By Jessica Kitscha

Key

Red Colored Dot: How far musher

traveled

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BackAnchorage

Anchorage is a wonderful city! It is where the Iditarod ceremonial start is. The Mulcahy Stadium is the Alaska League baseball stadium. The “muffin shop” is a popular restaurant in Anchorage. They make the best muffins

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While you are staying at Eagle River there is hiking, festivals, and there is a little bit of history.. You can do white-water rafting too!!! It is a great place for relaxing in the summer and a great vacation spot.

Eagle River

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Wasilla is the actual starting point for the Iditarod. Close by there is the National Bank of Alaska. Wasilla is a popular place to be for interviewing the mushers.

Wasilla

BackKnik

Knik is the home to Joe Redington Sr., who is the “Father of the Iditarod.” The Knik Museum has the Musher’s Hall of Fame and is an attraction for many people who are fans of the Iditarod. In Knik there are no roads so the only way people get around is by airplane, snowmobile, or by dog sledding.

Back Yentna Station

Yentna Station is the home to Dan and Jane Gabryzack. Families from all around gather at the house and cheer on the teams. At night they make big bomb fires.

SkwentnaBack

Skwentna has a lot of spruce and cottonwood trees. This is the hometown to Joe and Norma Delia. They call their house the post office. The population is 90. But in the winter it is a lot more because of all the visitors.

Finger Lake Back

Here in Finger Lake the population is two. This is one of the dangerous parts of the trail for the Iditarod. Here it has up to 10 feet of snow.

Rainy PassBack

Rainy Pass is a checkpoint for the Iditarod and here you can rest, and eat. Rainy Pass is also a dangerous part of the trail to be on. The mountain range reaches 3,160 feet above sea level.

RohnBack

Rohn has no population! There is no telephone or electricity. The only thing that is there is the Rohn Roadhouse. People usually take their 24 hour stop. Can you believe it?!

Nikolai Back

Nikolai has one out of many native villages. The Community Hall is a place where the mushers sled in and out. Here there are Onion Domes. The airstrip in close by.

McGrathBack

McGrath is a place where mushers take another twenty-four hour stop. It is one of the largest villages on the southern part. There are no stores, only bars and restaurants. The mushers take off as soon as possible.

TakotnaBack

Takotna has only one restaurant and one bar. This is one of the smallest towns with one of the biggest welcomes. This is the only time and place to take a shower. After all they don’t take a shower for awhile.

OphirBack

Ophir once was a gold rush town but now it is a ghost town. The Iditarod checkpoint is at Dick and Audra Forsgren’s cabin. If you go north you will run into Kaltag. Here are a lot of mountains too.

CrippleBack

Cripple is a great place for fans of the Iditarod!!! This is the place where the first musher gets a prize! It is 3000 gold coins for a reward. It is the halfway mark. This is a ghost town now. It used to be a mining community that produced $35 million in gold from 1908 to 1925.

RubyBack

Ruby is the first village on the Yukon River. The first musher to arrive wins a gourmet dinner flown in from a fancy restaurant in Anchorage. Also a cash prize is included. Gold was discovered here in 1907. You can see the northern lights from here a lot.

GalenaBack

Galena is a Air Force Base on the Yukon River. Here the popular rock Galena is found. That’s how it got it’s name. This is a city where no one comes to except to see the Iditarod. The Indians love to have company.

NulatoBack

Nulato used to be a Russian trading post, founded in 1838. The Indians burned it and buried it. They later on rebuilt it. It is still standing. The Yukon and Nulato rivers meet here.

UnalakleetBack

Unalakleet is an Inpiat Eskimo town on the coast of Norton Sound. It is really cold here, especially on the Blueberry Hills. The Bering Sea gateway is not too far away.

KaltagBack

Kaltag has an empty cabin. Some musher's leave food and drinks to bring good luck from the spirit of the woman who used to live there. The Rich Burnham’s house is near by.

ShaktoolikBack

Shaktoolik is a very windy place in Alaska. Homes in Shaktoolik are often held down by chains driven 25 feet into the frozen ground. This is another dangerous part of the Iditarod trail.

KoyukBack

Koyuk is a beautiful city! Once the musher’s arrive here they can finally take a breath. This checkpoint is at the City Recreation Center. From here on the Iditarod trail is over mostly land.

ElimBack

Elim is where the big fire hall is. Here is an Eskimo settlement. Not too far away is Little Mount McKinley. There are a lot of bumps at this part of the race. Watch out mushers!

GolovinBack

Golovin is a one- store city. The Iditarod checkpoint is at Checker’s home. This is a very old town. Lots of people come here to see different events.

White MountainBack

White Mountain is one of the eight hour stops. Musher’s sign their name on the wall at Nome Kennel Club Rest Cabin. They do this because it is an occasion to do this. Here is a large Eskimo cabin.

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Safety

Safety is the last checkpoint to Nome!! People stand in the streets cheering them on. Everybody throws gifts to the musher’s. The mushers are almost there!

NomeBack

Nome is the last checkpoint for the Iditarod. Standing in the streets the fans yell at the first place musher. Everybody greets the musher. This is one of the biggest cities in Alaska.

My Musher

My musher this year in 2004 is Jeff King. He now is in fourth place. He won the Iditarod three times! Last year he got in third place. I wish this year he would win. Well my musher has a new sled this year and is using it. It’s a sled he built. I hope he knows that I’m cheering him on! Jeff has three daughters. His wife trains 60 to 70 huskies a year. He began mushing in 1976. Cali, one of his daughters won the Jr. Iditarod in 2002.She came in 32nd for the Iditarod.

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