Photos courtesy of Mike and Joan Sinnwell June 2008
Rika’s Roadhouse Big Delta Alaska.
Rika’s Roadhouse is located in a State Historical Park just north of Delta Junction Alaska and well worth the stop. Built to serve the prospectors, traders, hunters and merchants traveling between Fairbanks and Valdez. The only safe way across the Tanana River was to use the ferry run by the Alaska Road Commission known as the ARC. Rika, a Swedish Immigrant, was actually an early employee hired in 1917 by John to work at the roadhouse. In 1923 she bought the roadhouse from John. You can see several buildings, a garden, sod house, barn, Telegraph site, prospectors trail, and spring house to mention just a few. The telegraph office was a real technology improvement over the past method of sending messages from Alaska to Washington DC. Prior to the telegraph it took a year to send a message and get an answer back.
At the Packhouse Restaurant my wife and I had the best cup of coffee to be found anywhere. Fresh roasted, special blend every day. Oh and don’t forget to look at the size of the flowers. With all the sunshine they get real BIG.