Alaska #3: Fairbanks: UAF, Three Bears, Pike's
News ·Friday August 22, 2008 @ 22:57 EDT (link)
20080821: (Deadman's Lake, AK to Fairbanks, AK: 259 miles.) It was too rainy for a fire, so we skipped breakfast, broke camp, and left at 0911. Second construction of the day (first didn't require us to stop, just follow a pilot car) was at 1112-1117; 47 miles of construction with patches of mud. Stopped 1105-1235 at the Tok Alaska Public Lands visitor center, and booked a night (22nd) at Pike's Waterfront Lodge. Stopped 1317-1358 at a parking area near the Chief River to cook some ramen on our stove, but it was too windy to get the water to a boil; probably used half a fuel canister trying. Stopped for gas at 1600 and reached the end of the Alaska Highway, where it becomes the Richardson Highway. More construction 1620-1623. We did manage to cook some lunch in a sheltered picnic spot at Big Delta State Historical Park (1545-1612), and then had to wait for another pilot car (1612-1634). Got a great photo out of the window of trees in fog while waiting.
We arrived at the Fairbanks visitor center at 1825 and spent about an hour there looking at brochures and using the computers to check and reply to email. The visitor center is on 1st Avenue, but parking is across the Chena River, which seems more convenient for thieves than for tourists.
We found a place to eat (Siam Thai, had curry, very good), finished there at 2036 and drove out to a Bed and Breakfast that we'd reserved earlier: Three Bears (rightmost photo above shows a roofed picnic area with our green cabin in back). It was nice; the cabins were quite close together, and a bit untidy-looking, but they were comfortable and the owner was friendly, and a Christian; she even knew of the assemblies we were looking to attend Sunday.
20080822: (Fairbanks, AK.) Up at 0820, got ready; the owner gave us breakfast (waffles with fruit, bacon, and coffee) at 0900 on the porch of the main house; we left 1016.
The temperature as we drove by the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) was 104°F. We stopped in to look around (I like looking around at universities; Honey not so much). We checked email at the library, walked to the Arctic Region Supercomputing Center, but had missed the tour,
We stopped at Beaver Sports at 1344 in town to buy an extra stove (so we could both reheat our Thai food) and fuel for both stoves (Snow Peak fuel, both Snow Peak stoves), 2 cups and bowls (they had better camping flatware than we'd brought); we stopped at a used bookstore nearby too (found some Dragonlance books we were looking for), and looked for gun stores in the Yellow Pages. We went over to Pike's Waterfront Lodge and unpacked at 1530, and found a chapel for Sunday: Country Bible Chapel on Old Chena Hot Springs Road.
We ate at Pike's Landing, next to the Lodge; had steak for an early anniversary dinner. I wasn't that impressed (for one, I asked for medium, and it was well done; for another, the steak wasn't that great), but we got an acceptable Champagne, and Honey enjoyed her steak. If we're in town again we'll try the Pump House. Later (2130) we got some ice cream at the hotel.
20080821: (Deadman's Lake, AK to Fairbanks, AK: 259 miles.) It was too rainy for a fire, so we skipped breakfast, broke camp, and left at 0911. Second construction of the day (first didn't require us to stop, just follow a pilot car) was at 1112-1117; 47 miles of construction with patches of mud. Stopped 1105-1235 at the Tok Alaska Public Lands visitor center, and booked a night (22nd) at Pike's Waterfront Lodge. Stopped 1317-1358 at a parking area near the Chief River to cook some ramen on our stove, but it was too windy to get the water to a boil; probably used half a fuel canister trying. Stopped for gas at 1600 and reached the end of the Alaska Highway, where it becomes the Richardson Highway. More construction 1620-1623. We did manage to cook some lunch in a sheltered picnic spot at Big Delta State Historical Park (1545-1612), and then had to wait for another pilot car (1612-1634). Got a great photo out of the window of trees in fog while waiting.
