My Journey to ALASKA

[(RIP) rustygates]

crossin over the pipeline towards Coldfoot

[(RIP) rustygates]

Coldfoot the only fuel station on the actual highway at milepost 175."mileposts are the only identification the alaskan highways have. eg milepost 1 is the start of any highway and there maybe a turning at milepost 58

http://www.milepost.com/highway_info/dalton_highway

more info here.

[(RIP) rustygates]

As I was filling up the gas guzzler and had a meal at the truckstop powered by 2 cummin 12cyl diesel generators 50mts from the truckstop,still noisey though, i started talking to 5 guys on dirt bikes,who were riding up to deadhorse and were spending a couple of nights in Wiseman village which was our base, only 4 made it to wiseman one was killed on the treacherous "beaver tail" a long steep downhill section about a mile long and a sharp lefthander at the bottom and the track surface is lethal

[(RIP) rustygates]

From Coldfoot we travelled on up to Wiseman our base,as this is where our great uncle bob eventually ended up mining for gold.

[(RIP) rustygates]

All the rivers and creeks around this area were mined for gold in and around the river beds, nearly all the road signs we saw had been shot at by various calibre rifle and shotguns.everyone is armed up here we rode up the dalton with 2 winchester rifles a 338 and a 243 + the obligatory pump action shotgun, it's because (all the wild animals in alaska are wild) they told me.

[(RIP) rustygates]

We arrived in the village and saw the old post office first and then to my great uncle's cabin, he died in 1964 but the cabin is in good order and nothing had been robbed or destroyed(would not be the same in uk)

[(RIP) rustygates]

Most of the cabins are from the turn of the centuary and were built on the permafrost ground (no footings) but they had a pot-bellied stove in the corner of the cabin which over the years would melt the permafrost ground in the stove area and the cabins used to sink or tip down one end.this cabin was my great uncle's

[(RIP) rustygates]

It was quite moving entering his cabin, we had seen photos that he sent to us and how he mined for gold, through the winter they would dig in the permafrost a shaft down maybe up to 100ft with steam lances from a boiler about a 6ft a day,looking for telltale signs of antimoney, which was always close to the gold,mainly under ancient river beds.they would dig the paydirt out of the mine and stockpile it and when the summer came they would wash the paydirt in rockers and the gold is heavier than water so it would collect at the bottom of the rocker and the dirt would wash away.

[TONUP]

This is a great thread 'akin to a Discovery Channel documentary'. Thanks for posting it.

Do you, or your family still own the cabin? Do you have any mining rights?

Regards

Alan

[(RIP) rustygates]

Someone had used his cabin in the eighties a friend of bob's who was 17 and bob was 70 and they both dug for gold and got quite rich, but if the wanted a pair of boots it would cost them over $00 to get them from Seattle by steamer then by scow(a river raft)and wait for the rivers to freeze then by packhorse and eventually by dog sled, they used to bring the supplies to Wiseman as there wern't any roads.the winters would get down to -70f and for 3months of total darkness then 6months of twilight and 3 months of brilliant sunshine 24hrs a day,the sun just goes around above your head really weird.

[(RIP) rustygates]

The outhouse, someone has added the polystyrene

[(RIP) rustygates]

the cabin before we cleared the scrub

[(RIP) rustygates]

Originally the cabins had earth and sod roof, but by 1950's small planes started to fly into a makeshift airstrip and they carried fuel in 2gallon cans the empty cans where cut open and flattened and used like slates to cover the roofs to keep cabins dry.

[(RIP) rustygates]

Yes we still own the cabin,but we have given it to local community and the mining rights were robbed by the "silverado mining group" who have laid claim to everything up at Nolan where bob had his mine,apparantly if no one has done a stock take or worked the mine in 12months they just take it over, that why bob stayed up at Nolan and all the other "Sourdough" old timers would go back to Fairbanks for the winter

[(RIP) rustygates]

Inside the old post office