Coldfoot, Alaska

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Coldfoot, Alaska
CDP
Truck stop in Coldfoot
Coldfoot, Alaska Location within the state of Alaska
Coordinates: 67°15′5″N 150°10′34″W / 67.25139°N 150.17611°W / 67.25139; -150.17611
Country	United States
State	Alaska
Census Area	Yukon-Koyukuk
Government
• State senator	Click Bishop (R)
• State rep.	Mike Cronk (R)
Area [1]
• Total	35.84 sq mi (92.83 km2)
• Land	35.84 sq mi (92.83 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation	1,014 ft (309 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	34
• Density	0.95/sq mi (0.37/km2)
Time zone	UTC-9 (Alaska (AKST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-8 (AKDT)
ZIP code	99726[2]
Area code	907
FIPS code	02-16630
GNIS feature ID	1412829

Coldfoot is a census-designated place (CDP) in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. The population was 34 at the 2020 census. It is said that the name was derived from travelers getting "cold feet" about making the 240-some-mile journey north to Deadhorse.

Coldfoot primarily serves as a truck stop on the Dalton Highway from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay.^{[citation needed]} North of Coldfoot, there are no services for 240 miles (400 km), until Deadhorse. It has a restaurant and a small number of overnight accommodations (converted pipeline construction camp quarters).^{[citation needed]} Bus tours along the highway typically take two days, with passengers spending the night in Coldfoot.^{[citation needed]} The BLM, USFWS, and NPS jointly staff a small visitor center during the summer.^{[citation needed]} The Coldfoot truck stop was founded by Iditarod champion Dick Mackey, who started his operation by selling hamburgers out of a converted school bus.^{[citation needed]} Truckers helped build the existing truck stop and cafe.^{[citation needed]} The Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities (DOT&PF) has a camp (maintenance station) in Coldfoot.^[3]

The town was originally a mining camp named Slate Creek, and around 1900 got its present name when prospectors going up the nearby Middle Fork Koyukuk River would get "cold feet" and turn around.^{[citation needed]} In 1902, Coldfoot had two roadhouses, two stores, seven saloons, and a gambling house.^{[citation needed]} A post office operated from 1902 to 1912, then reopened in 1984.^{[citation needed]}

Coldfoot Airport, on the west side of the Dalton Highway, consists of a 4,000 foot (1,200 m) gravel strip, used for air taxi and general aviation.

Coldfoot has been featured on Ice Road Truckers, a Canadian reality television series airing on the History Channel. The truck stop was first seen during the show's third season.^[4]