Just want everyone to know that we spent the night in the Arctic Circle and had to sleep w/ our windows open b/c it was so warm....the hotel kept the inside way too warm but it was also warm outside - at least for Arctic....like about 50+! Up early and down for breakfast in cafeteria. They had eggs Benedict and then had sandwich stuff out so we could make our lunches for the road. We start back to Fairbanks today - about a 500 mile drive that will take us 2 days. Left hotel about 8 a.m. We wrote and mailed some postcards before we left so hopefully if you get one, you will notice the postmark. Bet you haven't gotten many from inside the Arctic Circle!
Our drive took us out past the airport and across the tundra. You could see oil rig stuff forever on the horizon. We were adjacent to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge but distances are very vast and deceiving! We could not see it from here! On the way back down we saw an Arctic fox right away - still in his white fur. He was acting a bit erratic and guide said rabies is rampant here among foxes and wolves. We were able to pull off and watch him for a while. Saw lots and lots of caribou, some tundra swans and other birds, also saw some Dall sheep on the cliffs etc. and they were amazing to watch climb around on the rocks. At one point we saw a herd of over 40 sheep on the slopes far away, but then saw some up close later right by the side of the road. Saw an arctic ptarmigan as well...
The road followed the pipeline and the Sagavanirktok River, also known as the Sag river. The scenery is beautiful!!!! Flat tundra then rolling hills...permafrost up to 2000 ft. thick with an insulating layer of peat. We had long vistas of the pipeline snaking its way up and down hills and then going underground in places. The oil flowing in the pipeline is traveling at a temp of 100 degrees and at a surprising rate of speed. There are pumping stations along the way where they monitor flow, temp, etc. It was very interesting!!!
There was a place called Happy Valley that was a stop for truckers and rig workers - very rustic place to say the least! We stopped for lunch at Galbraith Lake and walked down the gravel riverbed and we all sat on large rocks to eat our lunch. There was ice and snow still banked up across the river. That kind of snow and ice is called aufeis (pronounced "off ice") and is very dense like you would find in glaciers. There is even a distinctive blue color to it underneath the edges. It was a beautiful place nestled in the mountains. It was great!
We also stopped where they were digging gravel along a river and we were able to walk out on the aufeis. There was a little feeder stream that ran under the ice and had hollowed out in places. That was a neat place and very pretty! Can't wait to get to a place where I can upload the pictures from the last week or so!
We went over Atigun Pass which is the place where the highway crossed the Continental Divide at elevation 4,739'. Rivers south flow either into Pacific or Bering Sea and rivers north flow into Arctic Ocean. We saw a small group of Dall sheep up close and personal just over the pass.
We then had great views of the Chandalar Shelf which is the headwaters of the river of that name. After Galbraith Lake when we began climbing up to the pass, we were in the Brooks Mtn. Range. The views were spectacular and we had awesome weather!
We passed Sukakpak Mountain which was this huge open rock face on our side and we were there when the sun was shining on it and it was very spectacular!!! We arrived at our overnite stop at Coldfoot about 6:30 or so and we all headed straight for the bar to get a beer or glass of wine. I even drank a beer which is rare for me...it tasted great! Got checked into our rooms and boy was that an eye opener. These rooms boasted private baths - HA! It was another hotel that was connected trailers with dorm room type accommodations...twin beds - one to a side. The bathroom actually made the one in the RV look roomy! It was a space inside the room that was sectioned off with chipboard - toilet and shower inside the enclosure, sink outside in the room. The closet was the equivalent of a school locker, only it was plywood. Now our room boasted a library as someone had left a book on top of the blanket in the room. We were told that this hotel had been built in 1971 but had been updated. They had put in new carpet and new beds....I think the remodel must have been in 1975!!! It was also very warm inside so we opened the window - there was a cabin not too far away and they had some sled dogs. The dogs barked and growled and howled all nite long! Of course it was never night!
There is a wonderful visitor center and we went there for a program after dinner. The program was an OK presentation, the young ranger who put it together tried really hard, but there were lots of political questions asked and he was stumped as well as being between a rock and a hard place! We enjoyed looking at the displays and we got an Arctic Circle certificate as well. Then it was back to the bar where the whole group met and we polished off the nite with several beers and wine. A good nite's sleep was not to be had! More tomorrow....Linda
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