13 strange facts about the town of Hyder Alaska
Updated Apr 2022
1. A town in Alaska that can be reached by road only from Canada
Although Hyder is in Alaska, the only road access is from Canada. Therefore, there is no access to any other place in Alaska except by air.
2. No need for a passport
There is no customs checkpoint and no need for a passport. This must be the only place to enter the United States without identification. The reason being is that once you are in Hyder, Alaska, there is no place else to go except back to Canada. (You will need a passport or Canadian ID to get back into Canada).
3. You need a passport for travel within Alaska
You don’t need a passport to get into Hyder, but if you try to leave Hyder by air, you will need a passport to travel to another city or town in Alaska. Another anomaly. As a result, it must be the only place in the United States where you need a passport to travel between locations.
4. Friendly Ghosts
Hyder describes itself as a friendly Ghost Town in Alaska. Although there are many abandoned buildings, there are also real people who live there.
5. Population includes bears as well as ghosts
Don’t be surprised if you see a bear in town. I saw three of them within town limits when I was there. This bear was seen sleeping at the edge of town. At last count, the population was 87, not counting bears or ghosts.
6. Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police patrol the town from nearby Steward, British Columbia. So, if you call the police, a Canadian “Mountie” will respond. It must be the only place in the United States where the local police are from another country.
7. Get Hyderized
If you drink a shot of 151 proof Everclear in a local bar, you will get a certificate to prove that you have been Hyderized.
8. Area code 250
Hyder is the only town in Alaska that does not use the 907 Alaska area code. Instead, they use area code 250, which is British Columbia.
9. International Holiday
With American Independence Day on July 4th and Canada Day on July 1st, the towns of Hyder, Alaska and Stewart, British Columbia host International Days from July 1st to July 4th every year. Consequently, both towns join in the planning and provide many fun-filled activities throughout the joint celebrations.
10. The preferred Currency
The preferred currency in Hyder, Alaska is the Canadian dollar, except at the Post Office, which is a federal corporation and can accept only U.S. dollars. As there is no bank in Hyder, residents do their banking in Canada.
11. Canadian Schools
Since there are no schools in Hyder, the children attend school in Canada.
12. Canadian Electricity
Residents in Hyder get their electricity from the British Columbia Hydro company. So, although residents live in Alaska, they pay the bill for their electricity usage in Canada.
The last photo is of an old abandoned Russian Orthodox church.
13. Closer to Washington State than Anchorage Alaska
Hyder is located at the southern end of the Alaska panhandle. For this reason, many people go there to say, “I have been to Alaska”, without having to travel very far from southern Canada or the lower 48 states. Hyder Alaska is closer to Washington state than it is to the city of Anchorage. While Juneau is closer; it is accessible only by boat or air.
I visited Hyder in 1999 and I met a girl and her mum in the bar who I talked to for ages. I always remember the girl asking me to dance, but as I have absolutely no dancing skills at all, I felt I would let her down if I danced with her. I always regretted it as I thought she was an amazing girl and I would love to have gotten to know her more.
Beyond that, Hyder itself is an amazing place. As someone who (at the time) lived in Leeds in the UK, the closest I got to being somewhere remote with wildlife was a visit to the Yorkshire Dales where I might get lucky and see a badger. Hyder on the other hand was my first experience at seeing bears and It is something I will never forget!
I wish I could have stayed there longer as even though it is a small place in comparison to the cities I have lived in, it more than made up for it in its character, its people and the sheer awesomeness of its location and wildlife.
Thank you Neil. Yes, Hyder is an unusual and interesting place. You find places like this when you travel off the beaten path instead of the usual tourist locations.
Hi, I saw a ghost while traveling to this place from north BC back in 1989 . I will write in detail about this amazing story in my life I will never forget .
Steve Ramsey, Calgary Canada
I visited Hyder in 1989 (my home country is Australia). I think it was the hotel where the walls were papered with real banknotes. The story was that a miner would deposit a banknote on the wallo of the hotel when he headed off to stake his fortune. However, if he did not strike it rich, when he returned through Hyder, he always could claim a drink, using his signed banknote. Love the idea, and the friendly people.
Hi Rob, Thanks for the email. There are many strange stories about Hyder. It is a very interesting place.
Yes, I did the same in september 1980.
This was Glacier Inn “first chance/last chance” for drinking alcohol on the border.
I came from Austria to visit a cousin working in Granduc Mine.
This year I would like to come back.
I Dearly loved Hyder and miss terribly!! I wonder if the old Sea Alaska Bar is still there? My time working at Granduc was enhanced by Hyder, AK.