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Published: August 8th 2016
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3 Aug 2016: it rained all day on our short drive to Fairbanks. We stopped at North Pole to look at the building behind the large representation of Santa Claus. It was a store with all manner of decoration, swears hurts and Christmas paraphenalia. I I viewed it as a delay in getting to our destination but I did buy some fudge.
We passed Ft Eielson (an AF bae) and entered Fairbanks, home to Ft Wainright (an Army base). After a little difficulty locating the River's Edge RV Park, we registered and settled in.The park is situated on the banks of the Chena River. It offers three levels of facilities so you may choose the amenities you need/prefer. It is an excellent place to stay while in the city. The best part is we are here for a week. No moving for seven days.
4 Aug 2016: Today we decided to visit The Museum of the North located on the campus of the University of Alaska. It offers a full presentation of the wildlife and of the early (10,000 BC & earlier) settlers. We thoroughly enjoyed learning of their culture, manner of dress and subsisting in this amazing part
of the world. There was a full body mount of a blond colored Grizzly bear donated to the museum. We also found a section featuring diplays of dinosaur fossils and bones-the real bone, not a mold or a fossil. There was one animal found nowhere else in the world. Several videos described how scientistss locate areas to search for fossils and bones of early fauna. Oh, why didn't anybody tell me about Paleontology when I was a kid? Motoring up Alaskan rivers in an inflatable boat. Bear spray in one hand, geologists'(another thing I never knew about) hammer in the other, scraping the sand to find teeny pieces of bone or rock. Sleeping in tents in Alaska. And they call it work.
Outside the museum there was a sexagonal wooden blockhouse constructed by members of the Russian-Alaskan trading company in 1841. There were also strange things cemented in front of each parking spot in the lot. They looked like stubby parking meters but served a different purpose. When the temperature drops below minus 20 degrees, motorists are advised to plug in to these electric outlets to keep their engine blocks/transmissions/radiators warm enough so the car will start when needed.
They're all over town.
Our second stop for the day was at Pioneer Park. At the entrance a woman graciously offered to take our picture in front of the flower garden at the entrance. The City has collected all the early houses and other buildings and centralized them at this park. They have been restored and furnished with pieces corresponding to the time they were used. Included was the railway car President Warren G. Harding rode in when he came to Alaska to drive in the final spike of the Alaskan Railroad track. Also included was the house built by Judge Wickersham, who gave Fairbanks it's name after a U S Senator from Indiana. There is also the ubiquituous sternwheeler, this one named the Nenana, amusement rides, a small train to take# visitors around the park while a narrator describes the attractions. food stalls and many other things. Admission is free. We stayed as long as our knees could hold up and had to leave before we saw everything. Fairbags has over 100 public parks. Summers are short. It's clear to see its residents intend to make the most of them. Alaskan love the outdoors.
5 Aug 2016:
We had a full day today with two major excursions. The first was a Riverboat Discovery tour that took us down the Chena River to it's confluence with the Nenana. The native (Athabascan, I think) name for river is "NA" so it is not unusual to find many of Alaska's rivers end in "na".
Our sternwheeler was equipped with large, clean windows affording us an excellent view. Three decks meant everyone had an excellent perspective from which to view the river. We stayed on the lower deck.
Beautiful homes were situated along both sides of the river. Some were log homes and others were of a more modern design. Most homes had a boat dock, patio and/or a launch pad. Flowers were growing everywhere.
Our first stop was the home of David Monson, successful sled dog trainer and co-author of the book, "Granite". This is a story of Susan Butcher, four-time winner of the Ididerot race and her lead dog, Granite. It is an inspiring story of both individuals overcoming obstacles to achieve success. We thought it was such a great story that we bought copies for our grandsons. I hope they find it inspiring as well.
Next, we went downstream as far as the Ta nana River, where we learned how the river changes daily. Then, it was back upstream for an introduction to native life in the Artic. First came a demonstration on preparation of Salmon for smoking. Then we disembarked to learn close up how hides are prepared for making clothing, saw some examples of fox pelts, a wolf pelt, what a trappers line shack looked like, a discussion of Reindeer vs Caribou and other aspects of native life. These people had to be pretty savvy about the world they lived in, skilled and organized in order to survive. I have a great deal of respect and admiration for their lifestyle. When white men arrived in the area, the native population benefitted from modern tools and methods. It made their life easier.
Finally, we had a demonstration of a water takeoff and landing by an experienced bush pilot. We learned the there are 78,000 licensed pilots in Alaska. Many times, the only available means of transportation is by plane, boat or dog sled.
After lunch, we drove out to Fox, AK for a tour of gold mining Dredge No. 8, the
Alaska Pipeline, a gold panning experience, and demonstrations of gold mining methods. I was amazed that after separating most of the sand and rocks from my pan, a simple flick of the pan revealed flakes of gold. You can see how many were attracted to the shiny metal with its promise of riches. There is still gold in Alaska, ready for the taking if you can find it.
This day was very productive in terms of learning about Alaska past and present and the people who forged a living in this wild and frigid environment.
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