Alaska, the Final Frontier

 I wanted to review the state of Alaska fresh from our recent visit to Fairbanks. We visited Alaska as a family a number of years ago in June and saw Anchorage, Talkeetna, Denali National Park, Seward, Kenai Peninsula and Whittier. Alaska in the summertime was GLORIOUS. The temperature was between 60-75 degrees and the sun stayed up where we were until 1130 PM. We took a glacier cruise, did some nature walks, visited with sled dogs in their "off" season, and ate dinner at all hours (because, you know, sunlight). We saw moose multiple times and were in awe. A float plane adventure took us over Talkeetna area and we saw a family of grizzlies. I was in LOVE with the scenery (though not the giant mosquitoes! haha!), and told Barrett "I could live here." It is wild and free, scenic, and just has so much space. We joked for years that I had seen it in the summer though, so not a fair representation. 

So....Barrett had a wish for his 40th bday. This hardworking husband of mine asks for very little. He lets me plan trip after trip. For 40 though, he wanted to chase the Northern Lights in Alaska. We decided to take a 5 day/5 night trip to Fairbanks to see if the lights would cooperate. Fairbanks Airport has 6 gates, probably the smallest airport we've ever arrived into. We arrived at 5 PM and headed to get our rental car and walked into the frigid -15 degrees. In just moments our hands and faces hurt as we took in the parking lot paved in snow and the stars beginning to appear. We visited in February and daylight is approximately 9:20AM-5:15PM. Not bad. We drove to our little basement Airbnb with hot tub in the snow and that same night set out to chase the Northern Lights. 

A note about the Aurora Borealis. It is not visible every night. You don't just say "tonight I'm seeing the lights by golly!" Auroras are best seen at Northern latitudes and away from city lights and light pollution. You also want a relatively clear night though, breaks in snow and clouds can offer visibility that is surprisingly good, and weather can change quickly.  Auroras are caused by the collision of solar particles hitting gaseous particles in the atmosphere. Lights are stronger during geomagnetic storms. Greens and whites are the most common colors seen, however colors of pink, purple, violet, fuchsia, and indigo can occur. There are apps and websites where people a lot smarter than me predict the strength and visibility for each night-an aurora forecast. We relied on these, snacks, energy drinks, good books to read for many hours of car sitting, blankets, and pure luck (and often prayer) that we would see these lights. Lights are most active between 10PM-2AM but are often seen earlier around 7PM and in the AM around 5AM as well. A tour is not needed, though many people recommend it to find places to go and have seasoned "aurora hunters." We read all about the best locations and took it in our own hands. 

In Fairbanks we made an entire bucket list of adventures happen. Dog sledding and mushing the team? Check. The dogs were strong, energetic, and so friendly. Ice museum and a drink at the ice bar (everything is made of ice!)? Check. Hot springs in the below 0 temps with frost forming in our hair and eyelashes? Check. Walking through the woods and playing in the snow? Check. And the lights. OH the lights!!! Two nights we saw muted greens and whites and while pretty, we were a bit underwhelmed. The lights did not appear to "dance", but they were cool. For a few nights the forecast was very poor due to snow so we laid low and enjoyed relaxing. On our very last night, we geared up for car sitting from 8PM or so until 2AM. Neither of us are big on unhealthy energy drinks and candy, BUT when in Fairbanks... a diet of Monster, Mountain Dew, Nutter Butters and caramel popcorn reined supreme for car sitting. We also took pillows and blankets and set alarms for if we dozed, as well as good books. We were READY. And the lights? They showed up in full force. They were AMAZING. We watched them for hours as bright, neon green and light pink, and purple danced all over the sky, changing formation by the second, disappearing and reappearing as we said "wow." I was moved to tears honestly and we leaned back against the hood of the car and snapped photo after photo, kissed, prayed, and basked in the absolute glory. 

2 nights later and back in Oregon I catch myself repeatedly looking to the sky. I miss Fairbanks. It was MAGICAL. The winter wonderland made everything glow and glitter. The air shone with ice (literally) at times. The people were friendly. The food? It was a foodie paradise with Japanese, Thai, Moldovan, Mexican and good-hearty American meals. Just wow. North Pole, Alaska is a charming Christmas-themed town where the streetlights look like candy canes and Santa can be visited as can his reindeer. Chena Hot Springs, Lodge, Ice Museum, and Ice Bar (all in the same area) were once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Dog sledding was so much fun and exhilarating! The man we met was a Yukon Quest former winner and placed in the Iditarod multiple times. His wife and son gave us a tour, and he showed us his photos and talked to us about training and traveling with a sled dog team of 16. I learned so much. 

We ate with locals who had moved from Serbia when we had Japanese food. They told us that they do indeed begin to take the lights for granted and tire of the cold, though, "when there is a really good showing, we definitely notice and take lots of pictures-we just post them less!" one said. 

If you ever have the chance to go, please do, but fair warning. For us, this was not a one-and-done to cross off the bucket list! Instead, we are already dreaming of a trip back, and desiring to go even further North to Utqiagvik (Barrow) to experience polar night (when the sun does not rise for consecutive days, weeks or months), as well as imagining a trip to Finland, Norway or Greenland to see the lights again from different soil. 

All in all I stand by what I said, I could LIVE here. I am not rating states the same as countries. I think all places are worth visiting. Instead my rating for states is as follows: 

1. Things to do/see: 6/5 for Alaska (did I just give extra credit? Yes, it's MY rating system hahaha!)

2. Affordability: 3/5 -Alaska is more expensive food-wise and activities are not cheap. Flights, however, typically are. It is not as expensive as Hawaii. :) 

3. Comfort: 4/5 honestly with proper layers, not bad. COLD, but not bad. 

4. Would I recommend? YES, emphatically YES. DO IT. 

Alaska gets 13/15

Trip cost for 2 people was about $2,000 including flights, food, activities, rental car...for 5 nights.