Deacon Chuck recommended a drive about 100 miles up the Steese Highway. There are two places where you can see for miles. He warned that the road turns to gravel and ends in Circle on the Yukon River. The next day, I drove up the Steese Highway and stopped at Twelve Mile Summit and then went on to Eagle Summit.
The road turned to gravel around mile marker 81. Twelve Mile Summit is an additional five miles. Eagle Summit is another twenty miles beyond that. While at Eagle Summit, a truck stopped for a break. They were Native American from the area. I had a great visit with them.
Dion and his son Avery were taking Dion’s brother Claude and his wife to Circle so they could go up the river another two hundred miles to their home. The vastness of the distances is amazing.
Dion talked about his culture and the harshness of the environment. He said that they lost two friends just beyond the entrance to the rest area. It was winter and they got stuck on the road. They died from carbon monoxide when they had their vehicle running to stay warm. It’s a good reminder that nature is very unforgiving even when we know the dangers.
About half of the road to Eagle Summit is gravel, but it is well packed and very drivable. It rained earlier and that was evident by the puddles on the blacktop just prior to hitting the gravel portion of the road. The rain earlier was a blessing because it kept the dust down. The road runs along the river for a way and has numerous creeks that flow under the road heading to the river and eventually the ocean.
It was a beautiful day. The sun was out, and it was warm. On the way back, the road was starting to get dusty as the it dried out. When I got back to the fifth wheel, the temperature was in the high eighties inside since it was closed all day.
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