The Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race starts on Saturday morning from downtown Fairbanks. The race, 550 miles long, is roughly half the distance from what it was pre-pandemic. Gone is the international flavor of the race, with Alaska and The Yukon going their separate ways.
In addition to the 550, there will also be a 300 mile run and an 80 mile youth mush.
Only time will tell if the race can survive without the international aspect of the Whitehorse – Fairbanks cooperation.
I’m not sure which I find odder: The people skating on the river, or the people on the bridge watching the skaters on the river.
Times have certainly changed.
The Federal Government has designated the Chilkoot as a national historic trail. Gaining fame during the Klondike Goldrush, the Chilkoot was a major thoroughfare into the interior of the Yukon and Alaska. Prior to that, the trail was a major route for the Native population for a millennia.
Currently, the Chilkoot is closed due to major trail damage from flooding this past autumn. A series of atmospheric rivers pummeled the area, The Taiya River reached flood stage on five different occasions during a two month period last fall, eroding banks and dislodging bridges along a large section of the trail, that follows the river.
There is hope that the trail will be open at some point this summer. The complete trail to Bennett Lake has not been open due to Canadian restrictions since the start of the Corvid pandemic. There is also hope that those restrictions will also be lifted for the upcoming hiking season.
Antiques Roadshow, the most watched show on Public Broadcasting, will visit Alaska for the first time. The show is billed as “part adventure, part history lesson and part treasure hunt”.
Antiques Roadshow will come to Anchorage on July 11, and will tape three episodes to be aired in 2024. The location of filming is still under wraps, and will remain a secret until we get closer to July. Prospective treasure hunters can apply for tickets through the Roadshow website, where a drawing will be held after the deadline of March 13.
