Puppies and Potholes and Planes

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Today was a very long day. We started early for a shortish drive to Sirius Sled Dogs. We miss our puppies terribly, so Jeff thought it would be a good idea to visit. We started by meeting some of the dogs and learning how to harness them into the line. They were v e r y excited, as were the boys. We hopped on the sled (a stripped down VW Beetle) and took a short ride, before letting the dogs rest for the ride back. Jeff was impressed by how fast they went. I just thought it was a lot of fun. The best part, though, was playing with the dogs afterward. The boys adored Basin, the 8 week old puppy. I could have pet Ember forever, and pulled off clumps of her winter coat. Jeff liked Clyde, an older darker Husky who looked very wolf-like. It was a blast, and a great way to start the day.

The majority of our day was spent driving the first half of the Dalton Highway (aka the Haul Road). We've heard all kinds of stories about this road, about how often vehicles break down, tires blow, how semis don't like being slowed down. There were many sections that were bumpy, but there was hardly any traffic. We were pleasantly surprised. We also didn't break down or blow any tires. The biggest issue was potty breaks, which is really only a big deal for me. We stopped for lunch at Hot Spot, and then ate supper in Coldfoot at the Truckers' Cafe.

Our final adventure of the evening was a flight from Coldfoot with Steve in his 10-seater over Gates of the Arctic National Park to Anaktuvuk Pass, a town of 400 people cut off from anywhere else except by hiking or plane. One of our life goals is to visit all the national parks, and we can't exactly drive into many of them in Alaska. We could have hiked for a couple days, but we never would have seen the views. Liam loved it; Cole was petrified. Once on the ground, Daryl showed us around the town, where we visited the school and the ranger station, and learned that AT&T customers have cell coverage there.

We spent the night at Arctic Getaway in Wiseman, a quaint log cabin. After a long day, we slept well.

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Photos

Frightened Flyer
He spent the entire flight with his eyes closed and his hands on the seat like this, and this was on the calm flight there. The flight back was much more turbulent.

Porcupine
Neither Jeff nor I remember seeing a porcupine in the wild before.

Hiding Hare
We saw a few Arctic hares on our way from Coldfoot to Wiseman after our flight.