Roadtrippin’ 2024: Explore the Chena on Riverboat Discovery

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTUU) - The sound of the Discovery 3 Steamboat horn blasting on the Chena River in Fairbanks has been a symbol of the start of summer in Alaska’s Interior for decades. The steamboat cruises down a 7-mile stretch of the Chena River during its Riverboat Discovery tour, an excursion that dates back to the 1950s.

“My grandparents, Captain Jim and Mary Binkley, they were a two-person team from the beginning. This small idea to bring visitors and guests from outside and share their hometown,” said Wade Binkley, the president of the Riverboat Discovery tour.

Now five generations later, the Binkley family continues giving tours on the river to teach visitors about the Alaskan lifestyle. The tour includes a demonstration of a float plane taking off, seeing the late 4-time Iditarod winner Susan Butcher’s dog kennel, and getting to visit the “Chena Village,” a living museum centered around Athabascan culture.

“I’m very proud to share my culture with everyone,” said Gareth Earhart, an Elder tour guide for the Riverboat Discovery tour.

During the tour, Earhart teaches visitors about traditional fish camps, as well as how Athabascan clothes and shelters were made — something, he says, his family has done for generations.

“It’s important to hear it from generations because it shows that we’re authentic and that we have lived this lifestyle, and that it’s something that we’re passing down. And it’s not going anywhere.”

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