Taylor Highway

The Taylor Highway (numbered Alaska Route 5) is a highway in the U.S. state of Alaska that extends 160 miles (258 km) from Tetlin Junction, about 11 miles (17 km) east of Tok on the Alaska Highway, to Eagle. The southern 96 miles from the Alaska Highway to Jack Wade Junction is designated as Alaska Route 5. The entire highway formerly carried this designation, but the north end of Route 5 has been rerouted to follow the Top of the World Highway to the Canadian border.

Route description
The first 60 mi of the highway is paved; the rest is gravel. The highway is closed to automobile traffic from October through April, but is used by snowmobiles in the winter. The large Fortymile caribou herd roams near the highway. The highway also provides access to the Fortymile River National Wild and Scenic River system.

History


Wagon trails had supplied Eagle, Chicken, and the historic Fortymile Mining District since the nineteenth century. The Fortymile Road was established in 1951 and later renamed in honor of ARC President (1932–1948) Ike P. Taylor. It connects to the Top of the World Highway 96 mi from Tetlin, at Jack Wade Junction, allowing road access to Dawson City, Yukon during parts of the year. It is 79 mi from Jack Wade Junction to Dawson City.