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Iditarod Sled Dog Race - Checkpoints
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1) Anchorage
Ceremonial start, Saturday March 3, 10 a.m. |
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2) Willow
Race restart, Sunday March 4, 2 p.m. |
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3) Skwentna
All mushers hit this checkpoint at junction of Skwentna and Yentna rivers the first night of the race. As many as 40 teams may be camped here. |
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4) Finger Lake
After Finger Lake comes the treacherous descent down Happy River Gorge. |
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5) Rainy Pass
At 3,771 feet, the highest point on the trail. Checkpoint is on Puntilla Lake. |
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6) Rohn
Was an original Iditarod roadhouse for dog teams carrying mail. Roadhouse is gone, replaced by a cabin built in the 1930s. |
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7) Nikolai
Village of about 100 people at end of bumpy 75-mile run across the Farewell Burn |
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8) McGrath
One of the larger towns (population 347) along the trail. |
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9) Takotna
Pretty, welcoming village known for its fresh pies. Favored spot to take 24-hour layover. |
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10) Ophir
Ghost town. |
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11) Iditarod
Abandoned mining town halfway along southern route. First musher here gets $3,000 in gold. |
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12) Shageluk
Open water on the trail from Iditarod can be a problem. 507 miles to Nome. |
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13) Anvik
First checkpoint on the Yukon River, which mushers follow for 148 miles. |
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14) Grayling
Last village until mushers reach Kaltag, 130 miles upriver. Population 194. |
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15) Eagle Island
Ralph Conaster's cabin is the only dwelling here. Fierce headwinds often slow mushers.
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16) Kaltag
Mushers leave Yukon River at village of 230. |
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17) Unalakleet
The biggest town (population 747) between Anchorage and Nome and the first on Norton Sound |
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18) Shaktoolik
Hurricane-velocity winds and ground blizzards can cut visibility to zero quickly. Trail crosses Norton Sound to Koyuk. |
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19) Koyuk
Once to Koyuk, the rest of the trail is over land. Just 171 miles to Nome. |
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20) Elim
Checkpoint normally sheltered from the wind |
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21) Golovin
Trail runs straight for 10 of the 18 miles to White Mountain, then crosses Fish River delta. |
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22) White Mountain
Mushers take final mandatory rest here, an eight-hour stop. 77 miles to Nome. |
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23) Safety
Last checkpoint, 22 miles from finish. |
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24) Nome |
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Photo Credit: Ron Engstrom, Anchorage Daily News |
