July 26 - fairbanks

We are beaconing again!
Yesterday Garry and I decided to go out to the Chena Hot Springs. After all this time on the road the idea of soaking in a hot spring sounded wonderful. It was a very pretty 60 mile drive out along the Chena River to the resort. This one was very different from our last hot spring outing. Here there was both an indoor pool and a pretty outdoor rock rimmed, volcanic sand bottom lake. Very peaceful. We soaked for about 2 hours. This was a natural Sodium and Bicarb thermal pool. We were very thirsty by the time we finally got out.The resort had a huge greenhouse where they grow most of their vegetables. The tomatoes were grown without water. (Hyperponic?.)  they had a pretty pond used for ice skating in the winter and lots of old farm equipment used as decirative pieces around the resort.

AHHHH - the warmth!

Antigue car used as a planter

This is made entirely of moose and caribou antlers.

This is one of the first snow mobiles.

Both on the way there and on the way back we saw a cow Moose. Going out she was in a river eating the grasses. On the way back she was right on the side of the road. We were afraid for a moment that she would run into the road and us but fortunately she turned butt end towards us and stomped off down into the berry bushes. She was so close we could almost touch her.

"What are you looking at?"

Moose in river

Last night we decided to spend the night at a Walmart. dab mistake. We were awake almost all night between the traffic, some kids drag racing and a train that came through several times that night. We are tired today. however we did go tour the UAF Large Animal Research station. They are studying MuskOx and Caribou there. The tour guide and the workers were all UAF students. The baby caribou were so cute.

 Afterwards we went to see the Georgeson Gardens which is slao on the UAF campus. they have been researching what flowers and vegetables grow the best in Alaska with its short ( about 83 days) summer. Whatever they have learned is working well as the garden looked wonderful and everything was growing like crazy. I hate to think what my garden has looked like all summer.

Tomorrow we are meeting up with our friends Jeff and Marnie, picking up the rental car, parking our camper and heading North to Prudhoe Bay and the Oilfields. We will be out of cell/internet service for 4 days. We will post again when we return.