Arctic Circle

I took several days off work last week to eat up some use-or-lose time and attend to various things. Buddy and I both visited our doctors and came out with clean bills of health. Buddy's stitches from his second surgery are now gone and he's released from the doctor's care. My annual physical went well, with the doctor (and me) happy.

Saturday I checked another “must see” off my list when I took a trip up the Dalton Highway to the Arctic Circle.

Known to long-time Alaskans as the Haul Road, the Dalton Highway starts about 84 miles north of Fairbanks and ends at Deadhorse just a few miles from Prudhoe Bay and the Arctic Ocean.

The road was built in five months in 1974 to accommodate the trucks hauling supplies and equipment to facilitate construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. Access to the Haul Road was limited until 1994, when it was opened for public use.

The Arctic Circle Wayside, our destination, is maintained by the Bureau of Land Management and is located at Mile 115 of the Dalton.

The road was bumpy and at times dusty despite the “scattered showers” we encountered. There were numerous curves and even more hills. Traffic was lighter than I expected, but we did encounter several personal autos and semis, as well as a few bicyclists and motorcyclists. Roadside litter, surprisingly and pleasingly, was minimal.

Knowing the road was unpaved and not easy on vehicles, my traveling buddy and I opted to let someone else do the driving. We signed up for a tour offered by an agency on the Army post where we both work. We joined our driver Jay and eight other passengers, all of whom are either new to Alaska or visiting. Not only did this save our cars from a possible beating, it afforded us the opportunity to sit back and watch the scenery go by. And go by it did.

This is not your run-of-the-mill drive through boring wilderness. The landscape seemed to change every couple of miles.

We drove through boreal forests, with white spruce, alder, willow and birch trees crowding the side of the road. Around the next curve, the trees disappeared and we were treated to a view of flat (or it appeared flat) tundra with just a few small bushes or trees scattered haphazardly. The next curve revealed spindly, misshapen black spruce trying to survive in the permafrost. The pipeline was visible for much of the trip. And mountains – everywhere we looked, there were mountains on all sides of us.

North of the Yukon River bridge, we were awed by huge fuschia patches of fireweed, signaling regrowth of areas damaged by wildfires several years ago. Just 17 or so miles before the Arctic Circle Wayside, we came to Finger Rock, a large granite rock that resembles a finger pointing toward Fairbanks. Other rocks dot the immediate area, with small arctic plants pushing their way up through the ground.

Nearly every traveler making this trip wants his photo taken next to the Arctic Circle sign. There’s a viewing stand to look out at the mountains of the Brooks Range with a couple of interpretive signs explaining a little about the area.

Every book and website I checked out promised great wildlife viewing on the trip. We could see moose, caribou, bears, fox, marmots and more, they said. I saw eight ravens, one squirrel, one gray jay, one white-crowned sparrow and lots of mosquitos and flies. Disappointing as that may have been, the trip itself was in the excellent category.

How exciting is my life ...

... when I get jazzed about a 3-inch-long zucchini? I bought four small plants at a local nursery and placed them in two 2-foot-long planters in my yard. (My arthritic back makes gardening very difficult and painful, so I've opted for planters.) I planted them Memorial Day weekend and they immediately started throwing out gorgeous yellow blossoms. However, not a single blossom resulted in a zucchini - until last week, nearly six weeks after the planting. Now I have about a dozen little zukes and am watching them eagerly, waiting for them to grow big enough to cut up for stir fry or a soup.

My poor little dog had to have another surgery last week. They thought he had a hernia, but instead he had developed a violent reaction to the synthetic sutures. They drained the fluid and stitched him (again). He's still red and swollen around the incision, and quite sore. It does keep him from jumping and tearing the stitches, but he's miserable. I can't wait until this is all over and he's well again. I'm not sure I would have had this neutering done if I had an idea of what he's been facing. But even the pain can't dull his appetite and his sweet nature. He is feeling better today, and I'm hoping that trend will continue.

We visited the Georgeson Botanical Garden (Welcome to the Georgeson Botanical Garden) this weekend. This beautiful garden is located at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and the colors Saturday were vibrant. We make this visit at least once every summer, to see the various flowers and other plants at different stages of growth.

It was a nice mostly sunny morning with temperatures in the low-to-mid-60s and a slight breeze. The only downside was the swarm of gnats. They seemed to really enjoy being around my face, so I spent a good part of the time waving to keep them away.

Several people were scattered around the garden with easels and paints. We talked with one of them, a principal at a local elementary school. They were all taking a painting class, and were really into creating beautiful interpretations of the flowers. We'll probably go back in August to see what's changed and get more photos. It's one of my favorite spots in Fairbanks.

busy times

Wow, the last two weeks have been busy.

We had several ceremonies at work, including a garrison change of command, that required our attendance to escort reporters and take photos.

I went to the July 4th celebration in town, as our new commander was the speaker and we supported the event with color guard and flag bearers for the state flags. It was hot (80+) and there was no breeze. Despite the heat, the ceremony was very nice and there were several thousand people there. The only thing missing was the usual AF flyover. The speakers, color guard and flag bearers are all positioned on a drydocked sternwheeler, the riverboat Nenana.




The Alaska flag was the first one off the boat.






Between the work requirements, I did get some downtime.










I visited Pioneer Park (Pioneer Park , Fairbanks Alaska), a local park with picnic areas, playgrounds, a couple of museums and a lot of gift shops. Most of the shops are historical buildings that were moved from downtown Fairbanks to the park. They include a blacksmith's shop and a couple of "cribs" from the city's old red light district.


Interior Alaska's first Episcopal church and the home of Judge James Wickersham (James Wickersham) are also in the park.


We enjoyed lunch at Souvlaki, a Greek restaurant, in the park, and visited the aviation museum. The park staff plants gorgeous flowers and the place is cheerful and bright on nice summer days.



















And then there was Buddy. The animal shelter requires that all adopted pets be spayed or neutered, so I took him in for his surgery. Because of a medical condition, the vet had to go into the abdomen to neuter the poor little dog. I went to pick him up and was reading the report when I stopped short at the word "hermaphrodite." Yep, he had a full set of male reproductive organs, plus two small ovaries and an undeveloped uterus. So he was spayed and neutered for the price of one! He recovered quickly, but then developed a hernia. So he's back to the vet this morning for a second surgery. Hopefully he will recover from this one as quickly as he did from the first.

He is a fun little dog, but also a little strange. He doesn't like a lot of noise, and even the sound of popcorn in the microwave frightened him. His eyes got huge and had a wild look in them as he backed - ever so slowly - from the microwave. As soon as he felt safe, he wheeled in the other direction and ran. I offered him a couple of pieces of the popcorn, but he declined. He is also afraid of thunder and the squeaks from the toys I bought him. But he's an affectionate dog and loves being outside.

That's it for this morning. It's time to prepare for the vet and work.