We Love Chicken!

Chicken, Alaska (52 degrees, rain, cloudy)

As we drove to Chicken Alaska along the Taylor Highway the crazy chicken dance song went round and round in my head. So the fun continued when we arrived and saw chickens everywhere around town. I loved this travel day as we drove across a very remote area with stunning views. This is the area Jack London loved so much and we can  understand why. 

So if you want to get this ear worm (warning its hard to get rid of) in your head click here!

Here is a short video of the Taylor Highway

L to R (me, Bob, Becky, Jann, and Barry)

Chicken Alaska is very small with a population of 3. Yes, three full time residents. The post mistress, her gold mining husband and a child. During the summer there are about 30 residents running a few shops and restaurants. All electricity is provided by generators .We had fun stopping at all the gift shops and really enjoyed the restaurant at our campground. There are three small business areas to visit. We were going to stay two nights but one night is just about right. 

There is a popular book, Tisha, written about a school teacher who wanted to live in the frontier. She taught here in a one room school house. It gets very cold here in the winter and there is a story of her bundling up all the children and teaching them in her bed one very chilly day. We hiked out to the historic home, school house, roadhouse, and a few other odd buildings on a tour. All of the buildings are in very sad shape and if not preserved soon will be lost to decay and frost heaves. It would be sad to loose this part of history. 

Gold mining is still going on in this area in a big way. One of the merchants actually takes gold as payment from local miners. You can also learn to pan for gold and tour a gold dredge. 

Gold Dredge

Campground Review:  Chicken Gold Camp and Outpost  3 stars, 30 amp electric only, you are encouraged to come with a full tank of water and empty grey/black tanks, no dump, take your trash out with you, dirt site with a little landscaping, electricity provided by a generator, very friendly and helpful staff, good restaurant with outdoor seating. No Verizon signal, limited WiFi provided.

The time we spent in Chicken was lots of fun and definitely worth the effort to get there. We are now heading out on the Top of the World Highway to Dawson City. This is where the prospectors came to try and strick it rich during a gold rush.