A Fine Time in Fairbanks

August 4, 2024 – Sunday – Day 42

We left our camp at 8:30 and drove an hour north to Healy, AK to attend church at the Denali Branch.  The meeting was crowded as they have a lot of guest and seasonal workers from the national park area.  They have a small building on a dirt road in the forest.

After church we drove to a campsite about 7 miles west of town.  It was a very quiet spot and a nice sunny day.  We spent the rest of the day relaxing at camp.  It was nice to have a spot where we weren’t next to a river or highway.

August 5, 2024 – Monday – Day 43

We left camp later in the morning and drove to Fairbanks.  We got gas and shopped at Costco and Walmart.  We visited Pioneer Park and camped in the parking lot for $12.  It was a hot, hot day and evening.  Finally the sun went behind the trees, and it cooled down a little.  It was a noisy night but quieted down after dark.

August 6, 2024 – Tuesday – Day 44

This morning we went to the University of Fairbanks’ Large Animal Research Station on the edge of the city. We were able to see muskoxen and reindeer.  One of the students gave a tour and it was very interesting.

We then went to the university campus and visited the Museum of the North.  We spend most of the afternoon there.  It is a very good museum with several nice movies about Alaska.

In the evening we went back to Pioneer Park and had dinner at the Alaska Salmon Bake and ended with the show at the Palace Theater.  The food was okay and the show was pretty good.  We spent another night in the parking lot at the park.  It was a lot cooler and a bit quieter than last night.

August 7, 2024 – Wednesday – Day 45

We left our camping spot at Pioneer Park in the morning and our first stop was at Jo’s Oven to buy some sourdough bread.  We read online that Jo makes the best bread.  It was also the most expensive bread.  A small loaf of traditional sourdough and a cinnamon roll was $18.  They were both good, but expensive.  We heard last night that Fairbanks is one of the most expensive places to live in the US, and based on the price of bread, it is true.

We next went to the Tanana Valley Famer’s Market a few miles away.  It was very crowded for a Wednesday morning.  They have a lot of food and crafts.  We bought a chicken cheburek from a Turkish lady.  The cheburek is like a thick crepe, folded over, with a filling inside.  Kind of like an empanada.  We had the cheburek and cinnamon roll for lunch.  They were both good, but the sourdough cinnamon roll was the best.

We left Fairbanks and continued to travel north about 60 miles to Chena Hot Springs Resort.  We found a campsite in their campground and walked through the grounds.  

It is most famous for the hot springs, but they also have an ice museum.  A building/hotel where everything is made of ice.  Even the cups and utensils are made of ice.  It used to be a winter attraction, but now they have built a huge freezer so they can run it year-round.  It was a little expensive to take the tour, so we didn’t go in it.

The hot springs were very nice.  They have an outdoor lake, an indoor swimming pools and a couple of hot tubs.  We spent most of our time in the lake.  It was very hot, but there were cold spots you could find as you swam around.  We relaxed in the pool both before and after dinner.  In the evening the clouds covered the sun, so it was very nice to be in the hot water.  The hot springs are also popular in the winter when there is deep snow and -20 degree temperatures.

The night at the campground was pretty quiet and it finally cooled down a bit.

August 8, 2024 – Thursday – Day 46

In the morning we drove from Chena Hot Springs back to Fairbanks to get the van tires rotated.  It took longer than expected, but we left town about 2:30 pm and drove to North Pole, Alaska.  This town is about 15 miles from Fairbanks and was started in the 1950’s with the expectation of toy companies putting manufacturing plants in the town and labeling the toys as being made at the North Pole.  I don’t know if that worked out, but they do have Santa Claus’ house just off the highway.  We stopped and looked around and visited the reindeers.

After our stop at Santa’s house we drove another 30 miles down the road and camped on the Salcha River. They were doing helicopter drop-offs on the bank of the river from a nearby fire, so it was noisy for a while, but it quickly quieted down after they finished and left.