It has been ten days since Elizabeth picked me up at the Fairbanks airport and we headed out to Healy and the study site. So we figured that it was about time to take the two-hour drive and go back to Fairbanks and catch up on some things. We both had equipment and things to pick up for the project. However we had more important things on our minds this morning when we left the cabin. After breakfast and getting our things together we set off northeast toward Fairbanks.
Even though it was 41 Degrees, there was still a bunch of snow in Fairbanks.
It was a beautiful clear and warming morning when we left, and the drive was nice. The first place we stopped after getting into town was the University of Alaska. Dr. Natali has a lab there, and the lab has showers! We haven’t had a shower since we arrived on the 19th! We were overdue. The shower room in the lab building is the only one in the building, so when the men are using it they hand the “men’s” sign up, and when the women are in there they hand the “women’s” sign. There were already some men in there when we arrived, so I went first. It felt good to get clean again! And then to put on fresh clothes! I even shaved. When Elizabeth finished we went straight to the Laundromat just down the hill from the campus. We put a load of clothes each in a washer and went over to the PolarTREC office.
At the PolarTREC office we had a chance to talk with Janet Warburton. She is the director of the program and is a wonderful person! It was good to see her again. We picked up some things and let her know how everything was going on the expedition. By the time we left Janet it was time to have lunch, so we put our clothes from the washer into the dryer and stopped at the local Subway shop to get a sandwich. It was good!
It's nice to have clean clothes after a good shower! Especially after ten days.
Subway was a perfect place to have lunch!
We then drove around town looking some of the things that we needed for the cabin and the experiments. We went into the Yukon Quest shop to learn about the dog sled race that begins and ends in Fairbanks. It’s a very tough race. If you get some time you should look up the information about the race. Outside the shop was the Chena River that runs through town. Although, at this time of year it doesn’t exactly run through town, it kind of sits there frozen! Kids ride their motorcycles and snowmobiles on it.
The Yukon Quest is a big race in Fairbanks for dogs and their sled teams.
The rivers in Fairbanks, like the Chena River, are all still frozen.
We then headed back to get our finished laundry and then back to the university. We looked around the campus and saw some interesting things. The ice sculptures are beautiful. There is the Museum of the North and the International Arctic Research Center. We also went to the bookstore where I found some little things that I plan on giving away to some of the students when I return to school. I will probably find the students who have asked the highest number of questions, or the most interesting questions, or made the best comments about the project. I’m sure I will figure that out before I get back.
The university sign always gives the local temperature.
The Museum of the North is on the university campus. It has some great exhibits inside.
There are ice carvings all around the university campus this time of year.
Elizabeth and I ended our day in Fairbanks at Fred Meyers shopping for food to get us through the next week.
We then stopped at Value Village to see what we could find and then of course we had to end the day at Fred Meyers. I needed more Snickers!