20 June 2008

Hi all: We got up early and went to the travel place for our trip to the Arctic Circle. Got there at 0700, and we were off at 0715 in a nice new van with 5 other folks and a guide/driver named Mary who lives here in Fairbanks. We were told we would get back about midnight and I almost passed out. We took off up the highway which is full of frost heaves, and then we left the highway and hit the dirt/gravel roads that have holes, AND frost heaves. We stayed on those roads for 200 miles to the Arctic Circle, stopping on the way at various places for a lunch, and pit stops in One and two holers. No flush. hee hee.

The trip was real nice, our guide was super and told stories she knew of folks that had lived there over the years, and knew a whole lot of the area we were in. She even took us to a place on the Tundra on the "Permafrost", and dug thru the top layer of peat and went down about 12 inches to solid ice. It is really there. Solid ice just 12 inches below the top layer and it runs down some 1000 feet and stays frozen like that ALL the time. The country was beautiful, Saw one LARGE MOOSE run across the road in front of us. By the time I got the camera and took a photo, all I got was trees. I'm sure his butt is there somewhere, but could not see it in the photo. Didn't see any more animals except one snowshoe rabbit run across the road. It made it safe and sound.

WE took our lunch with us and stopped on the Yukon river by the ONLY bridge that goes over it and ate lunch. The bridge was put there to hold the oil pipe line. We saw the pipe line several times along the way. It runs on top of the ground at places, and other places it runs under ground, normally over mountains etc. They keep it on top of the Permafrost places so it won't damage it.

Sending a couple photo's we took today. Amy is sticking her hand down in the permafrost hole, and the photo of us crossing the Arctic Circle, and a couple other shots at the circle. The weather was perfect, and the mesquetoes were out in force. Used lots of spray and they were'nt to bad.

Leave in the morning for the Denali National Park for two days, and they are supposed to have WiFi at the next campground...

Semper Fi

Don, Amy & Pharaoh

P.S. Got up to 85 here in Fairbanks. It was not much cooler where we went up north either.