Best Views of Mount McKinley Yet (Tuesday, August 4, 2009) We awoke to very strong winds. Our schedule called for us to depart the campground by 8 AM, so we had to hustle to get everything ready to travel—put things away inside the motorhome, take the windshield cover off, dump the black and gray tanks, unhook from water, and unplug from electricity. We departed about 7:45 AM, and drove through Nenana Canyon area with wind warnings. About an hour down the road, Mount McKinley came into view, and we were blessed with clear weather once again. We made several stops, including the Alaska Veterans Memorial Park, for still closer views.

However, the best views came at the South Entrance to Denali State Park, where I shot photos from many different angles. We had planned to stop in Wasilla for food and gasoline, but the opportunity didn’t present itself (Note: during the last election, we were led to believe that Wasilla, home of Sarah Palin, was a small suburb of Anchorage. Actually, it is quite large, both in geographic size and in its commercial development. Also, despite her being a very popular governor, a good number of people of Alaska were deeply offended when she resigned, believing she should have served her entire 4 year term.) We drove on to Eagle just north of Anchorage at Fred Meyers, and filled up with gasoline, got food from the deli, and Kay got a haircut. It began raining before we left the parking lot, and we drove the last 30 minutes in the rain, arriving at Golden Nugget Camper Park at 4 PM. Everything we had heard over the internet about the hostess was true; she was not a real “people” person, yelling at several of us to get out of the way (when a caravan of 18 RVs arrives about the same time, in the rain, and there’s only two places to park before getting an assigned slot, it gets kind of crowded). I unhooked the Saturn, found the assigned spot, and set up in the rain. We stayed in the rest of the evening.

Day 2 in Anchorage, AK (Wednesday) As has become the norm for large towns/cities, we started the day in Anchorage with a city tour. Included was a visit to the Alaska Native Heritage Center. It was still raining, but we saw exhibits inside, and a couple of great demonstrations of native games, and native dancing; Kay saw a couple of the exhibits outside and indicated they were very good. (Note: the natives in Alaska, and Canada as well, seem to be very happy people, and quite comfortable in today’s culture.) Our visit to the Heritage Center was followed by a stop at the Ulu Knife Factory, then the Anchorage Visitor Center, then the RV Park. For the evening, we ate at Sourdough Mining Company, enjoying another family style dinner, followed by Dusty Sourdough singing and telling stories at an adjoining tent theater.

Day 3 in Anchorage, AK (Thursday) This morning saw us visiting the Anchorage Museum at Rasmussen Center. Though still under construction, the Alaska Gallery, an exhibit on the history of Alaska, was great, and the docent who led the tour was the best either of us had ever seen. The art annex was good as well. After returning to the campground for a brief stop, we drove south with the intent of taking the tram to the top of the mountain at Alyeska, Anchorage’s ski resort. Regrettably, an accident on the Seward Highway closed the highway for several hours, forcing us to cancel plans for the day. (The accident involved 4 automobiles, killing two, and injuring several others. Some guy tried passing 4 vehicles, and didn’t quite make it, hitting a small car with 3 teenagers head on, killing two of them; the guy who hit them had only minor injuries.) That put a damper on the rest of the day. The sun did come out, though, and we saw a rainbow late in the evening.

Day 4 in Anchorage, AK (Friday) This was catch up day. We departed the campground at 9 AM, headed to Alyeska, where we caught the tram to the top of the mountain. Shrouded in clouds, we were unable to see what is normally an extraordinary view. We ate a quick lunch, and walked around a short time before heading back down the mountain. Our next stop was the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, where orphaned or injured wild animals are kept in an open air environment. We drove through the area a couple of times; stopping to take photos each time. We continued driving south to the Portage area and took a 45-minute cruise to the Portage Glacier—glaciers are always amazing to us, and especially interesting are those at water’s edge. The ice blue color is almost hypnotic. While we were adjacent to the glacier, a small chunk of ice about the size of a car broke off, and we got to see it hit the water. On our return to Anchorage, we stopped at Bird Creek to witness combat fishing for salmon. I had intended to fish for salmon, but just couldn’t bring myself to stand side by side and snag fish. We also stopped at Beluga Point in an attempt to spot whales, but the tide was out, and all we saw was a big mud flat. Tomorrow, Kay will take the Saturn in for servicing, and make a mandatory visit to the Saturday Alaska market downtown.

Day 5 in Anchorage, AK (Saturday) Today was work day. Kay took the Saturn into town for servicing while I washed clothes and reorganized the motorhome’s large outside storage compartment. We downloaded photos and videos after lunch, shopped at Sam’s Club, and attended a potluck hamburger/hot dog cookout at the campground. Tomorrow, we visit Anchorage Independent Baptist Church and drive to Seward.

Our Recommendations for Anchorage and Vicinity, AK We’ll make this quick: Alaska Native Heritage Center, Rasmussen Anchorage Museum, Alyeska Resort (if weather permits hiking and photography) in the Portage area, and the Portage Glacier Cruise. We didn’t spend enough time in the Portage area; there are many trails and lots of photo ops, and staying at the Chugach National Forest Williwaw campground would allow one to do these things. We are biased, however, and prefer forested campgrounds. Neither of us has a desire to visit Anchorage again, but it is definitely worth seeing once. However, be aware that there is little available parking in the downtown area.

Kay’s Take Everybody was kind of excited to be in a ‘big’ town again. Not that we really needed to shop, but it’s comforting to know you could if you wanted to! LOL I guess it’s a gal thing. I especially liked the Alaska Native Heritage Center. It was the most well done and planned center we’ve seen. Young people were being taught their native culture by elders with craft skills, etc.; they were also being junior docents – as speakers about their culture in the outside demonstration areas. They seemed proud of what their ancestors had accomplished with what was available to survive and they were carrying on the history by being involved in preserving the stories and passing them on. The docent (an older woman – possibly a retired teacher, don’t know) at the Alaska Museum was the most knowledgeable about Alaskan history and native culture I have ever heard. She would have been wonderful to have a dvd of. The Chugach National Forest is beautiful with huge mountains, glaciers, ice fields, and the Turnigan Arm. The Seward Highway runs right along the shore. I was amazed to see a boat high and dry in the mud flats when the tide was out yesterday on our drive back to Anchorage. I guess they ‘tarried’ too long. We think the high tide will be mid-day on Sunday so I’ll definitely be looking for ‘whales’ as we drive down to Seward. I’m getting ‘geared up’ for a halibut fishing trip in Homer in several days! Oh, yes, one couple in our caravan was involved in a wreck today in their tow vehicle and it may be ‘totaled’. The man is sore and the wife may have cracked a rib.

The accident was their fault; not being familiar with the roads, he was looking at road signs and missed the red light. It could happen to any of us! The Milepost publication has been so helpful in knowing where to pull over; where fuel is, etc. Anyone ever thinking of coming to Alaska must have a Milepost – It’s essential! I’m somewhat hungry for news from friends, etc. E-mail us and let us know what’s going on with you.

Campground Golden Nugget Camper Park is OK as there are no better options in Anchorage. The sites are tight, the 30-amp electricity is marginal, wi-fi did not work at our site, and the manager is a very disagreeable person, just like everyone says on the internet who has stayed here. They do have a soup-type meal each evening with pretty decent entertainment. If we ever make the trip again, we would opt to stay at the Chugach National Forest campground near Portage. It is dry camping, but has paved roads and paved sites, many with breathtaking views.

Driving Statistics
Beginning Mileage: 13,742.8
Beginning Time: 7:45 AM Alaska DST
Ending Mileage: 13,990.0
Ending Time: 4:00 PM Alaska DST
TOTAL MILEAGE FOR THE DAY: 247.2
CUMULATIVE MILEAGE: 4,598.5

Getting out of the Smoke (Saturday, August 1, 2009) While we were anxious to visit Denali National Park, we were more looking forward to getting out of the wildfire smoke that had plagued us the last several days. Departing about 7:30 AM, we began driving south for the first time since leaving home June 25, and the further we drove, the worse the smoke.

We stopped in a small town, Nenana, named after the river that courses on the eastern border of Denali National Park. Nenana is famous for their ice break-up, and the person with the correct date and time wins over $100,000. Of course, Kay applied all of her science and math knowledge, and forked over $2.50 for a guess. The time and date are determined by tipping of a large tripod-looking device in the water, connected to a date and time clock. What will we do with the extra money? Back to the wildfires, Nenana had fires on two sides, and both were closing in. One had jumped the river, so we high-tailed it out of there heading south, and finally got out of the smoke about 75 miles south of Fairbanks. We arrived at the RV park too early, so drove to Denali National Park for a visit to the Visitor Center, and took a short ranger-led hike. Ranger Robb was very, very talkative, and was great for children; let’s leave it at that. We returned to the RV park, set up, and prepared for Day 2. A temperature check at midnight showed 37 degrees!

Day 2 in Denali National Park, AK (Sunday) We should have gone to church today, but both of us forgot it was Sunday. It’s hard to keep up with the days when traveling like this and we usually travel on Sunday! We got a late start, and opted to drive as far as private vehicles are allowed in the park, and hike a short trail at Savage River. On the way, we got our first glimpse of Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in North America. It was awesome, and some 75 miles distant. After several photos from along the road, we finally reached the turn-around at Savage River, and began our hike. Immediately, we spotted a ptarmigan along the river bank. A little further, we saw skim ice in a side channel, a sign that fall has come to Denali National Park; it was reportedly 20 degrees at Eielson Visitor Center and we noticed some trees and shrubs taking on fall colors! We crossed the Savage River at the end of the trail, climbed a few feet for a better view, and began the return hike. We saw several ground squirrels, a bunch of ptarmigan, mew gulls, and another somewhat rare bird.

The afternoon saw us doing some T-shirt and sweatshirt shopping, returning to the motor home to get ready for a dinner theater engagement. Our caravan members attended Cabin Nite”, which included all-you-can-eat salad, ribs, potatoes, corn, beans, biscuits, salmon, berry cobbler, and coffee and tea. The meal was served family-style, and when your table ran out of something, everyone waved their checkered napkins and yelled for the waiter—kind of corny, but OK. The food was good. Following the meal, the servers put on a great show of storytelling and singing. It was our favorite of the three we’ve seen thus far.

Day 3 in Denali National Park, AK (Monday) Several titles of this paragraph came to mind, but the one I kept coming back to was “What A Day for A Daydream”. This was the best day of the trip so far, and it will be difficult for any other day to surpass it—it wasn’t a daydream, but a dream come true! We upgraded our bus trip into Denali National Park to add 19 miles, making a total of 85 miles one way, 5 miles short of the end of the road. We arose early, left the RV park at about 6 AM, and caught the bus at 6:45 AM; about half our caravaners upgraded. There’s only one road into the park; the first 15 miles are paved (to Savage River). Just after departing the “bus stop” at the Wilderness Activities Center, our driver spotted a large bull moose on the passenger side of the bus. The driver cut the engine, and bade everyone to be quiet so as not to disturb the animal. We all moved to the passenger side and took photos. This was a sampling of the whole day. Mount McKinley came into view about 6 miles into the trip, and we saw the “big one” intermittently the rest of the day. (The left peak is the south peak and the tallest at 20,320 feet. The north peak is on the right and a few hundred feet shorter at 19,470 feet.)

As we continued the bus ride, we saw our first grizzly of the day. Then, we saw a wolf on the road in front of us. Our driver said that it was extremely rare to see a wolf during a Denali National Park visit. As we round a corner, Mount McKinley again came into view, and almost took our breath away, literally. It is beyond our ability to describe the scene.

Further along the road, we viewed Polychrome Basin, and again were almost breathless at having seen the widest expanse of landscape and openness, either of us had ever seen.

Our stop at Eielson Visitor Center (mile 66) offered the best view of Mount McKinley for the day, and an opportunity to eat a quick lunch. (We thought of our friend, Joey, and the photo he took of Mount McKinley some 30 years ago on his hiking trip here.) The upgrade took us from the Visitor Center to Wonder Lake (mile 85), where most magazine photos of Mount McKinley are taken. Unfortunately for us, smoke from the wildfires completely obliterated the view of the north side of the mountain. We saw several caribou on the way out, and a grizzly up high, and our best view of a wolf, but were so awed by the morning’s views that all we saw in the afternoon was anticlimactic. Statistically, Mount McKinley is visible only about 20% of the time; we had a great view. We saw the Big Three in Denali animals: bear, moose, and wolves. It is doubtful that this day can ever be replicated, but we’ll keep on trying!

Our Recommendations for Denali National Park, AK We didn’t spend enough time in Denali National Park; none of the RV parks could accommodate our caravan schedule for even an additional day. We disagree on how much bus riding to do. We would buy a 3-day pass and ride the bus all three days; for Kay, one day was enough. We would like to dry camp in the park at Teklanika River Campground (mile 29) for several days (it’s dry camping, no tow cars, and you can only make one trip in with your RV and one trip out)—but you’re on foot or shuttle bus! Both of us would have liked to hike more; however, there are only a few marked trails in Denali National Park—most hiking is done in open country. We both enjoyed the Cabin Nite dinner theater, but probably wouldn’t do it again because of the expense, though we would like to have eaten out at least one time.

Kay’s Take Several of our fellow RVers added a river raft trip on the Nenana River. They did wear wet suits and didn’t paddle/row any. It was supposed to be class 4 rapids, but most said it was calmer than that. They did say the water was really cold! I would probably like that but on a warmer river!! One other couple took a flight-seeing tour of Mount McKinley and said it was fabulous. I wish we had had time to do that; I would have liked to see the mountain and park from the air. I loved the views of Mount McKinley that we saw today. I felt like giving a standing ovation with my first clear sight of Mount McKinley. It’s enormous and magnificent. The animals in this park are magnificent too. I really like how we were the ‘strangers/interlopers’ on this park trip; we couldn’t hang out the bus windows to take pictures; we had to whisper or not talk at all in order not to disturb the animals. It was a major push TO DO NO HARM. Maybe that’s why this park is so natural – it hasn’t been tainted much by mankind. Watching a bull moose munch on brush and stop and look you in the eye, is pretty special. It reminded me of my ‘place’ in the grand scheme of things; and it’s not as high as I like to think. A good humbling experience we all need every once in awhile. Today was a glorious day – cold at the start, clear, blue skies, warming into the afternoon. We had a really good bus driver who spotted animals well. It was a blessing to see the mountain on a clear day. Several people in our group have been to Denali before and they all said this was the best and clearest view they had ever seen. How lucky is that? Only 20% of visitors ever see a clear view of Mount McKinley. Thank you, Lord!! What a glorious day.

Campground Denali RV Park and Motel is a decent park with full hook-ups—30 amp electricity, water, sewer, cable, and wi-fi. We did not use the laundry or the showers. Our site was a back-in site which was OK since we had to unhook the Saturn anyway. As with all the parks recently, dust was a problem, and it seeps in every nook and cranny. The RV park was too far from Denali to be convenient, but there are few good choices. We would dry camp in Denali National Park at either Riley Creek or Teklanika, if given the choice.

Driving Statistics
Beginning Mileage: 13,602.7
Beginning Time: 7:30 AM Alaska DST
Ending Mileage: 13,742.8
Ending Time: 4:00 PM Alaska

TOTAL MILEAGE FOR THE DAY: 140.1
CUMULATIVE MILEAGE: 4,351.3

Lots to See (Sunday, July 26, 2009) After finishing the breakfast won the evening before in the Pancake Toss, I completed the exterior part of breaking camp, i.e. removing and storing the water hose and removing and storing the electrical cord, allowing us to leave by about 8:15 AM.  Kay drove the first portion of the day, with stops for moose along the road. We saw several cow/calf pairs, and a couple of singles. The snowcapped mountains of the Alaska Range finally came into view shortly after departing Tok. After the first hour and a half, we switched drivers, and stopped at the Delta Meat & Sausage. Kay sampled their wares and bought a small package of reindeer sausage. Another stop followed just up the road at the visitor center at Delta Junction, the official end of the Alaskan Highway. Because of our detour via Top of the World Highway, we have not yet driven all of the Alaskan Highway, but will complete the highway in late August on our return. Rika’s Roadhouse is a must see. We were surprised by the extent of preservation, and quality of displays. I almost bought a $2,000 beaver coat for $150, but Norfork is not cold enough! We stopped again at the Knotty Place, a store featuring carvings and figures made out of burled wood; and free ice cream with a copy of the Milepost. Seeing all the burled wood made us think of our friends and neighbors, Rod and Rita, wood turners who could do magic with the burled wood. Our next stop was to purchase fuel before parking the RV for 6 days in North Pole, a suburb of Fairbanks; we paid $3.059 per gallon.

While waiting for our site assignment at Riverview RV Park, Kay picked up our mail at the office, forwarded by dear friends, Loretta and Wayne. We checked out the park, situated on the banks of the Chena River; it is fishable, but really colored with silt and glacial flour, so maybe we’ll fish somewhere else. A forest fire on 55,000 acres some 25 miles south of Fairbanks resulted in significant smoke in the air, with an almost overcast haze clouding the sun. Caravan members boarded a bus for an evening engagement at Pioneer Park in Fairbanks where we were treated to an all-you-can-eat buffet of grilled salmon, fried halibut, fried ling cod, roasted prime rib, salads, desserts, and drinks at the Alaska Salmon Bake. Seating was both indoors and out, and the food was great! Kay tried all the meats, while I only tried the fish. Excellent! After dinner, we adjourned to the theater for a song and dance comedy telling the story of the founding of Fairbanks. It was quite entertaining, but a little long—definitely worth seeing, though. With full stomachs, we returned to the RV park for some R & R. Oh, by the way, the sun set at 11:22 PM.

Day 2 in Fairbanks, AK (Monday) Another action packed day awaited! The morning began early with Kay making calls to take care of business. The emergency warning system on our auxiliary brake quit working several weeks ago, and Kay returned it to BrakeBuddy while we were in Great Falls. They were to repair it and send it to us here in North Pole, but it wasn’t among the mail she picked up yesterday at the RV park office. A call to them revealed it had been sent via UPS—this will require further action. Our air card wasn’t working, and Kay spent many minutes, if not hours, on the phone with Verizon to troubleshoot the problem; no such luck. Also, my CPAP mask broke during the night, and Kay made some calls to find the number of the supplier in Mountain Home; I called them and they cannot get it to North Pole before we leave—this will require further action, too. So, three calls were made, with no success.

We boarded the bus with the rest of the caravaners at 8:30 AM for a trip to the Ice Palace. This was awesome! Both the video and carvings were incredible. The young Japanese man who ran the place did a small demonstration carving while we were there. If you’re ever in the area, you’ve got to see this. Fairbanks has become the ice carving capital of the world, and has a big show in March every year.

A brief trip was then made to the visitors’ center, fast food lunch on our own, and a visit to the University of Alaska Museum of the North where exhibits focused on the cultures, wildlife, geography, and history of Alaska’s five regions. Included were the largest public display of gold in Alaska, a mummified Ice Age steppe bison mummy, historical artifacts, and historical paintings. The University of Alaska Fairbanks sits on a hill overlooking Fairbanks, and smoke from the immediate area of the forest fire was readily visible.

Upon returning to our site, Kay received a voice mail advising that the emergency warning system had already been sent and was received here at the RV park on July 20th—more to do, but getting closer, and I repaired the CPAP mask with superglue. This limited success called for Kay to do a shopping trip to Walmart!

Day 3 in Fairbanks, AK (Tuesday) No activities were scheduled this morning, so we got to sleep a little later than usual, then I continued trying to obtain another CPAP mask via mail. Dealing with med suppliers and insurance companies while on the road is a laborious process, and they are extremely rigid. I offered to pay to have a mask expressed shipped to us, but United Medical absolutely will not ship other than via ground. Consequently, I may or may not get this much needed mask in Anchorage.

We boarded the bus at 11 AM for lunch at the Pump House, a National Historic Landmark facility in Fairbanks. It was used to pump water from the Chena River over the mountain for hydraulic gold mining of the area. The food was better than average. After lunch, it was off to the Riverboat Discovery II for a cruise on the Chena River to its outlet in the much larger Tanana River. The cruise featured several neat activities. First, a float plane took off and landed adjacent to the boat. Next, we stopped by Susan Bucher’s kennels for a presentation on sled dogs. Susan Bucher was an Iditarod winner 4 times. She died from leukemia a couple of years ago at the young age of 55. Her husband talked to us, and with the help of two assistants, gave a demonstration of sled dog racing using a 4 wheeler, absent the motor. The dogs were eager to run, but very well mannered, and were incredibly fast! We thought of our friends and Quetico guides, Harry and Mary, who race sled dogs in the winter. We were both surprised to learn that the breed of dogs used is Alaskan Husky, which we didn’t know existed, rather than Siberian Husky.

We were also surprised to learn that while river lots are valued at about $100,000, and houses at $150 per square foot, the most expensive house in Fairbanks will cap at $750,000, because the market will only support a maximum of that value, regardless of square footage, etc.

The riverboat continued to the silt-laden Tanana River, turned around, and began its return journey. We stopped at an Athabascan (First Nation) village, where we were joined by the Riverboat Discovery III, a sister ship, for demonstrations related to their culture, daily life, animals, etc. (As an aside, the Discovery riverboat company uses only Alaska natives, though not necessarily First Nation, and most are in college at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.) The young interpreters were very good. Most of the visitors liked the reindeer best—the difference between a reindeer and caribou is that the reindeer is domesticated—and several were in a pen. Also noteworthy was the fish processing area where fish were filleted, dried, and smoked, and the clothing area where original Athabascan jackets were modeled.

Day 3 in Fairbanks, AK (Wednesday) The last of our planned activities didn’t begin until after lunch—a tour of the Eldorado Gold Mine and a site visit to the Alaska Pipeline. Surprisingly, the air was free of smoke for the first time since arriving in Fairbanks. Richard Raikes, the caravan tail gunner, and I spent a good portion of the morning repairing the potable water inlet for another motorhome in the caravan. Seems like the inlet hose was higher than the tank, and filling was difficult, if not impossible. They took the top of the bed apart to access the area, and straightened the hose as much as possible. Also, the bathroom door would not shut, so they moved the striker plate. One of the neat things about a caravan is people helping people.

Our bus departed at 1:30 PM and almost made it out of the park before the engine stalled. We waited awhile, de-boarded the bus, waited awhile, opted to carpool, were called back to wait on another bus, and finally boarded an operable bus. (As a side note, all of our activities in and around Fairbanks included bus transportation.) Our first stop was at the Eldorado Gold Mine. We caught a hokey open-air train, and listened to an announcer play guitar and sing old country western songs. He was a good enough singer, but pretty annoying when we were trying to have a conversation. The train made several stops to view demonstrations of various gold mining techniques, including a permafrost tunnel. Upon arriving at the actual mine site, we saw a demonstration of a long sluice and trough, and were given a bag of “gold laden” material, led to troughs of water, and allowed to pan for gold. Once you get the hang of it, it’s not that difficult. We both managed to pan a total of $16.50 worth of gold flakes, which Kay promptly had made into a drop for her necklace. Panning for gold was fun! We were then off to view the Alaska Pipeline. Our brother-in-law, Gerald, was one of the workers who helped build the pipeline, and we thought of him as we viewed this engineering wonder. It’s not as big as we thought, being only 4 feet in diameter, but delivers a million barrels a day.

Tomorrow, 10 members of our caravan have opted to fly to Barrow, AK, most northern city in North America, where the sun doesn’t set for 84 days. We will stay behind, and enjoy a day of exploring.

Day 4 in Fairbanks, AK (Thursday) We awoke to heavy smoke from the forest fires south of Fairbanks, and decided to stay close to smoke-free air. We had planned to hike around the Creamery, a sandhill crane sanctuary, but the smoke was prohibitive. We took a couple of photos of cranes, and drove to Walmart to shop for souvenirs, the same place where most of the tourist attractions buy theirs, then we each had a great charcoal-grilled chili cheeseburger at Carl Jr’s, reminiscent of the ones served at Minute Man in Arkansas. We had planned to drive from there to Chena Hot Springs, but the smoke was so bad we opted to wait a few hours. Driving back to the RV park, we saw two moose in a marsh along a back road.

The rest of the afternoon was spent loading photos on Picasa Web Album.

About 6 PM we drove towards Chena Hot Springs. The road follows the Chena River for a good portion of the way; the river in this area is clear and has lots of riffles. We saw several moose along the way to the hot springs and back.

Day 5 in Fairbanks, AK (Friday) We both awoke with some congestion from the smoke, and several members of our caravan were having breathing problems. This was our last full day in Fairbanks. Because of our “slack” time yesterday, I had begun to have second thoughts about the area, but upon reviewing the photos, decided it was indeed a great place to visit, with lots of activities. Of course, smoke from the forest fires decidedly impacted our ability to hike. The smoke today was not as bad as yesterday, but still prohibitive to be outside. Two couples from the caravan traveled to the Arctic Circle yesterday. (300 miles round trip) One returned safely after 12 hrs. One returned at 6 AM (20 hrs.), having had two flats, a huge tow bill, and an unexpected cab ride. Neither couple saw wildlife. The caravan members who went to Barrow returned tired from the long flights—3 hours each way; most said they were glad they did it, but would not do it again. They went in two planes to Barrow on the Arctic Ocean. One of the planes had a fuel pump problem and had to turn back for service. Both turned back to stay together. The six hour trip turned into a 10 hr. trip. We saved $1400 by opting not to go. We prefer to spend our money on fishing or bear viewing. The caravan had a cookout at 6 PM and we both assisted. The rest of the evening was spent preparing for travel tomorrow, and wrapping up this portion of the journal.

Our Recommendations for Fairbanks, AK On the road between Tok and Fairbanks, Rika’s Roadhouse is an absolute must. We both enjoyed it immensely and spent considerable time there. Fairbanks offers many activities for the tourist. One of our favorites was the Alaska Salmon Bake at Pioneer Park. We really liked the Ice Palace—a definite must do. The Riverboat Discovery II cruise and Eldorado Gold Mine tour were great—we would do both again. The Museum of the North at the University of Alaska Fairbanks is also a must do. We both enjoyed viewing the pipeline. If environmental conditions (weather, smoke, etc.) permitted, there are several good walking and hiking trails in the area. A day exploring and fishing in the Chena River Recreation Area would definitely be worthwhile, and we’re sorry we couldn’t do this because of the smoke.

Campground Riverview RV Park is a decent park, and had good 30 amp electricity, water, sewer, cable, and wi-fi. The laundry was OK, but the showers were a little lacking. The pull-thru sites were large. Dust was a problem, but this is a semi-arid area, and smoke was really bad the last two days. This is probably one of the best RV parks in Fairbanks.

Driving Statistics
Beginning Mileage: 13,401.5
Beginning Time: 7:15 AM Alaska DST
Ending Mileage: 13,602.7
Ending Time: 2:30 PM Alaska DST
TOTAL MILEAGE FOR THE DAY: 201.2
CUMULATIVE MILEAGE: 4,211.2