The distance from Anchorage to Tok was simply too far to squeeze into a day’s drive. According to RV Trip Wizard, our only interim-stop option was Red Eagle Lodge in Chistochina (population 60). This lodge was a throw back to Alaska’s roadhouse system, when in the late 19th early 20th centuries entrepeneurs built them to support the needs of prospectors, miners, trappers, and indigenous people during the Gold Rush period, particularly the Klondike Gold Rush. The roadhouses were built 10 to 20 miles apart to accommodate the distance walkers, horses, and dog sleds could cover in a day. They all provided sleeping accommodations (usually bunk beds), meals, and communal areas; but as needs increased, some expanded to sell supplies, become trading posts, provide postal services, and run saloons. The system declined once the gold rush ended, roads were developed, and motorized transportation began to flourish.
A few roadhouses survived and became tourist destinations by adapting to the needs of modern travelers. Such was the case for the Chistochina Roadhouse, now called Red Eagle Lodge. The original roadhouse was built in 1917 and became operational in 1922. It was later named Chistochina Lodge and Trading Post and burned down in Nov 1999. The current owners were Richard and Judy Denny, whom acquired the lodge property and remaining facilities in 2007. Since their acquisition, substantial improvements and additions were made, including an enormous bathhouse The best we’ve experienced in 5 years). The lodge offered cabins, as well as, tent and RV camping. When we checked in, Judy told us to just find a comfortable spot that suited us, so we parked adjacent to the bathhouse. There were no other RVs on the property.
Richard and Judy were about our age, and each had led fulfilling and colorful lives before meeting in Alaska, marrying, and now managing and operating this beautiful historic property together. A very big job, which they made look easy.
The property was well landscaped and decorated, the interior of the lodge was warm and cozy, and it fit our perception of what an Alaskan roadhouse might be.
LANDSCAPING
THE LODGE
The main property included the two-story lodge with an upstairs apartment, six rustic log cabins with queen beds, two canvas glamping tents, an upgraded school bus accommodation, 5-acres for RVs and tents, a guest bathhouse, and a 3,000-foot runway, where Richard parked his Cessna 182. We toured each of the accommodations and took pictures to show readers how truly special this remote gem really was. What stood out to me were the individualized themes, overall cleanliness, and attention to detail. In Gramdma’s Cabin for example, notice the proper placement of the silverware and orientation of the plates.
HUNTER’S HUT
TIMBER TRAILS
CABIN FEVER
GRANDMA’S CABIN
HERMIT’S ROOST
GLAMPING TENT 1
GLAMPING TENT 2
THE SCHOOL BUS
BATHHOUSE
The weather was chilly but sunny on day two, and MFI agreed to take a hike with me along a short stretch of the Eagle Trail. The trail was blazed by prospectors at the start of the Gold Rush and provided a route to Eagle, AK when gold was discovered. Eagle was east of Fairbanks on the Yukon River at the Canadian border. Let’s just say that the trail had not been used or cleared in some time. Richard instructed us on how to enter it from his airstrip and said we would see the beaver dam on a rivulet of the Cooper River. Bear encounters were a possibility, so in addition to carrying my bear spray, MFI grabbed a bone and kept knocking on a couple of rocks to announce our presence. We saw the dam and plenty of beaver-gnawed trees, but no beavers. The trail eventually turned impassable for a leisurely hike.
RV camping at Red Eagle Lodge was almost the same as boondocking, because they provided no utility hookups. Correspondingly, we only paid $18/night. Of course, we were adjacent to the bathhouse, and that was a huge convenience. Our rate did not include any meals; however, Judy invited us for coffee each morning, and this did include access to a variety of fruits, pastries, baked goods, and yogurt at no extra cost. After the hot meal was served to paying guests and the crowd thinned out, we had the opportunity to chat with Richard and Judy. They shared summaries of their interesting lives both pre-marriage and afterward, and we similarly summarized what we’d been up to for the last five years. All four of us have lived and continue to live exciting and adventurous lives. Miraculously, we remembered to take a group picture, and were so pleased at their enthusiastic participation in our trademark “look-of-shock” photo. Their expressions reflected what cool people they were.
