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Published: September 20th 2009
Parks Road North to Fairbanks
Heavy smoke made it hard to see as we followed this fire truckWe did not have high expectations before our visit. Heavy smoke from area wildfires caused poor visibility and our eyes, noses, and throats felt it. Later that day, the road was closed. We considered cutting our visit short and getting the heck out of there.
However, we stuck it out for a few days and were glad we did. Rain came a day later and helped the firefighters. The air cleared somewhat and we were able to do a little sightseeing.
Our first stop was the Museum of the North, which came highly recommended and did not disappoint. We spent an afternoon enjoying the exhibits and watching two well-done movies—one about extreme winter in the north and one about the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights. Unfortunately, the Lights are best in mid-winter, so we didn’t get to see them firsthand.
We did get out to the Ice Museum at Chena Hot Springs, which was fun. A building, the interior made of ice, was filled with ice sculptures, including two life-sized medieval knights jousting on horseback. Several “hotel” rooms were available, with ice-carved beds and even a toilet made of ice (the seat was covered in caribou fur). The
Museum of the North
Interesting architecture evokes the Eskimo Igloo bartender poured appletinis at an ice bar into an ice cocktail glass, one of which is still in our freezer.
We spent a day at the Alaska State Fair, went out to the Pipeline Visitors Center, and visited North Pole, Alaska, just to say we did. We did not get up to the Brooks Range or the Arctic Circle, but will keep that in mind for another visit to this great state.
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