 |  |  |  |  |  |
 |  |  |  |  |  |
| Two Rivers, Alaska is an unincorporated community located off of Chena Hot Springs Road, northeast of Fairbanks. Officially, our community extends from mile 13 through mile 25, between the Little Chena and the Chena Rivers. In 2002, the Alaska State Demographer estimated that Two Rivers is home to 588 residents. Two Rivers can best be described as a rural bedroom community and most of our residents work in either Fairbanks or North Pole. There are numerous local businesses in Two Rivers, including two general stores, four restaurants, a post office, a laundromat, the UCLA HIPAS Observatory, agricultural enterprises, an RV park, and other small businesses. Most people who move to Two Rivers are attracted by the rural nature of our community and the extensive network of multiple-use trails that extend like a spiders web through Two Rivers. Our trail system is popular with dog sled drivers (called "mushers" in Alaska), equestrians, snowmachine and ATV riders, hunters and hikers, kayakers and canoeists and other outdoor recreationists. Two Rivers also borders the Chena River State Recreation Area, an extensive wilderness recreational area that is the jewel of our community. Two Rivers is especially popular with both recreational and professional dog sled drivers. We like to boast that Two Rivers is home to so many mushers that sled dogs outnumber humans by a ratio of about 4 to 1. Famous Two Rivers mushers include 5 time Iditarod Champion Rick Swensen and Aliy Zirkle, the first and only woman to win the Yukon Quest International Sleddog Race. The Two Rivers Dog Mushers Association (TRDMA) sponsors several official dog sled races each year and is perhaps the most active "civic" organization in our community. Dog mushing is so important to the members of our community that the greatest compliment that a resident of Two Rivers can bestow upon a neighbor is the statement "He (or she) takes good care of her or her dogs". Dog sleds have been an important part of life in Two Rivers even before it was established as a community. In 1901 Capt. E.T. Barnette established a trading post on the Chena River which quickly grew into the city of Fairbanks.. A year later, gold was discovered 16 miles north of the post prompting the Pedro Dome gold rush during which hundreds of fortune seekers scrambled into the area. In 1905 two brothers Robert and Thomas Swan, discovered the Chena Hot Springs at the headwaters of the North Fork of the Chena River. Within a very short period of time trails from Fairbanks to the upper Chena River and the hot springs crossed through the Two Rivers area and our community has been growing ever since. During Territorial Days several families established homesteads in the area, and a Territorial School was constructed. Continued expansion in and around Fairbanks since the 1970s has resulted in the growth of Two Rivers as well. In addition to its human and canine population, Two Rivers is home to a wide variety of wildlife. Large game species frequently seen near our homes include moose, lynx, wolves, black bears and grizzly bears. Several Two Rivers residents have close encounters with potentially dangerous big-game animals each year. Because Two Rivers is so wild nearly every species in Interior Alaska can been seen within our community. Our rivers and ponds provide excellent opportunities for anglers and our skies are filled with a wide range of birds. The climate of Two Rivers is one of extremes. During summer we can enjoy high temperatures of over 90 degrees while in mid winter the mercury may plunge to -60 degrees F. On the day of the summer solstice we enjoy almost 22 hours of sunlight, but on the winter solstice can hope for only 3 hours and 42 minutes, unless clouds obscure the sun. Emergency Services in Two Rivers are somewhat limited. We do not have fire protection in our community although the State Division of Forestry will dispatch a wild land fire crew to ensure that a structural fire does not spread to the black spruce forest that is the prominent feature of our area. Two Rivers Rescue Squad is an Alaska certified First Response Unit that works in conjunction with the Steese Area Volunteer Fire Department to provide Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and ambulance transportation to the acutely ill or injured. Law enforcement is provided by the Alaska State Troopers battalion based in Fairbanks. State park rangers provide emergency services to visitors of the Chena River State Recreation Area. Please come back and visit this page frequently as we add more information about our wonderful community. :-) |
| A Bit of Information About Two Rivers, Alaska |
| Click on Map for larger view |
