Living in Alaska - Life in the Last Frontier

The past week or so has been so busy for me. I’ve had to write myself lists, and then go down them -checking off items as I complete them. I feel like I’m suffering from some sort of Attention Deficit Disorder (I refuse to blame it on “old age”!) because I get started on a task, and then I get distracted, and find myself doing something else. This just leads to partially completed projects and tasks, and feeling even more unfocused.  But tomorrow is the day I plan to pare down that list… as long as I don’t get sidetracked.

It hasn’t been all work and no play though. I’ve been taking the time, while out running errands, to stop and enjoy the winter scenery - snapping photos along the way.  It’s been forever since I posted photos, as I’ve been so preoccupied with the calendar, and just haven’t taken the time to share. I’m going to play “catch up” in this entry.

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Last Sunday, my friend Lisa and I went to see the movie “The Secret Life of Bees” with Dakota Fanning & Queen Latifah. The movie is based on the novel by Sue Monk Kidd. I haven’t read the book, and didn’t know what the movie was going to be about, so I went into it merely hoping to be entertained. It was a heartwarming movie for the most part, but there were several scenes which made us both get teary eyed.

After the movie, we stopped to have lunch (enchiladas - yum), before driving over to Pioneer Park to see the “Spooky Train” in action. The Spooky Train is a better known as Engine #1.

Engine #1 was the FIRST steam Locomotive in the Alaskan Interior, arriving in the Tanana Valley more than 100 years ago (July 4, 1905). On July 17, 1905, local dignitaries drove the golden spike, linking the first trackage of the Railroad, between Chena and Fairbanks. Engine #1 was retired in the mid 1920s. “Friends of the Tanana Valley Railroad” began restoring it in 1992 and had the little Loco back together, under Steam, in 1999, 100 years after it was first constructed and delivered to coal mines in the Yukon Territory, near Dawson. Today it can be found in the Museum as well as occasionally puffing around the track at Pioneer Park.

They were giving free train rides to children (and their parents) who came to Pioneer Park in costume. While we hoped to see some cute little ones all dressed up for Halloween, we also knew that since it was so cold, the costumes would be hidden by parkas and winter coats.  So, despite the fact that there are no “cute kid” photos, I did take a couple photos of the train.

I felt it was only fitting to convert the following two photos to black & white:

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I guess the term “wonderland” depends on who you’re speaking to. Winter? Yes. Wonderland? The jury’s still out on that one.  I happen to think the fresh snow is beautiful, and I usually welcome the onset of winter with a little bit of excitement.  I love the pureness that the snow lends to the landscape. I love the contrast of blue skies against sugar-coated trees.  I enjoy the sense of quiet that settles over everything, and the way you can hear your own footsteps amplified in the silence.

With that being said, I don’t particularly care for driving in winter - and especially early winter. In early winter, fresh snow covers ice patches and I find myself driving 10-15 mph under the speed limit, because I’m afraid of going off the road. Driving slow on multi-lane roads isn’t too bad, as those who are more confident - or are in a hurry - can go around me. But when I’m driving down a two lane road like Badger Road (which has sections like an ice skating rink), I’m much more stressed out - particularly when vehicles come up on my tail.  I’ve had this happen to me, even when there are vehicles in the ditches on either side of the road! As the season progresses, and the snow doesn’t fall as much, the roads will become better graveled, and the small rocks will embed in the ice and create more traction.

Some of you reading may not realize that in Fairbanks (and perhaps all of Alaska?), we do not salt the roads.  The salt does little to melt ice, as it’s too cold (imagine -30F to -50F). And if we could melt the ice, it would refreeze immediately and create even more driving hazards. While gravel does help provide traction on snowy roads, it also makes pristine windshields an incredible rarity. I think I have 4-5 dings in my windshield, and Steve has huge “bullet-like” indentations in his.  We won’t replace the windshield until our vision is obstructed, because the odds are pretty good that we’ll get dings and cracks in the next windshield too.

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It snowed yesterday, and this snow brought a couple of inches of accumulation. A glance out the front window shows a temperature of 22F.  Steve took his truck to work this morning, because my car still doesn’t have its studded tires mounted. He said he hit several slippery spots in the hills and had to slow to 30mph for the majority of the drive to avoid sliding. Thank goodness, he doesn’t  have to deal with any traffic on his morning and afternoon commutes.  His shift starts 30 minutes before the rest of the employees (and ends 30 minutes earlier), so he doesn’t have anyone on the road with him when he comes and goes.

I put together this video, from footage I shot yesterday as the snow was falling:

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