June thru October. Summer temperatures in McGrath range from 62 to 80 but in winter the temperatures run between -64 and 0 degrees Fahrenheit. When Handler was in McGrath in 2006, the temperature was 35 degrees below zero – sort of a frosty morning for the dogs but they had lots of straw. When it’s that cold, the snow talks back, “CRUNCH,” when you walk, run or drive on it. This area receives only about 10 inches of precipitation per year including 80 to 90 inches of snow.

Now for a little history. I did a Google search one day after lead dog training and found some good info at www.alaskatravel.com/alaska/mcgrath.html. Before the gold rush, McGrath was a meeting and trading place for Kuskokwim Athabascan. Then, because this was all the farther north barges could travel on the Kuskokwim River, it became a regional trading center after gold was discovered in 1906. It wasn’t until 1907 that the town was established and named for Peter McGrath, a local U.S. Marshal. From the time gold was discovered in 1906 until 1925, hundreds, even thousands, of people walked or mushed on the mail and supply trail know as the Iditarod Trail through McGrath on their way to the Ophir gold mines in the Innoko Mining District. Initially, McGrath was across the river from its present location but in 1933 a major flood caused residents and businesses to move to the other bank of the river. In 1937, the Alaska Commercial Company opened a new store. With planes becoming safer and more popular for delivering people, mail and supplies, an airstrip was cleared in 1940. About that same time, the first school was built. McGrath was an important refueling stop during World War II. For the most part, gold mining operations in the area shut down many years because of low prices. Today McGrath is an important communications, transportation and supply center for interior Alaska. It also serves as the center of the huge Iditarod School District.

Well, there you have it – some history and information about McGrath, the Iditarod Trail and what its like to live in the village. The next checkpoint on the trail is Takotna. It’s rumored that Takotna is the best little checkpoint on the Iditarod Trail – handler will tell us about that village next. So, stay tuned and remember in everything do your best every day and have a plan!

Born to Run,
Sanka

 

Summer temperatures in the interior range from 42 to 80 degrees but in the winter it can get mighty cold with temperatures ranging between 62 below and zero degrees. They have about 16 inches of precipitation each year including about six feet of snow. The Kuskokwim river is usually open from June through October for boat and barge traffic.

People who live in Nikolai heat their homes with wood. They have a subsistence life style meaning that they grow their own vegetables; pick berries; hunt caribou, moose and rabbit and fish for Salmon to put food on their tables. Some folks earn a little extra money by trapping and selling handicrafts. In the summer many folks work construction.

One afternoon I had some time after lead dog training to do a little research on the Native Alaskans called Athabaskans. I borrowed a little book called Alaska’s History by Harry Ritter and you won’t believe what I learned! Wisconsin, where I live, is situated in the Great Lakes Region and was once populated by Native American Indians. As it turns out, there are MANY similarities between the two groups. Years ago in their traditional cultures, they both used bows and arrows for hunting; they both wore fringed and beautifully beaded buckskin clothing and they both used utensils and canoes made of birch bark. Can you think of why this might be?

Many years ago before modern times, the Athabascans lead a nomadic life – they went where their food was. In the summer they lived in tents by the rivers to catch salmon. In the fall they moved to hunt moose and caribou. In the winter they lived in earth sheltered dwellings. Mr. Ritter said the Athabaskans were famous for their strength, resourcefulness and stamina. All Alaska Natives are spiritual people and have great respect for the land, water and creatures of nature.

I could tell that Handler really liked Nikolai – the villagers, students and teachers were so very friendly. While eating at the Community Center, the villagers told stories about their childhood and their ancestors and the mushers told stories about their experiences in the Farewell Burn. The menu at the Community Center was very familiar – cheese burgers and french fries for lunch and supper – eggs, bacon and hash browns for breakfast. Many of the villagers, adults and children, gathered at the checkpoint and community center to socialize, meet the mushers and see the dogs teams.

Well there you have it – a glimpse of what life is like in Nikolai today and a little historical information about the Athabascan way of life years and years ago. By the way, Martin Buser named one of his sons Nikolai and the other Rohn – how cool is that to be named after a village or checkpoint on the Iditarod Trail! Next Handler is going to tell us about the trail between Rohn and Nikolai. Stay tuned for that story and remember – in everything do your best everyday and have a plan.

Born to Run,
Sanka