The end of our 2009 Alaska adventure

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We have to start by apologizing for not posting the last few weeks. We kept saying we would post on our last three weeks in Alaska, and we didn't get it done before heading down the road. At that point, we were in Canada and never got reliable WIFI to be able to post. We know, just excuses..So here's a catchup post on our last few weeks in Alaska and then we'll post another one later this week about the trip home.

This July was the hottest on record for interior Alaska and very dry. And that results in fires. Great big ones!. The Railbelt Complex of fires in Alaska was the biggest in the country in July - over 600,000 acres. One of the fires was about 30 miles away. While most were caused by lightening, the Rex Creek fire was actually a coal seam fire. These smolder for a long time (even many years) and then break out when conditions are right. Rex Creek grew from 2500 acres to over 25, 000 acres in one day! Fortunately, the fires were not in populated areas, for the most part. One family evacuated to the RV park and siad the fire was within 250 yards of their cabin.


Orange sun on a smoky evening

Warning sign on the Parks Highway

Fire burning across the Nenana River

The week after the Red Green Regatta trip to Fairbanks we took in a great bluegrass festival. Anderson is a little town off the Parks Highway, right near the Nenana River. They have held a bluegrass festival for about 20 years. Friday was quite cool - lots of blankets and jackets in use (in JULY!) It was also pretty windy. Fortunately, most of the time the wind was blowing the smoke away from the festival area. We arrived in time to see the first performer Friday night and stayed till regular performances ended at about 10 or so. They were getting ready to start up the dance band and keep going till 2 am, but Saturday was a work day and we couldn't camp out and stay over.


Dancing in front of the stage - it was a good time!

And in front of the beer stand

We love fairs! This one in Fairbanks was small but enjoyable. We almost didn't come because the smoke has been so bad up this way. Fortunately, the rains started and knocked some of the worst of the fires down a bit. It rained a bit on our fair outing, but not enough to dampen our fun too much.Tom started out by giving blood - he got a t-shirt from the northern most blood bank in the US. This was the first day of the fair, so many of the contests had not yet been judged. Lots of kids were grooming their 4H project animals - sheep, calfs, bunnies, chickens, you name it..
We did get to see the quilt show (Sally took this one in) and we saw the winner of the lego contest. Good music, lots of fun exhibits.

Notice the kimchee for $3 - Korean at the fair in Fairbanks

A "postage stamp" quilt - over 1000 tiny squares...

Lego contest winner - celebrating 50 years of statehood

Getting her sheep ready for showing

Of course we took one last trip into Denali. And were we ever lucky. Tom had been waiting to see a wolf all summer. On this trip we saw two (or maybe one wolf twice). The second time, the wolf walked right across the road behind the bus... We sampled all kinds of berries at Wonder Lake - the blueberries are best. Soapberries taste just like ... soap?

Tom also got to see a lynx - a very rare sighting. Sally was sitting on the other side of the bus and the driver's seat blocked her view until it was too late. But still a very successful summer.

Our last pictures of Denali. Spectacular.

Also spectacular - a close up of a wolf.

The last couple of weeks found Tom playing one last time at Panorama Pizza and one last set at the Bake. Turns out Tom's last night was "Girl's Night Out" at the Bake. That's Jake's sister playing with Andy who hosts open mic night each week. And no, Tom was not a GNO participant. He did sing Sweet Home Alabama in honor of our long trip home!

Girls Night Out at the Bake

Tom's last appearance at Panorama Pizza

We've had a great time in Alaska - and a lot of it was working with some nice folks at Denali RV Park and Motel. CJ and Monie we hope to see in New Orleans this winter. Bob and Carol maybe next spring in Oregon. And Ken - hopefully we'll be back in Healy in a year or two!

Ken and the office crew.

Roman had already gone back to work cleaning.

A final pot luck over at Denali Park Hotel

Pioneer Days and the Red Green River Regatta

Most everyone knows that Tom participates in "Open Mic Nights". One of the showcases up here is held in an education center. Sally participated in her first OMN playing the hammer dulcimer, and did a very good job. We forgot to take pictures while we were playing, but they said another one is coming, so we will photogragh Sally on-stage.

After the OMN at teh Sheldon Center

We also took a trip into Denali National Park. I know you are getting tired of hearing us say it, but it is a grand adventure each time. The Mountain showed for us again and the animal spotting was exciting.

So lucky - another lovely view of Denali

The ptarmigan have fledged and coveys are everywhere!

as are the golden eagles

Fantastic caribou sighting

Sometime in the year 1900, a prospector and a trader chanced to meet at a spot on the Chena River. The spot was as far up the river as a boat could navigate. The prospector saw the smoke from a fire the trader had started and followed the smoke to the trader. They both thought this was a good spot to establish a trading outpost. The spot soon started providing services for the prospectors and trappers in the area. This is now the town center of Fairbanks. Each year during the last weekend of July, the town of Fairbanks hosts a festival called Pioneer Days. Many of the locals participate in storytelling, music and other general mayhem. This year the governor, Sarah Palin, chose to have a picnic and resign from her post and turn over the power to the Lt. Governor Sean Parnell at Pioneer Park during the festival weekend. We avoided that part (there were a lot of people attending and a lot of traffic), but we did enjoy some of the festivities.

We attended a race event at the Mitchell Raceway on Saturday night. The track is a 3/8 mile dirt track. It is quite small, with seating for about 300-400. The main event was for Outlaw cars. They are small Indy looking vehicles with a large spoiler on the top. The spoiler is used to keep the cars from rolling as they turn sideways making the turns in the track. They throw a lot of dust in the air (even with constant watering down of the track). The action is somewhat like Bristol, for the fans that know NASCAR, very little passing, but it is very exciting when someone tries to pass. We got very dirty, but we had a great time.

LIttle outlaw cars on the track - notice the guy in the turn sliding sideways

He's not out of control - that's how they get around the turns

Lots of dirt - Tom collected a little!

The big event for us, though, was the Red Green River Regatta. Red Green is a northern favorite TV show. It was produced out of Canada. It is sort of a variety show with the main characters being rather Rube Goldberg-ish about repairing things or making simple tasks even "simpler". They had a big sponsor out of 3M, so Duct Tape was used as the "Handyman's Secret Weapon". The river regatta required that boats follow the Red Green theme for creativity and heavy use of Duct Tape. Enjoy the pictures of some of these ... eh, water-craft.

Oops - they did make it

This one was so top-heavy it almost didn't launch

Our choice for best depiction of the Red Green theme

Celebrating 50 years of statehood

Red Green does hang out at Possum Lodge

Speaks for itself...

Another one of our favorites- notice they are in a goldpan..

Political commentary - someone else had a sign that read "Not a"

The guy in the back said they boat WAS made of cardboard

Wonder if they made it

Are they all named Patty?

It's a good thing they are headed downstream

Copper is King

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Our travels carry us to many places that started with a single lucky event. Before gold was discovered in places in Alaska, a survey crew saw a mountain with evidence of copper. It turned out one of the most productive discoveries in history. One of the suveyors saw how a shear cliff showed the green of copper oxidization. The surveyor had enough sense to tell the the right people (the Guggenheim family and J. P. Morgan.) They thought enough of the find to build a railroad to the site. In the 1920's they made a 100 million dollar profit (over a billion in today's dollars.) We think they did pretty well for themselves.

Mill (background) and Manager's office in Kennecott

We drove across the Denali Highway to the Richardson Highway (we are trying to drive on all the major highways in Alaska) to go to Glennallen. We chose to stay in a rustic motel in Kenny Lake, one of the stops along the shuttle run to McCarthy. The drive across the Denali let us see a rare sight,a wolverine. It was crossing the road in front of us. There are drivers in the Park with 15 years experience that have never seen a wolverine - boy, are we lucky. We also saw a mink, a fox and a moose. You cannot beat Alaska for wildlife spotting.

Wolverine on the Denali Highway

Another welcome sighting on the Denali Highway - road scraper!

We, of course, want to go to the end of every road in Alaska, but we were also intrigued by a book by an Irish author called the "Road to McCarthy", one of the rail stops on the way to Kennecott Mines. We wanted to have beer in the same spot as the author, but the bar/lodge was closed while we were there. (The bartenders in Alaska have to take tests during the year, so the area was using the bar as the test site.) Good thoughts of the site follow us. Maybe next time.
We chose to take a shuttle to the towns (the roads are rough, you can't drive and watch the scenery.) It is about 60 miles from the paved road in Chitna to the river crossing into McCarthy. The first ten are the roughest, but the views from it are fantastic. It was a cloudy day, but we were able to get some of the scenery in photos.

Copper River - beginning of McCarthy Road

Fishwheels on Chitina River near beginning of the McCarthy Road

Downtown McCarthy

Poor Tom - plans to have a beer in McCarthy are thwarted

Shuttles also take you to Kennecott. The mines were developed slowly while the rail was installed. Shacks soon gave way to elaborate buildings. The mill operated from 1911 to the late 1930's. To read the whole story, go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennecott,_Alaska. The National Park Service took control in 1998 to try to preserve the history of the region.

One of the ruins in Kennecott - most are better preserved

In an interest to drive each of the highways in Alaska, we took the long way home. We drove to Delta Junction (the end of the Alaskan Highway) by way of the Richardson Highway. We stopped in DJ to get some reindeer sausage and bought some elk summer sausage also. Both are quite tasty. We drove on to Fairbanks for lunch, bought a couple of items, then back to home sweet motorhome.

On the drive back from Fairbanks, we saw smoke from some of the many wildfires in Alaska (and the northwest in general.) The largest wildfire in the country is about 60 miles from our RV spot. On days without a southerly wind, the canyons are filled with smoke. Another big fire is just south of McCarthy, across the Chitina River. Interior Alaska can be pretty smoky!

Unless a fire is an immediate danger to buildings and structures, the authorities allow the fire to burn. It is a natural occurrence, so they try to let nature take it's course. Most fires in Alaska are started by lightening. Luckily, we are a couple of rivers away from the closest blazes.

Fire information board in Kennecott

Thanks for following our posts. New reports soon.

Glacier Flight and Chena Hot Springs

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Hello from our summer home 2009. One of the perks of working where we are is the ability to get free or discounted activities. One of the discounted activities we have taken advantage of is a glacier flight. The airplane takes off from Healy Alaska and flies 120 miles one way to the Ruth Glacier on Denali (Mt. McKinley). A private citizen established a homestead on the mountain and was given 5 acres before the area became a wilderness area. The federal government tried to claim the land, but court rulings favored the private citizen, this is why they can land on the glacier. We could see the cabin (and the outhouse) but we were not allowed to get too close. You can stay in it for $100 per person per night. They are booked up through 2010! Now we have something to look forward to in the future. We enjoyed the trip greatly.

Sally on the glacier flight

View from the plane

Tom next to the plane - a 1966 DeHavilland Beaver (turboprop)

The "Mountain House" with Denali in the background

The 2 peaks of Denali

The lifestyle we have chosen also gives us opportunities to visit local areas and see the how the area overcomes it's problems. Most of Alaska is wilderness. In remote areas it is difficult to provide a lot of the amenities that we take for granted in area of high density population. One of the biggest difficulties is utilities, especially electricity. Many "towns" use diesil generators to provide power. Chena Hot Springs is a year round resort. They use the hot springs to creat electricity. It powers the lodges, the greenhouse and the ice museum. The price per kilowatt hour is still a little high, but they are getting better at reducing the cost. They use the greenhouse to grow, year round, vegetables for salads using growlights. The ice museum is cooled in the summer with this power, keeping the rooms inside at 20 degrees F, even with the temp outside above 90. We stayed the night in a Yurt, a round tent like structure. The cots were a little narrow, so we moved our bedding from the truck to floor. It was almost roughing it. We enjoyed the hot spring pool. All in all it was a good two weeks.

An actual size turbine used to power Chena Hot Springs Resort

Heading into the Ice Museum

Tom waiting for Chere to serve up his appletini

(ONLY alcoholic beverages served here - at 20 degrees everything else freezes)

The Outhouse bedroom - for $600 you can spend a night here

It's really cold - even with the caribou skin blankets

Tom holding the ice martini glass.

It was in the 70's outside - didn't last very long

BTW, Tom did wear a parka inside, but he didn't zip it up.

Thanks for reading our little blubs. More of Alaska is on it's way.