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This 160-mile stretch of trail can be quite slow going, partly because much of it runs along a wide portion of the Yukon River. There is not a lot of other winter travel along this part of the river, so the trailbreakers must put in a new trail and pack it down. The conditions of this section of trail will depend greatly on how the freeze up goes – the ice can be very flat and snow-covered, or wind-blown and glare ice; or the ice can be massively jumbled, to the point where trail breakers have to use a chainsaw to cut a path through the roughly heaped chunks of ice. On the way, there are several cabins where mushers have traditionally stopped for rest and shelter – Trout Creek, Biederman's, Slaven's and Dill's Cabin.

On the first section of trail, from Eagle to Trout Creek, there tends to be quite a bit of snow. Beyond the Nation, the trail is more exposed to wind, especially near the Kandik River. Here the ice is often bare and wind scoured. In some places the trail will be drifted in and difficult to navigate, and markers may be blown down. As you can imagine, it is very difficult to set stakes into bare ice. You can chip a hole, pile up snow, or make a cairn out of ice chunks. But all those methods are less than ideal and stakes set like this often flow down.

After Biederman's, the river widens out and straightens, through the Yukon-Charley River National Preserve until about 40 miles out of Circle. The last section of the river is relatively sheltered, as it winds gently through the woods.

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About 25 to 30 miles along the trail, teams will see Katherine Mountain on the north side of the river. In the same area, Kathul Mountain rises up dramatically. Just after that, a larger river, the Kandik River, flows in from the northeast.

Shortly past that, teams will reach the mouth of the Kandick River, where they will find Biederman’s Cabin. The cabin is set back from the river, just past the Charley River that flows in from south.

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For many years, this cabin was the main resting point between Eagle and Circle. But the cabin has not been staffed for several years, so only a few mushers rest here now. Although no longer used as a dog drop, volunteers sometime still go out to the cabin to provide hospitality for Quest teams.

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Slaven's is located in an area where there are a number of cabins, several mining operations and at least three airstrips. While the area may be bustling in the summertime, it is quiet and all but deserted in the winter. Slaven's Cabin is a well-appointed cabin, where Park Rangers host an official dog drop. The rangers provide hot water for the dogs and food for the mushers. Teams that stopped at Trout Creek, will likely stop here for a rest.

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Now the official Dog Drop for this section of trail, the cabin is staffed by Parks personnel who travel out to the remote site by snow machine to provide support for the race. The first year that Parks was involved, it was difficult to rally enough volunteers for this project. But the next year, there was a waitlist, and Parks staff have been eager to help the race ever since. They offer great food and a warm sleeping place for the mushers at a time when they really need it.

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Some years the river trail will be flat and smooth, with clear markings. Other years there have been stretches of glare ice with no markers, and other years the ice has been badly jumbled and rough. With glare ice, the dogs find it difficult to follow a trail and to get any traction. With jumbled ice, they may have difficulty with footing – so wrist and shoulder injuries become a serious risk. All along this stretch of the Yukon, there are many creeks flowing into the river.

A few miles past Slaven’s, teams will pass the old Woodchopper Roadhouse at the mouth of Woodchopper Creek. Beyond that they pass Eureka Creek, flowing in from the North through extensive wetlands. To the south they will see Takhoma Bluff and Thanksgiving Creek.

Also to the south is the Steese Conservation Area, Mount Ernest Patty and Mount Kathryn. Once they pass Thanksgiving Creek, there are hundreds of creeks flowing into the river from both the north and south banks. Much of this area is also a wildlife refuge.

Between Slaven’s and Circle there are a number of cabins, including two that open their doors to the mushers: one forty miles before Circle, the other one just 20 milles before Circle. Since the trail from Slaven’s to Circle is just a bit too long to tackle in one stretch, except in ideal conditions, most teams will stop in one of these two places.

Half-way between Slaven's and Circle, the trail passes a small cabin, Dill's, on the left. There may be some hospitality and hot water here, but not always. As the cabin is just a short distance out of Circle, most mushers go past without stopping unless the weather is poor.

At this point, the river is quite wide and open. After many miles on the open Yukon, the trail winds into town through a relatively sheltered slough. When teams reach Circle, they finally get off the broad expanse of the Yukon River and out of the wind.