Fairbanks, Alaska

We are in Fairbanks today.  It was a warm sunny day when we arrived here yesterday but it started raining during the night and turned cold and cloudy.  It was a perfect day to visit the University of Alaska museum in Fairbanks.

Don't you love that expression?

The museum is fabulous.  There are displays of native culture, art and craft.  The wildlife displays were excellent also.  They have several movies on topics such as aurora and life in Alaska in the winter.  They had interviews of locals talking about life here when it gets dark and cold.  They don't consider it to be bitter cold until it gets below - 50 degrees!

Ceremonial masks

Something else I didn't know is that most people don't have indoor plumbing.  It is just too cold for underground utitlities.  They said it is a bit uncomfortable to get out of bed at three in the morning and make a dash to the outhouse.  Outhouses are so much a part of life here it is the object of affectionate humor.  Some like to decorate them to make them more cheerful, I assume.

Darlie visiting an outhouse.

Another local says he has a well for his house but in the winter either the well or the sewer pipe leading out of the house freezes up.  You just learn to live with it.  Some told us their advice to us was for us to visit in the summer and go home before winter sets in.  They implied they like things the way they are. The harsh weather will prevent too many of us coming up here and staying.  But people are coming.  There is a magic about the frontier and the sense of freedom here.  There will always be those who will brave the elements to have that sense of being a pioneer.

In winter time the sun only rises just above the horizon for about 3 hours.  It is like a 3 hour long sunset.  The many hours of darkness do lead to depression and other disorders.  For this reason, many Alaskans become involved in outdoor winter sports such as cross country skiing, dog sledding, and snow mobiling.

The aurora appears about 100 times during the winter.  People will stop their cars along the highway to watch the night display.

Raincoat made of seal gut.

The Museum of the North, as it is called, also has displays and historical items from the gold rush days.  There are fozzilized artifacts that were unearthed by the hydralic mining method that was used to wash gold bearing soil into sluice boxes.  We saw fozzelized remains of the mammoth and the lion that used to roam this area.

Beautiful beadwork.

We stopped at Walmart to stock up on things that can be difficult to find other places.  While there, I noticed the parking lot had pedestals with electrical outlets on them for each parking space.  Most Alaskan autos and trucks have an electric plug hanging out of the grill.  When you go shopping at Walmart, you plug in your car to keep the engine warm so it will start when you come back out.  I suppose that would be vital if the temperature was -50 as it often is in Fairbanks.

See the plug?