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CHARMING CHITINA

10.11.10

by Joanne Tucker

Why consider an adventure vacation in a classic Alaska frontier town? The stunning Alaska wilderness, its wildlife and diversions are at your doorstep.

Plus, Alaska’s small towns are renowed for their warm hospitality and historic charm as well as near luxury accommodations, rustic seasonal cuisine and virtually endless outdoor activities.

One such small town getaways is Chitina, Alaska. Located about 265 miles east of Anchorage and 300 miles south of Fairbanks, Chitina lies in a colorful wilderness valley between the Chugach and Wrangell Mountains.

What makes Chitina so special is that this town of around only 100 inhabitants also sits near the confluence of the mighty Copper and Chitina Rivers, where Alaskan natives still catch the famous Copper River red salmon in dip-nets the way their ancestors did thousands of years ago.

While Chitina is loaded with early 1900s history and modern day conveniences, don’t be surprised if you see a moose wandering down Main Street or an eagle circling overhead.

Yes, Chitina has more than its share of wildlife, and there’s even more opportunities to view Alaska’s amazing animals and birds while hiking on a trail or fishing along a river bank. For the more adventurous, back country and river rafting excursions are easily available.

Chitinia is perhaps the best place to use as a jumping off point into the vast and remote Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve because Chitina offers travelers the last place to have a meal, buy gas or visit specialty shops in town before taking a flight, shuttle or car ride into the park.

Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina
Where do you stay when visiting Chitina? The historic and charming Gilpatricks Hotel Chitinia is a little gem at the end of Edgerton Highway, which is 32 miles east of the Richardson Highway that runs between Fairbanks and Valdez.

The quaint Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina is truly a vintage hotel featuring 11 guest rooms with modern comforts such as queen size beds, radiant in-floor heating, wireless internet and private bathrooms. This arts-and-crafts-era lodging also has a gourmet restaurant, which serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well as an amply-stocked saloon.

We selected Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina not only for its comfy lodging and great food, but also as a place to enjoy the local flavor and sights around town before entering Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, which is known for its tall peaks, glowing glaciers, abundant wildlife and two historic towns.

Flying to Chitina & Beyond
After a flight from John Wayne Airport in OC to Seattle on Alaska Airlines and then straight onto Fairbanks, we drove south to mile 82.5 on Richardson Highway and turned east onto Edgerton Highway to the end of the road. (From Anchorage, Chitina is 265 miles by way of the Glen Highway to Richardson and Edgerton Highways.) Chitina can also be reached by shuttle and air charter services from Anchorage and Fairbanks.

When we arrived at Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina, its owner and host, Susan Gilpatrick, warmly greeted us on the front porch steps of this 1900s era lodging and gave a little history of the hotel.

Susan told us Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina has been restored with loving attention to detail in its historic architecture, woodwork and furnishings that date back to the early 1900s when Chitina was a bustling boom town that provided gold and copper miners a place to eat, sleep and be merry.

After touring the first-floor with its lobby, filled with antiques and 1900s memorabilia, a large sunny dining room and intimate saloon, Susan led us up the wood-paneled stairway to our guest room on the second floor.

We settled into a large suite with two queen size beds, a big couch, flower-curtained windows and an updated bathroom with antique fixtures. Although the other ten guest rooms are still old style, small and cozy, they also have in–room bathrooms and a comfy queen size bed.

On the main floor, you can relax in the ornate lobby before taking a shuttle or air flight into Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Or step out the front door and take a leisurely stroll to visit Chitina’s specialty shops such as the Emporium, Spirit Mountain Artworks and Paws and Feathers, which displays a unique collection of native Alaskan jewelry.

Excellent Culinary Experiences in Chitina
After an evening stroll along Chitina’s main street, we were ready for a culinary experience at Gilpatricks Restaurant. The menu offered homemade soups, fresh salads and entrees of halibut, shrimp and crab from Alaska’s cold oceans, locally-raised chicken and freshly-made pastas. The restaurant’s signature dishes are Halibut St. Elias and Penne Greco.
Since the rivers around Chitina are a major hot spot for dip-net fishing or paddlewheel fish traps in the summer, we were anxious to taste the unsurpassed Copper River red salmon. And even though salmon season was nearly over and it wasn’t on the menu, we were delighted when the in-house chef brought out a platter of smoked red salmon so succulent it melted in our mouths.

But that wasn’t the only treat to tempt our taste buds. Susan offered us appetizers of braised yak and freshly-shelled Alaskan shrimp on ice, paired with fine wines.

Of course, we ordered the famous Copper River red salmon, which was grilled to perfection and placed atop penne pasta sautéed in olive oil with garlic, onions, roasted peppers, mushrooms, fresh basil and three cheeses.

And when we thought there couldn’t be anything more to top this fantastic meal, our host surprised us with a decadent dark chocolate and wild raspberry crème brule. Wow! We were sure this awesome wilderness cuisine was more than worth the trip from the OC to Chitina, Alaska!

With our sumptuous meal over and smiles on our faces, we walked across the street to Uncle Tom’s Tavern for some local color, tall tales and steins of Alaskan beer until the midnight hour struck.

The next day, we awoke to a bright, sunny morning and started it off with the best breakfast we had on our Alaska adventure: good old fashioned farm-fresh eggs that tasted like they had just been plucked from under the hen, thick pieces of smoked bacon and down-home country fried potatoes. Yummy! (If time is limited, guests can also grab a pastry and coffee before setting out for a day’s excursion into the park or a river rafting adventure).

Then, we were off to the Chitina Airport for a 30-minute flight into Wrangell-St. Elias National Park with full tummies and fond memories of Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina and Jane Gilpatrick’s warm Alaskan hospitality.

For a comfy hotel stay, some of the best eats in Alaska and close proximity to rushing rivers and abundant wildlife, Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina is definitely a treasured gem that should be on every travelers list of “must-see” places.

Joanne Tucker is a lifestyles writer based in Costa Mesa, Calif.

Chitina: [url=http://www.alaska.com/2008/10/16/2341/chitina-alaska.html]http://www.alaska.com/2008/10/16/2341/chitina-alaska.html[/url]

Gilpatricks Hotel Chitina: [url=http://www.hotelchitina.com/]http://www.hotelchitina.com/[/url]

Wrangell: [url=http://www.wrangell.st.elias.national-park.com/]http://www.wrangell.st.elias.national-park.com/[/url]

RUSTIC ROADHOUSE LUXURY

10.05.10

By Joanne Tucker

Alaska’s roadhouses were gathering places for travelers since the early 1900s when these warm and homey havens sprang up along the old Valdez-Fairbanks Trail, now known as the Richardson Highway.

Trappers, prospectors, homesteaders and local natives traveled by wagon or dog sled on the old trail and stopped at a roadhouse for a hot meal, a clean bed, an outdoor privy and some good company.

Today, only a few original roadhouses remain, but the spirit of Alaska adventure and hospitality lives on. And it’s all just a plane ride away.

After a flight from John Wayne Airport in OC to Seattle on Alaska Airlines and then straight onto Fairbanks, we drove south down the Richardson Highway for an incomparable Alaska roadhouse tour.

Rika’s Roadhouse & Landing and Sullivan’s on the Delta are now historical museums that depict the early 1900s in photos, memorabilia and antiques. Both roadhouses are located on the Richardson Highway at Delta Junction, which is two hours south of Fairbanks and five hours north of Anchorage by car.

Rika’s Roadhouse is more of a complex with its gardens and numerous old buildings that housed early 1900s furnishings and artifacts. At Rika’s Roadhouse Restaurant, we ordered a farm-to-table lunch of homemade tomato and basil soup, a fresh garden salad and a piece of heavenly rhubarb and wild blueberry pie.

At mile 227.4 on the Richardson Highway and across from the infamous galloping Black Rapids Glacier, we came upon a magnificent structure: The Lodge at Black Rapids.

The Lodge at Black Rapids is a hot destination spot between Fairbanks and Valdez. This boutique hotel and chef-driven restaurant is located in the middle of the Alaska wilderness. With mountains and forests all around, The Lodge at Black Rapids is a luxury location par excellence.

Carved into a mountainside, The Lodge at Black Rapids is a stunning architectural masterpiece, which incorporates Chinese black slate shingles, handcrafted ironwork and green-trimmed woodwork around doors and windows into its design. Plus, the roof is topped by a gorgeous third-story belvedere.

Inside, the trendy lodge showcases attention to detail and excellent Alaskan craftsmanship with its large timber beams, massive stone fireplace and burl wood countertops. A circular stairway of handmade iron work leads to the belvedere attic, which has absolutely beautiful custom stained glass windows depicting the Northern Lights.

Truly, this rustic wilderness lodge is uber luxe with guest rooms that feature super fluffy bedding, heavenly queen size beds and en suite bathrooms (in most rooms) with hand-laid stone tiles.

The Lodge at Black Rapids is a great place for an extended stay in Alaska as it features three levels of kicked-back living in ten guest rooms (six guest rooms have private baths and four rooms have shared bathrooms). The upper levels offer two seating areas with richly-colored leather couches for reading or conversations in front of the stone fire place.

The gourmet dining room on the second level is surrounded by large picture windows and offers sophisticated Alaska cuisine, which is prepared by a trained chef and served family style for breakfast, lunch and dinner (meals are not included in the room rate). The lodge also features a list of fine wines and Alaskan beers.

Our host and owner, Annie Hopper, invited us to sample appetizers of wild salmon, fresh and pickled veggies, crème fraiche and crackers. At the table, Annie told us the Lodge at Black Rapids is open year round for both summer and winter activities.

She says the lodge is surrounded by numerous hiking trails where guests can view waterfalls, wildlife and glaciers. Or, they can relax on the balcony with a glass of wine. In the winter, guests enjoy excellent skiing, snow machining and Northern Lights viewing. Ice fishing and glacier walking is also accessible from the lodge.

The Lodge at Black Rapids combines accessibility from both Fairbanks and Anchorage by car in an unspoiled wilderness that lies deep in the heart of the Alaska Range.

This rustic luxury version of the old roadhouse provides all the creature comforts of home for a couple’s getaway, family vacation or a singles retreat in a fresh, clean environment where glaciers grow, rivers flow and lights glow.

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