odd but true

OK, I'm going to give you a little lesson of real life WAAAY up north in Alaska. Things are very different here than the Pacific Northwest. For one thing, Fairbanks is the only place on earth that has the largest temperature swings between the seasons. Yep, the record low is minus, did you hear me, MINUS 85 degrees! Then in the summer it can climb into the upper 80's to 90 degrees! Wowsa! That is one heck of a swing! Fairbankians are very proud of how extemely cold it gets. You graduate from your "Cheechako" (rookie) position after you spend one winter here! It is not uncommon to see homes built off the ground, on short stilts of sorts. This is done because the heat from the interior of the home, like the wood stove or oil heat can melt the permafrost, which makes the house sink lower, cracking it in places. There are several businesses that provide services for frozen toilets...yes...that's what I said.

Everyone take a wild guess why several trucks have these large containers in the beds. We'll come back to that later. Another thing we have been told is that there are no HOA's in Fairbanks. If there were, Fairbankians wouldn't follow them anyway. So it's rugged life, build what you can to stay warm. No rules....

This particular abode was made by a couple that wanted to live, literally on the river. But it was always taking on water, so they dry docked it and live inside along the water.

Well, this picture speaks for itself.

Unless you are parked inside, all vehicles need to be plugged into these outlets during winter months. Batteries drain lickety-split so cars are equipped with block warmers and other mechanical garb I don't know about. I can attest to the battery draining. I experienced a chill room at -40 degrees and my camera and phone went dead immediatly! So, these outlets are everywhere! 

This is kind of cool. I don't know if you can tell or not, but that is a long strip of water used by the bush pilots so they can land their float planes. It is right beside the regular landing strip at the airport!

OK folks, here's the answer. The water in the area is loaded with arsnic, so if you don't live in or near the city (where it is treated) then you must drive to these water fill up stations and bring it home for your personal consumption!  As you can see, it is really a different style of living. I think we will remain Cheechakos!

Riverboat

Come on everyone! Let's board the Sternwheeler Riverboat Discovery for one of the most unique Alaskan experiences around! Get in line and have your tickets ready!

As we enjoyed our travel a bush pilot paraded his float plane, taking off and landing beside us!

Small homes along the Chena river, I could hang my parka in either one of them.

This is the home of (late) Susan Butcher and her husband David Monson. Born and raised in the lower 48, she dreamed of competing the Iditarod. It was always a mans sport and she was frowned upon by her competion, until alas, she won the 1,100 mile race from Anchorage to Nome not once, but four times!

With a microphone attached, David Monson came to the rivers edge and spoke about the Trail Breaker Kennels, his love of mushing and his dogs. I know this looks like a crude enviroment for all us dog lovers but I've quickly learned that sled dogs are some of the worlds best cared for athletes. They receive the best food and medical attention, and they get to do what they love best-RUN! Mushers treat their sled dogs like part of the family, the bond between them enormous. While a musher receives much of the glory for winning a race, it would not be possible without the trust and cooperation between dog and musher. Each depends on the other for success...and survival!

With the 800 pound ATV in neutral, and the dogs anxious to run, they pull him out the gate and around the lake in the background!

Around the lake and back, now it's time for the dogs to enjoy....

SWIM TIME! These dogs truly look happy and loved. Time to carry on...

As far downsrteam that we travel is the confluence of the Chena and the Tanana Rivers. The Tanana carries glacial silt and rock and cannot blend with the fresh clear water of the Chena.

We are arriving at an Athabascan Indian Village. In the foreground is a fish catching apparatus when on a "good" day can catch up to 500 fish that will be fileted and hung to dry outside in the sun for 30 minutes. This removes any oils remaining in the fish. Then the fish is moved to the smokehouse for 3 weeks, where it will continue drying. The fish we see here is chum, they run 2 times a year and are not used for human consumption. These are being dried to feed to the many dogs on the property and surrounding kennels.  

Time to disembark and check out the village!

For those of you that know Nancy well, being the cook in the family, and loving to smoke food, she had to make this her first stop! Notice the 2 story smokehouse in the background. We spoke to a village 4th generation Athabascan young man and he told us that his grandfather has a smokehouse that is 4 strories tall!

Garb, each piece has a significance in their culture

I finally found a cabin where I could kick back and relax. Rustic yet cozy....and mabe a bit dusty

Uhhhh, do you thinnk I ought to get off my arse and help out with a few chores?

This is what I look like in the wild!

Time to reboard and head back to the real world. We hope you had a great time!

One of the many souviners that could be purchased was a book wrtten by Susan Butcher, called Granite. Though it primarily is a childrens book the story touches adults too. In a synopsis she raised a dog that she named Granite. It was a runt, no good for nothing, worthless dog, that people said was definitely not worthy of being a sled dog. It had crooked legs and was too shy to learn from the elders of the pack. Susan loved this dog and through her love and compassion found a way to teach Granite how to overcome the great odds, to grow into a leader that eventually lead Susan to 3 of her 4 time Iditarod championships! Here the book is being signed by her husband.

Returning to the parking lot we were astounded how many tours buses were parked! Thank goodness we were not boarding any of them!

Survival of the fittest

Or as in my case...survival of the fattest! Well, geez we've been on the dusty road for quite some time, with NO civilization in sight! I am about as hungry as a bear. Lets check out the only town north of Fairbanks on the Haul Road! It's called the Hotspot Cafe.

So, what do ya think? It has outdoor and indoor dining, the electricity is provided by a huge generator behind the building, no running water that I could see. Oh....I forgot to mention...there is bear scat in the parking lot too!  

Here is the indoor dining, a nice covered area. Seems like a good place to have lunch, look at all the people! Literally there is no other place for mile and miles so this is what ya get!

We ordered up burgers...that was the only item on the menu, and proceeded to check out the facilities. I swear Nancy wants to find another job because she is checking this out! Really? Why not?

Burgers were delicious! The red can on the table is housing a mosquito coil. Each table was burning one! Notice the Haul Road shirts that can be purchased. We are closing in on the famous filming area of "Ice Road Truckers!"

Only in this part of Alaska can you find hand sanitizer, cutter bug repellent and an air horn can to scare away bears all on the same table!

The proprietor told us that 3 weeks ago a young girl and her Mom were stuck inside....

this out house Nancy is about to enter. The little girl was kidding about bears moments earlier when one appeared and they had to ditch themseves inside for safety!

EVIDENCE!!!

Behind me is the lounge and garden.

Lets get this last 60 miles under our belt! Now it is the survival of the FASTEST!!

Abandoned old man camp

WE MADE IT!  We received a certificate for this daring feat!

Look close...there is an "x" on the globe where we are! Rosie as proud of her accomplishment!

OK...so we are high tailling it back. It took us 7 hours to drive just the ONE WAY! No time to stop to feed the dogs, so I bravely crawl over and around all the junk we have packed in the car trying to get to the very rear to the cooler. Yes, that's my rear! The dogs are anxious to have a nibble and Nancy thought it to be quite funny to catch me in this precarious position! Never a dull moment!

Just keep driving, I handle supper

they didn't object to their driving picnic...gobble gobble!

By the time we arrived safely back at camp Nancy had driven about 408 miles in an elapsed time of 11 hours. What a grueling day, but we are proud to say WE SAW AND STEPPED IN THE ARCTIC CIRCLE!

Pipeline pleasure

The Alaska Pipeline is 800 miles long, today we will skirt 204 miles of it. Originating in Prudhoe Bay and exiting in Valdez,slightly more than half of it is above ground and is supprted by 27,000 permafrost resistant braces. It is 48" in diameter, was constructed between 1974 to 1977 and took 8 billion dollars to make.

The pipeline goes underground, as seen here. There are 11 pump stations needed to carry the crude along it's journey. The operation control center is in Valdez.  Notice how nice the road is! Well, for 79 miles of our one way trip of 204 miles!

Let the adventure begin!  This is now the famous Dalton Highway, otherwise known to truckers as the "Haul Road." It can become narrow with little or no shoulders. Trucks always have the right of way so move over, but not too far because the shoulders can be so soft that you can tip over! Also, on some of the sections of the road, the washboard can be so severe your teeth rattle! There is no cell service, internet or wi-fi for the next 415 miles. Limited gas and food. Go prepared!

By the time we had reached this point, we had become accustomed to the conditions.

Or maybe not. We had to wait for the pilot car and had the opportunity to talk to the flagger. She works 3 months a year, makes excellent money and resided in a trailer 5 miles down the road. We couldn't figure out what they were trying to do here. The road was fine until they started tearing it up! 

The pipeline would appear then disappear on the left then on the right. It crosses 3 mountain ranges and more than 500 rivers and streams.

Yes...that's our road. Small sections that were paved were more challenging to drive because of the frost heaves, dips and chip-seals.

144 miles into the highway we crossed the mighty Yukon River wooden decked bridge. The pipeline is very close to the road and cameras where perched upon poles to prevent curious tourists or terrorists!

At the river crossing there was a very small information center that is staffed by a volunteer who provided road conditions to the Arctic Circle. First things first....mosquito repellent!

The view of the information center.

It was a great place to fluff my you-know-what!

Across the street from the visitor center was this fancy place

After buying a gift, it was time to fill. We still have 60 miles to go until we reach the Arctic Circle!