The history of roadhouses in Alaska isn’t very long, mostly
because Alaska hasn’t had roads for very long.
Before the construction of roads for wagons or vehicles, roadhouses were
located about as far as a man carrying a heavy pack could walk in a day, or as
far as a dog team could carry freight in a day.
Their locations didn’t seem to follow a set plan, but more a fortuitous
place where there were trees for firewood and water for drinking.
Alaskan roadhouses were places of safety and necessity and comfort and very loved and appreciated, thus they do not carry the usual stigma usually attached to "roadhouse." They were as important to Alaska as the Pony Express stations were to the Old West.
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| Sourdough Roadhouse, Richardson Highway |
Some were simple cabins, a place where a traveler could find
a meal and a place to lie down. Others were
elaborate affairs near settlements. After
the roads were built, many roadhouses became well-known for their food and the
traveling public looked forward to stopping for a meal, or in the case of
Eureka Lodge, a piece of pie.
One by one, the famous roadhouses disappeared—many succumbed
to fire. You would plan to stop at a certain roadhouse for a meal and all that was there was a scorched chimney standing in the ruins. Others closed because of the economics of the changing times and the construction of
newer, more direct routes from city to city.
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| Alaska Nellie's Grandview Roadhouse on the rails north of Moose Pass |
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| Alaska Nellie at right |
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| A roadhouse in Moose Pass that became known as The Jockey Club, and now as Trail Lake Lodge. |
The ones that survived evolved into businesses much more grand.
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| Eureka Lodge, the "pie place" north of Anchorage, is still in business because it evolved with the changing times. |
Such is the case with Summit Lake Lodge on the
Kenai Peninsula, which opened for business in 1954, just in time to serve travelers on the newly completed Seward Highway from Seward to Anchorage.
Once a popular
roadhouse in the finest tradition, the lodge had its ups and downs through
various operators.
They weren’t owners
in the true sense of the word because the lodge was located in the Chugach
National Forest, and the land was leased to those who operated the restaurant.
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| Approaching Summit Lake Lodge from the south. |
Times and circumstances continued to change, and thirty
years ago Marty and June Arnoldy purchased the lease. Their dedication and hard work has made the
lodge one of the most popular places on the Kenai Peninsula.
From the typical roadhouse meal and a bed, the Arnoldy’s changed
their business plan to accommodate the crowds of folks that head to the fishing
grounds of the peninsula. They expanded
the restaurant after a few summers of lines of prospective diners out the door,
waiting for a vacant table. They
remodeled the few cozy motel rooms.
Eventually they were able to purchase the land from the
Forest Service, allowing them to make many changes without exhaustive reviews. Some of the employee housing cabins were
turned into nightly rental cabins a couple years ago. A
gift shop/ice cream parlor was built, then a few years later the space allotted
the gift shop portion of the log building shank considerably and a pizza/pie/dessert
section built in its place, and the main restaurant began serving more upscale
meals. Geothermal heating was installed,
drastically lowering their heat and domestic water bills, as well as providing
a non-stop supply of hot water for the restaurant.
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| The guest lounge |
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| The restaurant. |
A few years ago, the Arnoldy’s, exhausted at the end of a
long summer with more than 50 employees, put the lodge up for sale. They started closing during the lean winter
months, giving themselves a break. Then, they once again modified
their business plan. They removed the for sale sign and remodeled part of the restaurant into a pleasant lounge for their motel guests.
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| Front part of the original motel rooms. |
On Saturday, May 16, the Arnoldy’s welcomed a number of
invited friends to the Big Reveal of their eight brand new deluxe lakeside cabins, and I
was one of the guests. This is yet
another step in an evolving business plan that they hope will make the lodge
into a destination place, rather than a stop-eat-and go lodge. They now have 16 deluxe cabins for overnight rental.
The party began in the bar where beer and wine was complimentary,
and appetizers were wolfed down. Then a
dinner, featuring either macadamia nut encrusted halibut or stuffed roast pork
tenderloin and Fruits of the Forest (mixed berry with rhubarb) pie and ice
cream.
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| Appetizers |
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| My roast pork with garlic mashed potatoes and green beans. |
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| Mac nut crusted halibut. |
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| Marty and June, center. |
The Arnoldy’s had booked Alaska musician Hobo Jim for
after-dinner entertainment, but he was stuck in Nashville. I went to my cabin to enjoy it.
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| Shower stall floor. |
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| Robe hook |
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| The black bar at top is a pull-down screen for privacy. |
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| Within a week, all this was green with new grass. |
After watching the various ducks and gulls in front of my
cabin, in had a great night’s sleep.
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Mergansers in front of my cabin.
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| Midnight. Soon, it will be light all night. |
Kudos to Marty and June for their success. The meals, the cabin, and the view were
wonderful.
