Living in Alaska - Life in the Last Frontier

Six years ago today, we arrived in Fairbanks! Officially though, our arrival in Alaska was six years ago yesterday - when we crossed the border and set up camp in Tok for the evening.  Here is some of what I wrote in my Alaska Journal about our first impression of Interior Alaska:

Fairbanks is like any other big city. Immediately upon entering the outskirts of the city (and while passing through North Pole - which is just east of here), we began to see businesses we haven’t seen since leaving the midwest: Blockbuster Video, Wendy’s, etc. It is also congested here - especially after visiting towns boasting populations under 500.

We found our campground (Chena Marina RV Park) and set up. Just then a float plane landed on the “water runway” in front of  us. This continued all day and I enjoyed watching each time. Later on this evening, Steve and I met a couple from North Carolina and ended up sitting in their RV chatting until 11:30pm. It was impossible to tell that it was late - the sun was still visible on the horizon.

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…we took a drive through “downtown” Fairbanks. It doesn’t really feel like Alaska to us yet. (I know it will when the cold weather comes) It was comforting to see some of the establishments I am familiar with. But I also saw many businesses and small shops that aren’t a part of the big nationwide mix. I look forward to exploring some of them.

Another nice change is seeing foothills on the horizon, rather than tall buildings. And knowing that only a short drive away is some of the most awesome scenery in the country. We still feel like tourists (and have been told that we aren’t truly Alaskans until we live through our first winter), and I’ve picked up countless brochures highlighting activities and sights for the entire state. We hope to see as much of Alaska as we can while we’re here. I am glad that Steve and I share that love for getting out on the open road and driving until we can’t go anymore. And I look forward to delving more deeply into my photography.

I’m also looking forward to experiencing some of the local events here in Fairbanks. This month (next week) is the Midnight Sun Festival and the Annual Midnight Sun Baseball Game. By the way, I think I saw on the news that the recent sunset was at 11:35pm and sunrise was at 2:28am. On June 21st, it will be the longest day of sunlight and then the days get progressively shorter again. Although the long days of sunlight were a bit disconcerting to us at first, we’re finding that we are able to sleep through the night without any problems. We did put a piece of cardboard on the front door window of the camper and I stuffed some cardboard in the skylight over our bed and that helps a lot.

I’ve often written about how thankful I am that the Army brought us here, and I’m going to say it again - how fortunate we are to live in Alaska! Happy Anniversary to us!

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Our lawn is going strong and getting thicker and denser with every passing day. There are other types of grass growing now, in addition to the Kentucky Bluegrass. (Grass seed for Alaska is a special mix)

The other night the sun was low in the sky (near midnight), and the light cast made all the colors glow. The grass was a neon green, and the front door was a brilliant red. It looked so pretty, so I had to grab a photo.  My hanging baskets are thriving too, which is a pleasant surprise. I thought for sure I’d kill the plants when I transplanted them.

The birds haven’t come back to my feeders yet - except for the robins - and that bothers me. I really hope it’s just the time of year and not that we disturbed them with all the activity around the house over the past couple of weeks. The squirrel is still visiting however, and she’s been helping herself to the bounty. I do miss my feathered friends.

On Thursday, I met my friend Abby and her family at Creamers Field for an outdoor portrait shoot. This was the original plan last week, until the rain came and forced us indoors. We met at 5pm, and the sun was blazing hot and still too high in the sky to be a flattering light.  We looked for areas out of the direct sun, but then found ourselves being eaten alive by the mosquitoes. They were absolutely horrid, and even with bug spray applied liberally, they tortured us. In fact, in some photos, I had to use my photo editing program to actually remove them from the image. I am covered in bites, and I know Abby is too.

Despite the challenges, I did manage to get some nice photographs of her beautiful family. Her sons were much more amicable to having their photos taken; most likely because we were outdoors and they could toss a football around and behave more casually.

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While waiting for the C* family to arrive, I enjoyed watching the swallows (Northern Cliff Swallows) flying in and out of their mud nests. Cliff Swallows build their gourd shaped nest of dirt balls and grass, and line the nest with soft grass and feathers. They usually attach the nest to the outside wall under the eaves of a barn or other building. There were several nests attached to the Creamers Barn, and I could see muddy stains from areas where nests were removed from the building. The birds were quite active and talkative, and swooped over my head as I took photos.

After the photo shoot, I headed over to Pioneer Park. Tundra Caravan is performing at the Gazebo on Thursday evenings from 7-8pm. The Gazebo Nights concert series is presented by the Fairbanks Arts Association, and features a different artist each night of the week from June through August. I brought home a schedule, which I’ll share here. If you live locally, don’t miss the free entertainment!

While at Pioneer Park, also known as Alaskaland by long timers here in Fairbanks (the city changed the name to Pioneer Park in 2001), I took my camera for a walkabout while waiting for Tundra Caravan to perform.  If you’ve been reading me for a while, you’ve seen plenty of photos from Pioneer Park in the winter. Gold Rush Town in winter is magical, with Christmas lights illuminating the boarded up cabins and only the sound of snow crunching beneath your feet. But in the summer months, the boards come down off the windows, the lights are packed away for another year, and the historic cabins become galleries, gift shops, and food venues.

The First Presbyterian Church in Gold Rush Town is still used for services and weddings. You can read more about the church here. I’ve photographed it from the outside quite a few times, but had the opportunity to photograph the inside on Thursday. (Click the thumbnails below for an enlarged view)

	The 44 acre Pioneer Park was built for the Alaska 1967 Centennial Exposition. It was later renamed Alaskaland, a name it held until October 2001

Tundra Caravan put on an awesome performance as always. At the end of their show, they invited folks from the audience to learn a few dance moves. My friend Carmen got up to dance with Souzana, as did several children. Everyone had a good time. I enjoyed photographing the dancers in their colorful costumes, as well as some of the interesting sights around me. Don’t miss their next performance on Thursday evening!

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Yesterday, we had beautiful weather, so I took Sedona to Chena Lakes Rec Area for a walk.The sun was warm, and a nice breeze was blowing, which kept the mosquitoes away. We first drove up to the top of Moose Creek Dam, where I parked my car and leashed up Sedona for a walk in the flood plain.

Wildflowers are blooming everywhere, and butterflies and small moths flitted about us as we enjoyed stretching our legs and the beautiful colors of summer. Tall grass waved in the wind - a sea of green for as far as I could see. Pockets of yellow and pink and purple nested in the green, and I stopped to photograph the beautiful colors. The sky was blue and puffy clouds hung low. Off in the distance, it looked like a storm was brewing.

This is Bucky the Moose. He’s made from Diamond Willow. I don’t know anything else about him. One winter, someone wrapped him in tin foil and hung Christmas ornaments on him. I guess he’s the Chena Lakes Flood Project mascot or something.

After our walk, Sedona and I drove into the park. I did a quick loop through the river park area, and saw folks fishing and canoeing on the river. Next, I visited the lake park area. People were fishing, enjoying the paddle boats, and kids were swimming in the beach area, despite the breeze and high 60s temp. I let Sedona go swimming for a little while, despite knowing that the smell of wet dog would assail my nostrils for several hours afterward. She does love to swim.

All in all, it was a lovely couple of hours to spend outdoors in the sunshine. Sedona was worn out and napped as soon as we got home. I dozed off myself for about 15 minutes.

When I stopped to collect the mail on the way home, I noticed we have arctic daisies growing underneath the mailbox. So pretty!

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I haven’t finished laying the tile in the camper yet. I think we’re going to need another box of tiles. My hand was really bothering me after doing as much as I did, but it feels a lot better now. Maybe I’ll work out there later today or tomorrow. We’re not in a rush, as we won’t be taking the camper out until July.

Until next time…