July 5, Up and out the door for breakfast at Sourdough Sam's. The usual, Egg, Ham and Sourdough pancakes. These pancakes were better than the ones we had in Tok. Then it was off to Splash and Dash to run the Jeep through a "real" automatic car wash. This got the roof clean, and cleaned the scum off the rest of the Jeep. Will need to deal with the tar spots when we get home, I am sure we will pick up more before the trip is over.
Next stop was Santa Claus House in North Pole, AK. This is definitely a Christmas Store.
T-Shirts, Ornaments, wood crafts, tapestries and a cookie shop. They had it all. They carefully make sure and label those items made in Alaska and in the USA. Otherwise it comes from China, India, wherever.
After purchasing a few items it was off next door to the Antler Academy. After a few parting photos of Santa.
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| Looks like they're from Texas doesn't it. |
This business is about Reindeer. For a fee you can see how they are cared for, trained and then go one on one with them in an outdoor fenced area. For the cheapskates, you can photograph them through the fence.
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| Notice that in July their antlers are still in "velvet" |
After a stop at the Motor Home to take the dog for a walk and to down-load all the pictures from Debbie's iPhone to the hard drive, it was off to Fred Meyer to get supplies.
After a quick dinner it was to the RV Park "Event Center" for a talk on "Alaska Legends, Tall Tales and Outright Lies". The presenter, Rich Eskew, better known as "Gloria's Husband", covered some interesting facts and fiction. Rich bills himself as an Author, Poet, Raconteur - was born in Sweeny, TX and moved to Alaska in 1972. In Alaska, he met his wife, Gloria, who, as it turned out was born and raised about 30 miles from him in Texas. Rich recited poetry by Robert Service, who Rich calls one of the first "cowboy poets." Robert Service was in Alaska during part of the gold rush and worked as a banker and bartender.
Rich has authored five books, including RVing North to Alaska. He stated that he and his wife have between them travelled the Alaska Highway about 74 times. He feels that this year it is in the best condition that it has ever been.
In another encounter, I talked to an older (older than Debbie and I) couple that lived in Fairbanks for more than 20 years. They stated that their two children were born in the Alaska Territory, so prior to 1959. Both their sons still live in Alaska, and they (the couple) retired to a home in the SW corner of Idaho. They try and return to Fairbanks every year, though due to health issues, this is the first time they have been back since 2016. They own property adjacent to the Riverview RV Park, and are in the process of sub-dividing it.
One of their sons, Mike, owns Easy-Freeze in Valdez, AK. His company works with the sport fishing charters and they cut, package and ship your catch to where ever you want.
Today (July 6, 2019) it was off to the Farmer's Market held on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The Tanana Valley Farmers Market is the largest of Interior Alaska Farmers Markets. Produce, artwork, baked goods, kitchen utensils and more were found at the Market.
Next up was The Great Alaskan Bowl Company. The bowls, made in different shapes and sizes, are made from birch, harvested in Alaska and shaped with equipment designed from machinery developed a hundred years ago. Each bowl is made from a single chunk of wood. The birch is harvested in Talkeetna, which is by Denali National Park, trucked to Fairbanks where each log is cut into sections, then split in half and from each of these "chunks" one or more bowls is cut. Once cut the bowls are kiln dried, then sanded and coated with food safe oil. The bowls can be shaped in to various designs, like knitting bowls, apple bowls, heart bowls and the like. Images can be laser burned into the bowl to create a unique keepsake. You can even purchase the rough cut bowl and finish creating it by sanding or on a lathe. An interesting process. The bowls and other items made from the birch are beautiful.
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| This is "firewood." This is what is left after the bowl "blanks" are cut out. |
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| Bowl Making Equipment |
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| Logs ready to be turned into bowls |
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| Most common sled trails |
Clothing of the driver is also covered since temperatures can range well below zero degrees. It also covers things like what the sled must carry in a race. Food and bedding material for the dogs plus food and bedding material for the driver. All in all a very interesting display.
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| These did not replace the dog sled, but probably made an impact on them. |
Onward to yet another museum. This one called Pioneer Park. There is no charge for entry. The Park includes a Railroad Museum an airplane museum and a unique area of small shops. All the shops are located in buildings that were relocated to Pioneer Park from various places in Fairbanks. Each has a placard giving the history of the building, who the owners were and the businesses the building was used for.
The Pioneer Museum has a display of history of Fairbanks and Alaska. They also have a show called the "Big Stampede Show" which charts the discovery of gold in the Yukon and then in Alaska. The theater and presentation are unique. The audience sits on benches on a turntable. The turntable turns and the audience is looking at a painting on the wall. The narrator then describes the painting and how it relates to the particular gold rush. A very interesting concept that worked very well.
The Pioneer Park is also home to the Harding Car. This railcar was built for President Warren G Harding. Harding tour the Alaska Territory in this car, attending the completion of the Alaska Railroad. Unfortunately, Harding died two weeks later in California of a heart attack. Harding was the first Chief Executive to visit the Alaska Territory.
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| This Sternwheeler is under renovation |
The forty year old pipeline is still in service today, but carrying only a portion of the oil that it once did. Started in 1975, it was completed in 1977 with the first oil going through it in June of that year. At its peak, it carried around 2.03 million barrels of oil per day. In 2018 the average was around 500,000 barrels of oil per day. The 800 mile long pipe line, stretching from the north slope to the ice free port of Valdez, uses several unique construction methods. The pipeline travels above ground where the ground is frozen and below ground where the ground is not frozen. Its zigzag design was to keep the pipeline from kinking or buckling under the constant hot/cold cycles the pipe experiences.
Where it is above ground it sits on supports about eight feet tall.
This is so it does not impede wildlife that traverse the area. The pipe goes through a support piece attached to the bottom, which sits on the foundation. The pipe can then slide on the support so earthquakes and tremors will not fracture the line.
The pipe on the inside is about 48 inches in diameter and then has six to eight inches of compressed fiberglass insulation and then an outer steel layer.
The supports have a cooling system in the foundation to keep the ground around the bottom of the foundation frozen. Basically the cooling system is like the absorption refrigerator in an RV. The system contains a gas similar to Ammonia gas. As the air outside gets warmer, it causes the ammonia to pull heat out of the ground and exhaust it through fins into the air. This keeps the ground frozen.
While we were at the site, a tour bus stopped and we tagged along with the group to hear the tour guide give information about the pipeline. One story was of the gentleman who fire six high power rifle bullets into the pipe, causing a 1/4 inch hole that released 108,000 gallons of crude oil before the leak or flow was stopped. The guide also stated that crude oil will not burn. It has to be refined before it will burn. The interior of the pipeline also needs to be clean periodically to clean off the paraffin that accumulates from the oil flowing through it. They use what is called a "pig." The "pig" consists of scrapers that scrape the inside of the pipe as the oil propels it down the line. The first "pigs" were made from steel and weigh 2,600 each. New materials and technology have lead to a polyurethane version that consists of four scrapers and it weighs about 1,600 pounds.
Safety precautions were taken where the pipeline enters the ground as a gentleman rode a motorcycle along the top of the pipeline and was injured at the transition point underground. Of course you can figure out what happened. The pipeline is patrolled by satellite, helicopters and now drones. There is also a maintenance road running parallel to it. Quite an engineering feat that is still working 40 years later.
A short stop back at the Motor Home and it was off to the Fairbanks Ice Museum. Located in the historic Lacey Theater, the museum is run by Hoa and Dick Brickley. The Brickley's also sponsor the Ice Art in February and March. A short video gives you a glimpse of the Ice Art Park and the process of harvesting the ice from the local lakes and rivers. At the end of the video you can go into a 20 degree area where you can get up close to several ice sculptures. Bears, Eskimos, snowmobiles, wolfs and an igloo are just some of the ice work to view.
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| Yes, we both borrowed coats! |
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| Try the Ice sled run |
Coincidently, there was a quilt shop located next door that we perused.
Then it was off to dinner at the Pagoda Restaurant. The Pagoda came highly recommended, not only by other visitors at the RV Park, but also by Guy Fieri, who featured it on his Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives television show. - Fantastic food with enough left over for another meal or two.
Monday, July 8, Annie got to go to a Dog Park. We had been trying to find one so she could go off leash and run. We found two in Fairbanks, but both a good distance away. Last night on the way home from dinner, we stopped at the post office to mail some things, and Debbie saw a Dog Park across the street. When we got there this morning about 8:15, there was a lady there with a mix breed dog. Annie met it and they did not seem to get into the play mode. She left and a gentleman came in with a husky and a lab mix.
The two dogs, both male, thought Annie was pretty neat. Off to the races. I don't know who was chasing who, but they all seemed to have a good time. The husky was 18 months old, so still just a pup.
A good time they had. I brought Annie back to the Motor Home and she promptly got in her bed and went to sleep.
After that it was off to the University of Alaska, Large Animal Research Center.
This Center works with Musk Ox and Reindeer only. The oldest Musk Ox they have is 15 years old.
Musk Ox will normally live to about 20 years in captivity. Musk Ox are indigenous to Alaska. This herd are descendents of a herd started in the 1930s in Alaska, due to disease and over hunting the population decreased dramatically. They brought in 30 Musk Ox, placed them on Nunivak Island in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska, where the Ox have no predators and left them.
In the 1960s they went to check on them and found more than 700 Musk Ox. They brought 20 to Fairbanks for the Research Center. Musk Ox thrive above the arctic circle and are commonly seen in the far north oil field areas. Their under fur is highly sought after as it is warmer than wool. A small skein of yarn made from the fur costs $85-95. Both male and female have horns. The males have a heavier skull than the females as head to head combat among the male is common during mating season. They only grow one set of horns. So if one breaks off, they go through life with just one horn. The Musk Ox are separated into groups that get along.
Reindeer are part of the Caribou family. In the wild it is not uncommon to see Caribou and Reindeer intermingle and cross breed.
Caribou accept Reindeer and Reindeer accept Caribou. It is illegal to own Reindeer. The Indigenous People can own them, and the Indigenous People's Corporation can own them. The Reindeer at the Center and at the Antler Academy are owned by an indigenous people's corporation.
The difference between Reindeer and Caribou is the shape of their antlers. Both male and female Reindeer and Caribou have antlers. The males shed their antlers after mating season, and the female will shed theirs also, unless they are pregnant and then they keep their antlers for defense. They had about forty Reindeer at the Center that they keep segregated into different pastures.
After many photos, we left and headed back to Sourdough Sam's for lunch. after lunch it was off to Santa's Smokehouse. We sampled several varieties of sausage and smoked salmon. We left with some smoked salmon.
Next it was to the Cookie Jar Restaurant. This is another location made famous by Guy Fieri in his Dinners, Drive-Ins and Dives television show. With cinnamon/raisin rolls in hand we left there headed for our next Museum stop.
The Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum in Fairbanks is worth every penny of the $10 admission charge. With vintage cars from 1898 to the 1930's, the museum is laid out with mannequins dressed in period clothing of the cars. The oldest was produced in 1898.
The newest produced in 1934. Their goal is to focus strictly on American cars from the 1900's to World War II. The newest that they plan to have will be a 1942. They do an excellent job of grouping the cars into the different time periods. Like the very first electric and hybrid cars made in the 1900's.
The vehicles that are of the Brass era, where Brass accents were the "in" thing. We talked to a lady and gentleman who appeared to be the head curators, and they stated that they had three more cars that were being delivered to Fairbanks tomorrow (Tuesday, July 9) to add to the collection. The two vehicles were located in England and brought back to the United States. Fountainhead Auto Museum has their own garage and have two master mechanics working at the museum. All but a couple of the cars get driven on a regular basis. They also work with other groups, like Jay Leno's collection, to get parts or information on restoring vehicles that they have acquired. Fountainhead also provides parts and or advice to other museums and collections. Their advertisement is strictly word of mouth, or word on the Internet -
So many pictures, I will have a separate web post later.
Then it was back to the Motor Home for left over Chinese from last night, and to start getting ready to leave tomorrow for Denali.
Today (July 9) we were out of the park by 10am - fuelling at the RV Park Convenience Store before heading to Cantwell, AK and Denali National Park. The Mitchell Expressway, which connects Alaska 2 and Alaska 3 together is closed for construction. Traffic wanting to go to Anchorage and Cantwell and Denali must detour through town. The detour signage could be improved. The signs seemed to be placed at the major intersection prior to the one they wanted you to turn at. Thus a wrong turn or two, plus "curbing" the Motor Home on a right hand turn caused a little chaos and stress. Once we got on Alaska 3 headed in the proper direction, the road conditions left much to be desired. The frost heaves were bad and unmarked. There are some pretty steep climbs coming out of Fairbanks and this caused us to get a couple of high coolant temperature alerts. Fortunately about the time we got the alerts, the road either leveled out or began to descend and we were able to get the temperature down. But the road surface never really improved. It would be big dips here and then a roller coaster as one side or the other of the lane would sink. This caused a back and forth (left/right) rocking of the Motor Home. Then as soon as you got past that, you would hit a dip, or maybe to make it even more fun a dip with the sunken pavement on the left or right side. No worries, only 150 miles of this stuff.
Scenery for the first half the trip was obscured by a smoky haze from the wild fires burning in the state. Then it began to lift and we got glimpses of the outline of mountains jutting toward the sky. The road, about Nenana, picks up the Nenana River and you got some views of a gray milky water travelling swiftly down through the canyons.
We arrived at Cantwell RV Park about 2PM. This is another gravel (4 inch minus rock, heavier on the 4 inch) lot, with power and water at the closely spaced narrow sites. The water lines that serve the sites run above ground. You have to make sure and not park, or put your leveling jack down on top of it. The sites have 30 amp electric, and it is commercial power and not generator provided power. An effort has been made to separate the sites somewhat with the planting of some birch and evergreen trees. However, with the sites as tight as they are, once the trees get larger, it will cause more problems. They have a laundry with four washers and six dryers and four shower rooms, plus restrooms. They also have a sewage dump station.
As it always seems to be, we took the laundry over and had quite a conversation with the owner of the RV Park. He is from New York originally, had worked some in Texas apparently as an electrician. He and his wife came to Alaska 15 years ago and purchased the RV Park. They now live in Florida, and come to Alaska about the middle of May and leave about the middle of September. He said that he relies on Workampers for the seasonal operation. I don't know if he has someone that is a caretaker in the winter, or just shutters the place in September and then opens back up when he arrives in May. We talked about the wildfires burning in the area. He stated that in 15 years there has never been a fire closer than 90 miles. This year the fires are closer and he is beginning to wonder if his luck will hold or if a wildfire may be headed his way.
He told us that he realizes that he is not a destination RV Park, but he states that he keeps busy enough to keep opening every year. He said that the tourist traffic seems to be down this year. He thinks the wildfires are keeping a lot of the people away.
Our neighbor on one side came up from Tennessee. They have been there four or five weeks. They leave on Saturday and plan to go to Fairbanks. Our neighbors on the other side were our neighbor at the last RV Park we were at in the Fairbanks area. I also recognize one or two of the other RV's as having been at an RV park that we have visited previously on the trip.
No Television, no cable, no satellite, but excellent Cell Phone and Internet access.
This Center works with Musk Ox and Reindeer only. The oldest Musk Ox they have is 15 years old.
Musk Ox will normally live to about 20 years in captivity. Musk Ox are indigenous to Alaska. This herd are descendents of a herd started in the 1930s in Alaska, due to disease and over hunting the population decreased dramatically. They brought in 30 Musk Ox, placed them on Nunivak Island in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska, where the Ox have no predators and left them.
In the 1960s they went to check on them and found more than 700 Musk Ox. They brought 20 to Fairbanks for the Research Center. Musk Ox thrive above the arctic circle and are commonly seen in the far north oil field areas. Their under fur is highly sought after as it is warmer than wool. A small skein of yarn made from the fur costs $85-95. Both male and female have horns. The males have a heavier skull than the females as head to head combat among the male is common during mating season. They only grow one set of horns. So if one breaks off, they go through life with just one horn. The Musk Ox are separated into groups that get along.
Reindeer are part of the Caribou family. In the wild it is not uncommon to see Caribou and Reindeer intermingle and cross breed.
Caribou accept Reindeer and Reindeer accept Caribou. It is illegal to own Reindeer. The Indigenous People can own them, and the Indigenous People's Corporation can own them. The Reindeer at the Center and at the Antler Academy are owned by an indigenous people's corporation.
The difference between Reindeer and Caribou is the shape of their antlers. Both male and female Reindeer and Caribou have antlers. The males shed their antlers after mating season, and the female will shed theirs also, unless they are pregnant and then they keep their antlers for defense. They had about forty Reindeer at the Center that they keep segregated into different pastures.
After many photos, we left and headed back to Sourdough Sam's for lunch. after lunch it was off to Santa's Smokehouse. We sampled several varieties of sausage and smoked salmon. We left with some smoked salmon.
Next it was to the Cookie Jar Restaurant. This is another location made famous by Guy Fieri in his Dinners, Drive-Ins and Dives television show. With cinnamon/raisin rolls in hand we left there headed for our next Museum stop.
The Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum in Fairbanks is worth every penny of the $10 admission charge. With vintage cars from 1898 to the 1930's, the museum is laid out with mannequins dressed in period clothing of the cars. The oldest was produced in 1898.
The newest produced in 1934. Their goal is to focus strictly on American cars from the 1900's to World War II. The newest that they plan to have will be a 1942. They do an excellent job of grouping the cars into the different time periods. Like the very first electric and hybrid cars made in the 1900's.
So many pictures, I will have a separate web post later.
Then it was back to the Motor Home for left over Chinese from last night, and to start getting ready to leave tomorrow for Denali.
Today (July 9) we were out of the park by 10am - fuelling at the RV Park Convenience Store before heading to Cantwell, AK and Denali National Park. The Mitchell Expressway, which connects Alaska 2 and Alaska 3 together is closed for construction. Traffic wanting to go to Anchorage and Cantwell and Denali must detour through town. The detour signage could be improved. The signs seemed to be placed at the major intersection prior to the one they wanted you to turn at. Thus a wrong turn or two, plus "curbing" the Motor Home on a right hand turn caused a little chaos and stress. Once we got on Alaska 3 headed in the proper direction, the road conditions left much to be desired. The frost heaves were bad and unmarked. There are some pretty steep climbs coming out of Fairbanks and this caused us to get a couple of high coolant temperature alerts. Fortunately about the time we got the alerts, the road either leveled out or began to descend and we were able to get the temperature down. But the road surface never really improved. It would be big dips here and then a roller coaster as one side or the other of the lane would sink. This caused a back and forth (left/right) rocking of the Motor Home. Then as soon as you got past that, you would hit a dip, or maybe to make it even more fun a dip with the sunken pavement on the left or right side. No worries, only 150 miles of this stuff.
Scenery for the first half the trip was obscured by a smoky haze from the wild fires burning in the state. Then it began to lift and we got glimpses of the outline of mountains jutting toward the sky. The road, about Nenana, picks up the Nenana River and you got some views of a gray milky water travelling swiftly down through the canyons.
We arrived at Cantwell RV Park about 2PM. This is another gravel (4 inch minus rock, heavier on the 4 inch) lot, with power and water at the closely spaced narrow sites. The water lines that serve the sites run above ground. You have to make sure and not park, or put your leveling jack down on top of it. The sites have 30 amp electric, and it is commercial power and not generator provided power. An effort has been made to separate the sites somewhat with the planting of some birch and evergreen trees. However, with the sites as tight as they are, once the trees get larger, it will cause more problems. They have a laundry with four washers and six dryers and four shower rooms, plus restrooms. They also have a sewage dump station.
As it always seems to be, we took the laundry over and had quite a conversation with the owner of the RV Park. He is from New York originally, had worked some in Texas apparently as an electrician. He and his wife came to Alaska 15 years ago and purchased the RV Park. They now live in Florida, and come to Alaska about the middle of May and leave about the middle of September. He said that he relies on Workampers for the seasonal operation. I don't know if he has someone that is a caretaker in the winter, or just shutters the place in September and then opens back up when he arrives in May. We talked about the wildfires burning in the area. He stated that in 15 years there has never been a fire closer than 90 miles. This year the fires are closer and he is beginning to wonder if his luck will hold or if a wildfire may be headed his way.
He told us that he realizes that he is not a destination RV Park, but he states that he keeps busy enough to keep opening every year. He said that the tourist traffic seems to be down this year. He thinks the wildfires are keeping a lot of the people away.
Our neighbor on one side came up from Tennessee. They have been there four or five weeks. They leave on Saturday and plan to go to Fairbanks. Our neighbors on the other side were our neighbor at the last RV Park we were at in the Fairbanks area. I also recognize one or two of the other RV's as having been at an RV park that we have visited previously on the trip.
No Television, no cable, no satellite, but excellent Cell Phone and Internet access.
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