Waking up in the Caribou Inn was much more luxurious than at Coldfoot. We both slept well and had nice showers (since when is that a notable event?). We went to the cafeteria for breakfast and ended up eating with an Australian couple we had met in Coldfoot. I should explain that there were two Princess buses making this trip. The first (or "A" bus) was part of an independent tour with about 55 Australians aboard. Ours was the "B" bus and kept some distance behind the "A" bus so as to not overload the various stopping points along the way. Both buses did stop at the Coldfoot Inn and we all had dinner in the restaurant there. Mary and I ended up sitting with some Australians at one of the tables and enjoyed a pleasant conversation during our meal. The next morning, we sat at breakfast with one of the couples we had met the night before, and that was the couple we ran into again at Deadhorse. By the end of the day, we had exchanged address and contact information just in case we were ever in each others neck of the planet.
The schedule for today was that we would attend a lecture and video presentation, then head out to the oil field and the Arctic Ocean. The presentation was put on by a security officer for the oil field and presented the oil companies' side of the whole drilling in the Arctic issue. Following the presentation, we boarded a bus operated by the oil field security people. The driver was also our guide for the day, although Greg rode along and provided some additional information along the way. One concern we were told about was that due to the foggy conditions, we might not be able to get off the bus at the ocean. When I asked why the fog would keep us on the bus (were they afraid we might get lost?), we were told that if it was too foggy, they might not be able to see any Polar Bears that happened to be in the area. Protection of the Polar Bear is a very high priority on the field not to mention the need to keep distance between the bears and people. The bears would consider people to be just another food source that required very little effort to catch. Pictures of our day are here.
We headed out on the bus at about 9:00 with the temperature around 35 degrees but very windy. We drove into the oil field through a security gate and headed along the main road. We got a close up look at the various buildings, equipment and well heads. Drilling operations only take place during the winter when the tundra is frozen solid enough to drive on. We saw several vehicles that are used to drive on the tundra with their special tires that tread very softly on the surface. A number of buildings on sled runners were also around. Those would be towed to a well site during drilling operations. The well heads were only notable by the "Christmas Tree" valve structures that were mostly inside small sheds. Since the oil under ground is under very high pressure, there are no pumps to bring it to the surface. As we drove by one open area, we saw a small herd of Musk Ox.
At about 9:30, we arrived at the Arctic Ocean. There was very little fog and we were allowed to get off the bus with the only request being that we not attempt to walk on any of the remaining ice on the water. The ice was clearly breaking up and did not cover the ocean solidly. I marked the spot on my GPS unit and we walked out a breakwater to where we could get to some open water. The wind was very strong, so the wind chill was probably in the teens. Mary and I both dabbled our hands in the water. The water was not particularly cold (well, it was probably not much above freezing) when compared to how the air temperature felt. It was very neat to stand next to the Arctic Ocean and to look north and realize the North Pole was only about 1200 miles away (not much distance in Alaska). We were standing at approximately 70 degrees north latitude and it was further north than most people would ever imagine being. After getting back on the bus, we headed back to the inn. We did see the wheels that are used to move a drill rig from place to place. The tires appeared to be about 15 feet in diameter.
Back at the hotel, Alaska Air had arrived to pick up our bags. Rather than have everybody take their bags into the (small) Deadhorse airport and check them in there, the airline comes to the hotel with what amounts to a front end loader with a baggage container on it. We checked our bags, checked in for the flight, got bag tags and boarding passes in a garage next to the hotel. TSA folks were also there to do their random checked bag searches and to verify each passenger. Following that, we were pretty much free to watch videos in the lounge, eat lunch and just kick back.
After lunch Greg took the bus over to the Prudhoe Bay General Store and Post Office. The general store is like a large convenience mart (7-11 etc.) that caters to both tourists (lots of T-shirts) and oil field workers. We did manage to pick up a couple items there to commemorate our adventure in the Arctic.
At about 3:00 we boarded our Princess bus for one last time to go to the airport less than a mile from the hotel. The boarding process was slow since there was only one gate and one security scanner. In my case, I didn't help matters by forgetting that I had some change in my pants pocket. Being positive that my pockets were empty, I kept setting off the metal detector and had to go through the "special" screening process. I was a bit embarassed when, after about 10 minutes of pulling everything out of all my pockets except the one I was sure was empty, I finally fished back into that one and found several coins that I had gotten in change for a purchase I made in the commisary at the hotel.
Our flight took off and once we got a ways south, the sky was very clear. As we got near Denali, the pilot informed us that since it was such a clear day we would be able to see the mountain on the left side of the aircraft. In fact, he said he was going to drop down to about 3000 feet above the peak so we would be able to get a good look at it. I moved to an unoccupied window seat on the left side where I could get a good view. We ended up flying a complete loop around the mountain while the pilot pointed out various features like a tour bus driver. It was a fantastic view and I got lots of pictures.
We arrived back in Anchorage late in the afternoon and were bused to the Captain Cook hotel where we had spent our first night a week before. We went out for a walk about the downtown area since it was a beautiful day and the sun was bright. We had dinner at the Snow Goose Restaurant and Brewery where I had the caribou burger. After dinner we continued walking around and enjoying the various sites. Eventually, we realized it was quite late (around 10:00 pm but still bright and sunny) and we needed to get back to the hotel so we could get some sleep. We wanted to go out for breakfast in the morning before boarding our bus for Whittier.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
29 May 2008 -- Coldfoot to Deadhorse / Prudhoe Bay
Our wake up call at Coldfoot came at 6:30 AM when our bus driver (Greg) walked through the hall ways knocking on room doors. Then came the shower adventure. Since the motel is completely self sufficient, they pump their own water (there is no such thing as "city" water in most of Alaska). With two bus loads of people, the water supply was severely taxed. Mary got here shower first with the water flow decreasing the whole time. I followed and by the time I was ready to rinse off, the flow was, literally, down to a trickle. By the time I was finished, the water was merely dripping out of the shower.
After a very good buffet breakfast at the restaurant, we were off again at 8:30. Now we were heading into the Brookes Range proper. Remember, Coldfoot is in the Brookes Range foot hills. From here to Deadhorse, there would be no more services. We started to see some more wildlife. One moose crossed the road well ahead of us and ambled off into the brush. It would prove to be the only moose we saw on the road to Prudhoe Bay. We saw several porcupines along the road. Our driver also pointed out soliflections or slow moving land slides where the sides of hills slowly slide downward taking out vegetation along the way, but having new growth on their surface. We also saw small pingos that stand out because they have some larger trees on them. Pingos are small hills that are created by the thawing and melting of the underlying permafrost (somewhat like ice frozen in a closed container that forms a hump). Some of the "small hills" can actually get quite large as we would see later.
As we drove along the Dietrich River valley, we saw lots of fantastic scenery. The ice on the river was breaking up, but was still quite thick. Greg told us the ice could get up to 13 feet in the winter time. We saw a small herd of caribou and a red fox in this stretch. Along in here we made a photo stop for Supakpak Mountain. The place we stopped was picture perfect, and I took what I think are my favorite pictures of the entire trip there. The mountain has a very sharp peak, and there is a small lake in the foreground. The weather was very good during this whole stretch.
We stopped at an area called the Chandler Shelf for photo ops and potty breaks. Chandler Shelf is just a fantastic scenic area and the weather was beautiful. It seemed like you could see forever. The view there is out over a vast valley with mountains all around. As we continued on up toward the Atigun Pass, we saw a small group of Dall Sheep near the road.
When we got to the Atigun Pass we stopped again for photo ops. Atigun Pass on the Dalton Highway is the highest mountain pass in North America at 4643 feet. The road up to the pass is very steep in both directions and snow avalanches are a big problem in the winter. We saw several places along the road where mounts for artillery guns have been permanently placed where avalanches are prevalent. They also use truck-mounted guns (105 mm howitzers) for areas where avalanches are less common. The pass was still fairly well snow-covered although the temperature was not to bad (probably low 40s). The sky was very blue and the air extremely clear. We walked around a bit in the snow and tried to avoid stepping in holes that were covered by drifts.
As we headed down the north side of the pass, we stopped once more for pictures looking out over still another beautiful valley. From this vantage point we could also see the highway way below us and see a lone south-bound truck making the long climb up to the pass. We could also see another truck north-bound down out of the pass. It was really kind of interesting to watch these two trucks meet each other on the gravel road not far from where we were standing.
About half an hour later we saw our first musk ox. This was a solitary bull some distance from the road. It is amazing that the driver could see something like that while still keeping the bus on the road! He assured us that we would likely see more before we got to Deadhorse. He actually was getting sighting information from south-bound truckers we met along the way. It seemed like every time one vehicle meets another on the highway, there is a quick conversation on the CB radio. It's no wonder since there is so little traffic and there is no other way to talk to anyone with the exception of satellite telephones.
We made a brief stop at the Atigun River crossing which is the closest point to ANWR. At this point, you could look east and see the ANWR and look west and see the Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. The Dalton Highway runs on a corrider administered by the Beureu of Land Management through this area. The Atigun River crossing area is a favored jumping off (or drop off) spot for folks hiking into the ANWR.
A little further on, we came to a view of frozen Gailbraith Lake with mountains in the background. Greg knew all the best places to stop for photo ops. We had a boxed lunch on board the bus at about 1:00. There really was no place to sit outside of the bus so eating on the bus was probably the best option. Generally, the temperatures were not too cold (low to mid 40s), but I think Greg was more concerned about having to watch for bears than anything else. We did get out and walk about on the tundra while Greg pointed out various features.
As we continued on our way, we encountered a little light snow that got fairly heavy around mile 300. There was clearly some heavy snow falling to the east in the ANWR and along the Sagavanirktok River. We stopped at Happy Valley for a brief walk about and the opportunity to look for fossils and musk ox fur. We found neither.
On the road again at about 4:00 pm we did see a fairly nice sized (~14) herd of Musk Ox. A couple of bulls did get into some head butting. Apparently, it is fairly common even in the herds for individuals to get irritated and get into tussels with who ever is near by. This area was fairly flat and you could look out over the Arctic Coastal Plain and see a very long way. As we drove along, a Ptarmagin flew along side the bus for a short distance. This was the first one we had seen in its winter white plumage. It was also about the best look we got at one since it matched the bus speed and stayed close for some time. We also saw a golden eagle that was sitting on the road side. As we approached, it took off and flew a couple of loops around the bus before going on its way. We saw a couple of fairly large pingos well off in the distance. We also saw our first Tundra Swans.
Finally, at about 6:00 pm we arrived in Deadhorse. We stopped for some quick pictures of the start / end of the highway signs for south-bound traffic and then headed over to the Arctic Carribou Inn to get checked in. One of the first things we noticed about this place was that the hallways were as wide as our rooms had been at Cold Foot! The room was almost luxurious after our previous nights accomadations. Like the inn at Cold Foot, this one is also made up of mobile units (think mobile homes or classrooms). However, in this case, they are stacked to create a second floor and there were many more of them. The units sit up on pilings to keep them off the permafrost. They had a very nice cafeteria there with a large variety of food. Good food is one of the requirements / benefits that the oil field crews have for working up there. The crews generally work for two weeks straight, then are off for two weeks. The inn operates primarily to support the crews. They even had a fitness facility in this one. Not quite the Hampton Inn, but really pretty decent.
After a very good dinner (and too much food) we attended a lecture given by an Inupiaq Eskimo who works at the inn as the pastry chef. The inn is actually owned by the Inupiaq corporation (NANA) and benefits there tribe with its income. Mostly the young man told of his village, his hunting expeditions and general life during his off weeks when he is back home. He also sang a song in both English and Inupiaq.
I was determined to get a picture of the "midnight sun" while we were there. However, it was quite cloudy and the sun tended to appear and disappear behind the clouds. The best I did was at about 10:00 pm when I went out with my camera. The sun was barely visible behind the clouds. Unfortunately, I stopped to chat with the aforementioned baker who was taking a smoke break. When I then tried to get a picture, the sun was nothing more than a bright spot behind the clouds fairly high in the sky and to the north. I tried again at about 11:00 pm, but the clouds were even thicker then. At that point I said the heck with it and gave up any thought of going out at midnight or 1:00 am. You'll have to take my word for it: The sun did not set that far north. Unfortunately, our room had venetian blinds on the windows and they did not block out the light all that well. However, we had already found that sleeping while it is light outside is not difficult when you are as tired as we generally were at the end of the day.
After a very good buffet breakfast at the restaurant, we were off again at 8:30. Now we were heading into the Brookes Range proper. Remember, Coldfoot is in the Brookes Range foot hills. From here to Deadhorse, there would be no more services. We started to see some more wildlife. One moose crossed the road well ahead of us and ambled off into the brush. It would prove to be the only moose we saw on the road to Prudhoe Bay. We saw several porcupines along the road. Our driver also pointed out soliflections or slow moving land slides where the sides of hills slowly slide downward taking out vegetation along the way, but having new growth on their surface. We also saw small pingos that stand out because they have some larger trees on them. Pingos are small hills that are created by the thawing and melting of the underlying permafrost (somewhat like ice frozen in a closed container that forms a hump). Some of the "small hills" can actually get quite large as we would see later.
As we drove along the Dietrich River valley, we saw lots of fantastic scenery. The ice on the river was breaking up, but was still quite thick. Greg told us the ice could get up to 13 feet in the winter time. We saw a small herd of caribou and a red fox in this stretch. Along in here we made a photo stop for Supakpak Mountain. The place we stopped was picture perfect, and I took what I think are my favorite pictures of the entire trip there. The mountain has a very sharp peak, and there is a small lake in the foreground. The weather was very good during this whole stretch.
We stopped at an area called the Chandler Shelf for photo ops and potty breaks. Chandler Shelf is just a fantastic scenic area and the weather was beautiful. It seemed like you could see forever. The view there is out over a vast valley with mountains all around. As we continued on up toward the Atigun Pass, we saw a small group of Dall Sheep near the road.
When we got to the Atigun Pass we stopped again for photo ops. Atigun Pass on the Dalton Highway is the highest mountain pass in North America at 4643 feet. The road up to the pass is very steep in both directions and snow avalanches are a big problem in the winter. We saw several places along the road where mounts for artillery guns have been permanently placed where avalanches are prevalent. They also use truck-mounted guns (105 mm howitzers) for areas where avalanches are less common. The pass was still fairly well snow-covered although the temperature was not to bad (probably low 40s). The sky was very blue and the air extremely clear. We walked around a bit in the snow and tried to avoid stepping in holes that were covered by drifts.
As we headed down the north side of the pass, we stopped once more for pictures looking out over still another beautiful valley. From this vantage point we could also see the highway way below us and see a lone south-bound truck making the long climb up to the pass. We could also see another truck north-bound down out of the pass. It was really kind of interesting to watch these two trucks meet each other on the gravel road not far from where we were standing.
About half an hour later we saw our first musk ox. This was a solitary bull some distance from the road. It is amazing that the driver could see something like that while still keeping the bus on the road! He assured us that we would likely see more before we got to Deadhorse. He actually was getting sighting information from south-bound truckers we met along the way. It seemed like every time one vehicle meets another on the highway, there is a quick conversation on the CB radio. It's no wonder since there is so little traffic and there is no other way to talk to anyone with the exception of satellite telephones.
We made a brief stop at the Atigun River crossing which is the closest point to ANWR. At this point, you could look east and see the ANWR and look west and see the Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. The Dalton Highway runs on a corrider administered by the Beureu of Land Management through this area. The Atigun River crossing area is a favored jumping off (or drop off) spot for folks hiking into the ANWR.
A little further on, we came to a view of frozen Gailbraith Lake with mountains in the background. Greg knew all the best places to stop for photo ops. We had a boxed lunch on board the bus at about 1:00. There really was no place to sit outside of the bus so eating on the bus was probably the best option. Generally, the temperatures were not too cold (low to mid 40s), but I think Greg was more concerned about having to watch for bears than anything else. We did get out and walk about on the tundra while Greg pointed out various features.
As we continued on our way, we encountered a little light snow that got fairly heavy around mile 300. There was clearly some heavy snow falling to the east in the ANWR and along the Sagavanirktok River. We stopped at Happy Valley for a brief walk about and the opportunity to look for fossils and musk ox fur. We found neither.
On the road again at about 4:00 pm we did see a fairly nice sized (~14) herd of Musk Ox. A couple of bulls did get into some head butting. Apparently, it is fairly common even in the herds for individuals to get irritated and get into tussels with who ever is near by. This area was fairly flat and you could look out over the Arctic Coastal Plain and see a very long way. As we drove along, a Ptarmagin flew along side the bus for a short distance. This was the first one we had seen in its winter white plumage. It was also about the best look we got at one since it matched the bus speed and stayed close for some time. We also saw a golden eagle that was sitting on the road side. As we approached, it took off and flew a couple of loops around the bus before going on its way. We saw a couple of fairly large pingos well off in the distance. We also saw our first Tundra Swans.
Finally, at about 6:00 pm we arrived in Deadhorse. We stopped for some quick pictures of the start / end of the highway signs for south-bound traffic and then headed over to the Arctic Carribou Inn to get checked in. One of the first things we noticed about this place was that the hallways were as wide as our rooms had been at Cold Foot! The room was almost luxurious after our previous nights accomadations. Like the inn at Cold Foot, this one is also made up of mobile units (think mobile homes or classrooms). However, in this case, they are stacked to create a second floor and there were many more of them. The units sit up on pilings to keep them off the permafrost. They had a very nice cafeteria there with a large variety of food. Good food is one of the requirements / benefits that the oil field crews have for working up there. The crews generally work for two weeks straight, then are off for two weeks. The inn operates primarily to support the crews. They even had a fitness facility in this one. Not quite the Hampton Inn, but really pretty decent.
After a very good dinner (and too much food) we attended a lecture given by an Inupiaq Eskimo who works at the inn as the pastry chef. The inn is actually owned by the Inupiaq corporation (NANA) and benefits there tribe with its income. Mostly the young man told of his village, his hunting expeditions and general life during his off weeks when he is back home. He also sang a song in both English and Inupiaq.
I was determined to get a picture of the "midnight sun" while we were there. However, it was quite cloudy and the sun tended to appear and disappear behind the clouds. The best I did was at about 10:00 pm when I went out with my camera. The sun was barely visible behind the clouds. Unfortunately, I stopped to chat with the aforementioned baker who was taking a smoke break. When I then tried to get a picture, the sun was nothing more than a bright spot behind the clouds fairly high in the sky and to the north. I tried again at about 11:00 pm, but the clouds were even thicker then. At that point I said the heck with it and gave up any thought of going out at midnight or 1:00 am. You'll have to take my word for it: The sun did not set that far north. Unfortunately, our room had venetian blinds on the windows and they did not block out the light all that well. However, we had already found that sleeping while it is light outside is not difficult when you are as tired as we generally were at the end of the day.
Friday, July 4, 2008
28 May 2008 -- Fairbanks to Coldfoot
We set off fairly early this morning. After some time waiting in the cold (30s) our bus came around. There were 22 of us "tourists", our driver / guide (Greg) and a trainee driver (Mike). The trainee wasn't learning to drive, he was learning about the route. We had little idea what was in store, but it appeared that all 22 were ready to go since we could have waited inside the hotel. Almost as soon as we got under way, the driver had us singing a rousing rendition of "Off We Go Like a Herd of Turtles". It was a good way to break the ice (so to speak) and get everyone in a good mood. We drove through Fairbanks and saw a lot of the affects of permafrost on buildings roads and bike paths. This was our first introduction to the need to deal with permafrost in the northern areas of Alaska. Just outside of Fairbanks we stopped at a visitor's center for the pipeline. This was our first close up look at the pipeline. Greg gave us some background and facts and we took a lot of pictures. One of the interesting facts about the pipeline is that the oil in it is under considerable pressure and is fairly hot. It comes out of the ground at about 180° and travels through the pipeline at about 120°. Where there are concerns about the permafrost, the pipeline is raised above the ground and the supports sport heat exchangers to prevent the heat from the pipeline from melting the permafrost. Of course the pipeline is also insulated, so when we touched it, it was not really hot. If you take a look at my Picasa pictures, be sure to take note of the warning label on the pipeline. One of the indications of a problem with the pipeline is the presence of fire. Duh!
From there we continued on north away from Fairbanks on Alaska Highway 2 (Elliot Highway). As we went along, we saw less signs of population and the traffic decreased significantly. Mostly what we were seeing along the way now were road houses and a few rustic looking houses.
Our first rest stop (mid-morning) of the day was at the Wildwood General Store. The store is a combination snack shop, gift shop, rest stop (with old fashioned out houses) and glimpse of true Alaskan living. The proprietor and his wife raised 23 kids -- mostly adopted native Alaskans. The story is that the state requires at 10 children of school age in order to provide a school building and teacher. When they started, there were only two families in the area and they had only about 6 kids between them. So this guy adopted enough to meet the state requirement. As his kids graduated from high school, more were adopted. I enjoyed a very interesting chat with the man. As you can imagine, they have a very close family unit.
Shortly after our rest stop, we were on the Dalton Highway (AK 11). The Dalton Highway (also known as the "Haul Road") was built to provide an overland route to supply the North Slope oil fields (Prudhoe Bay). The road is primarily gravel surfaced, but is built on a very thick layer of stone and even Styrofoam to protect the permafrost. If the permafrost were exposed by the road's surface, it would melt in the warm months (month?) and the road would be impassible due to the mud. Once we were on the Dalton Hwy. we were clearly heading into the land less traveled. Traffic was rare and the only structures we saw were generally road houses / truck stops. This section of the highway from Fairbanks to Coldfoot passes through boreal forest. Mostly boreal forest comprises tall trees (aspens, pines, spruces, birch) . The scenery was mostly hilly and wooded, and we did not see much in the way of wildlife except what might be close by on the shoulder.
As we traveled on up the road, we passed through areas where gold was mined during the gold rush days. Most of the mining was done by strip mining and the landscape was greatly affected by the process to the extent that some of the existing ridges are all that remains of what were once vast valleys. Some gold mining still goes on, and we passed one "mom and pop" operaton with lots of old equipment that looked like it was barely operable that was used to scoop material out of a river bottom.
As we continued north, the trees tended to get smaller as the permafrost got closer to the surface. As a result, we could see further and we began to see a lot more fantastic scenary. We often could see great distances to far off mountains, often with rain / snow storms passing by. At some point I asked Mary how many pictures I should take of the mountains. It seemed like every curve in the road brought scenary in view that was more beautiful than anything we had yet seen.
At milepost 56 we crossed the Yukon River. The bridge over the river is wood decked and has a pretty good grade. No stopping is allowed on the bridge which is constantly monitored by video cameras. Huge speakers are used to communicate with people on the bridge if necessary (for instance to tell them to get moving). The bridge also carries the pipeline. The Yukon River is a river very much like the Mississippi in size (big!) and fairly fast flowing. It runs about 2000 miles from Canada to the Bering Sea. It is used in the winter time as a main transportation route using snow machines. The E. L. Patton bridge at Yukon Crossing is the only bridge across the river.
Just a few miles further up the road, we stopped for lunch at another road house. This one is named The Hot Spot and was started many years ago by the wife of a Haul Road truck driver. The place was another Alaskan marvel. Lots of interesting features and signs. The food operation was pretty informal. You just walked by where the owner was cooking up hamburgers told her what you wanted, and she served it to you on a paper plate. Then you went to the seating area (picnic tables) grabbing whatever additonal items (potato chips, cookies, drinks) you wanted on the way. When it was time to pay up, you went to the cashier and told her what you had. The food was great!
Soon, we were on our way again and headed up to MP 86 overlook. To get to this point, we actually left the highway and followed a road up to an active rock quarry. It was quite a steep climb, but our trusty bus made it fine. From up at the quarry, we could look out over the Yukon Flats which is a huge valley with lots of water ways flowing through it. The result is a very nutrient rich area with lots of wildlife. In fact, many of the migratory water fowl that winter in the lower 48 spend the summer in the Yukon Flats.
We made another stop at the Finger Rocks area (MP 98) where we got more fantastic views and lots of pictures. At this point, it was starting to look more like the arctic. Lots of patches of snow on the ground and the wind was getting a bit cold.
At mile 115, we stopped at the marker for the Arctic Circle. It's quite an experience to actually be standing at 66° 33' (I checked it with my GPS, of course :) ). We took family and group pictures and enjoyed a brief chat by Greg about the significance of the Circle in terms of 24 hours of sunlight / darkness. Since the summer solstice had not yet arrived, the 24 hour daylight event had not yet happened at the Arctic Circle, but we could look forward to it further north.
We arrived at Coldfoot (MP 175) at about 6:30 PM with bright, beautiful skies and the temperature in the mid 40s. Coldfoot lies in the foot hills of the Brooks Range, so we got a glimpse of the type of scenery to come. The truck stop there was built as a camp for the pipeline workers and is now an inn and restaurant for Dalton Highway travelers. The inn is comprised of trailers (like mobile homes or construction trailers) all joined together to form one complex of rooms. The rooms were just large enough for two twin beds, a wash basin and a plywood box in the corner that contained a shower and toilet. Our driver Greg had asked us on the way what we expected to find at Coldfoot. When we assured him we did not have high expectations, he said we should lower them. :) After checking in, we headed over to the restaurant which served buffett style. We sat at a table with some of the Australians who had been on the Princess bus ahead of us all day. We enjoyed chatting with them and the food was great. It would be very easy to over do it with all the good choices of main dishes and fantastic deserts. After dinner, Mary and I walked over to the Arctic Interagency Visitor's Center. We watched a brief movie there and checked out all their exhibits. We also picked up a nice certificate for crossing the Arctic Circle. After that, we walked over toward the town of Coldfoot. We wandered through the old cemetery where a lot of gold seekers were buried in the days of the gold rush. We also began to encounter Alaska's famous mosquitos. They were some big dudes! Fortunately, you could feel them land on you before they had a chance to get down to business. We also saw some robins that were about twice as big as the robins we are used to seeing back home. After we started wandering back toward the inn, we realized it was after 10:00 PM. The sun was still high above the mountains and did not look like it had any intention of setting. We decided we needed to go get to bed since we were going to be getting up fairly early the next morning. Although it was quite bright outside, the room was well darkened by curtains, the beds were comfortable and we were sound asleep by 11:00 PM.
From there we continued on north away from Fairbanks on Alaska Highway 2 (Elliot Highway). As we went along, we saw less signs of population and the traffic decreased significantly. Mostly what we were seeing along the way now were road houses and a few rustic looking houses.
Our first rest stop (mid-morning) of the day was at the Wildwood General Store. The store is a combination snack shop, gift shop, rest stop (with old fashioned out houses) and glimpse of true Alaskan living. The proprietor and his wife raised 23 kids -- mostly adopted native Alaskans. The story is that the state requires at 10 children of school age in order to provide a school building and teacher. When they started, there were only two families in the area and they had only about 6 kids between them. So this guy adopted enough to meet the state requirement. As his kids graduated from high school, more were adopted. I enjoyed a very interesting chat with the man. As you can imagine, they have a very close family unit.
Shortly after our rest stop, we were on the Dalton Highway (AK 11). The Dalton Highway (also known as the "Haul Road") was built to provide an overland route to supply the North Slope oil fields (Prudhoe Bay). The road is primarily gravel surfaced, but is built on a very thick layer of stone and even Styrofoam to protect the permafrost. If the permafrost were exposed by the road's surface, it would melt in the warm months (month?) and the road would be impassible due to the mud. Once we were on the Dalton Hwy. we were clearly heading into the land less traveled. Traffic was rare and the only structures we saw were generally road houses / truck stops. This section of the highway from Fairbanks to Coldfoot passes through boreal forest. Mostly boreal forest comprises tall trees (aspens, pines, spruces, birch) . The scenery was mostly hilly and wooded, and we did not see much in the way of wildlife except what might be close by on the shoulder.
As we traveled on up the road, we passed through areas where gold was mined during the gold rush days. Most of the mining was done by strip mining and the landscape was greatly affected by the process to the extent that some of the existing ridges are all that remains of what were once vast valleys. Some gold mining still goes on, and we passed one "mom and pop" operaton with lots of old equipment that looked like it was barely operable that was used to scoop material out of a river bottom.
As we continued north, the trees tended to get smaller as the permafrost got closer to the surface. As a result, we could see further and we began to see a lot more fantastic scenary. We often could see great distances to far off mountains, often with rain / snow storms passing by. At some point I asked Mary how many pictures I should take of the mountains. It seemed like every curve in the road brought scenary in view that was more beautiful than anything we had yet seen.
At milepost 56 we crossed the Yukon River. The bridge over the river is wood decked and has a pretty good grade. No stopping is allowed on the bridge which is constantly monitored by video cameras. Huge speakers are used to communicate with people on the bridge if necessary (for instance to tell them to get moving). The bridge also carries the pipeline. The Yukon River is a river very much like the Mississippi in size (big!) and fairly fast flowing. It runs about 2000 miles from Canada to the Bering Sea. It is used in the winter time as a main transportation route using snow machines. The E. L. Patton bridge at Yukon Crossing is the only bridge across the river.
Just a few miles further up the road, we stopped for lunch at another road house. This one is named The Hot Spot and was started many years ago by the wife of a Haul Road truck driver. The place was another Alaskan marvel. Lots of interesting features and signs. The food operation was pretty informal. You just walked by where the owner was cooking up hamburgers told her what you wanted, and she served it to you on a paper plate. Then you went to the seating area (picnic tables) grabbing whatever additonal items (potato chips, cookies, drinks) you wanted on the way. When it was time to pay up, you went to the cashier and told her what you had. The food was great!
Soon, we were on our way again and headed up to MP 86 overlook. To get to this point, we actually left the highway and followed a road up to an active rock quarry. It was quite a steep climb, but our trusty bus made it fine. From up at the quarry, we could look out over the Yukon Flats which is a huge valley with lots of water ways flowing through it. The result is a very nutrient rich area with lots of wildlife. In fact, many of the migratory water fowl that winter in the lower 48 spend the summer in the Yukon Flats.
We made another stop at the Finger Rocks area (MP 98) where we got more fantastic views and lots of pictures. At this point, it was starting to look more like the arctic. Lots of patches of snow on the ground and the wind was getting a bit cold.
At mile 115, we stopped at the marker for the Arctic Circle. It's quite an experience to actually be standing at 66° 33' (I checked it with my GPS, of course :) ). We took family and group pictures and enjoyed a brief chat by Greg about the significance of the Circle in terms of 24 hours of sunlight / darkness. Since the summer solstice had not yet arrived, the 24 hour daylight event had not yet happened at the Arctic Circle, but we could look forward to it further north.
We arrived at Coldfoot (MP 175) at about 6:30 PM with bright, beautiful skies and the temperature in the mid 40s. Coldfoot lies in the foot hills of the Brooks Range, so we got a glimpse of the type of scenery to come. The truck stop there was built as a camp for the pipeline workers and is now an inn and restaurant for Dalton Highway travelers. The inn is comprised of trailers (like mobile homes or construction trailers) all joined together to form one complex of rooms. The rooms were just large enough for two twin beds, a wash basin and a plywood box in the corner that contained a shower and toilet. Our driver Greg had asked us on the way what we expected to find at Coldfoot. When we assured him we did not have high expectations, he said we should lower them. :) After checking in, we headed over to the restaurant which served buffett style. We sat at a table with some of the Australians who had been on the Princess bus ahead of us all day. We enjoyed chatting with them and the food was great. It would be very easy to over do it with all the good choices of main dishes and fantastic deserts. After dinner, Mary and I walked over to the Arctic Interagency Visitor's Center. We watched a brief movie there and checked out all their exhibits. We also picked up a nice certificate for crossing the Arctic Circle. After that, we walked over toward the town of Coldfoot. We wandered through the old cemetery where a lot of gold seekers were buried in the days of the gold rush. We also began to encounter Alaska's famous mosquitos. They were some big dudes! Fortunately, you could feel them land on you before they had a chance to get down to business. We also saw some robins that were about twice as big as the robins we are used to seeing back home. After we started wandering back toward the inn, we realized it was after 10:00 PM. The sun was still high above the mountains and did not look like it had any intention of setting. We decided we needed to go get to bed since we were going to be getting up fairly early the next morning. Although it was quite bright outside, the room was well darkened by curtains, the beds were comfortable and we were sound asleep by 11:00 PM.
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