Four days in Fairbanks

We arrived later than expected due to flight issues. We got our rental car, which was all wheel drive, and headed straight out to lunch. We went to a local restaurant, The Cookie Jar. The food was so good, and the service was great. We had made reservations to do a walk with the reindeer at Running Reindeer Ranch, which was so fun to see the animals up close and learn more about the animals. Having hot chocolate and fresh baked cookies at the end was a nice treat and put a smile on your face, as they were delicious. We then went up to where we were staying for our trip up on Clearly Summit. We found our room had an oven, so we went to the wal-mart and got frozen pizza, as we were tired. That night we got an alert from our host to say the Auroa Borealis was active, it was very cloudy, but you could pick it up through our camera on our phone.

We got up and out the door as we drove 2 1/2 hours to go to Denali National Park. The drive was so easy as there really was no traffic and the views were amazing. You were always noticing something out of the windows. We did a hike for a 1 1/2 hours around a loop, where we hoping to see the dogs in training for the dog sledding. Sadly, we could hear them around but never got to see them. We saw many different animals and birds while out walking. Then we headed back to Fairbanks as we wanted to visit the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum. This museum was so wonderful, as it's filled not only with the cars but clothing, shoes and other antiques. This is so worth a stop and see inside, you won't be disappointed. We had dinner across the street at Garaldos restaurant and had a very tasty meal. Then we got blessed with the Aurora Borealis again, with a clearer night sky and a little bit more action.

This day we drove down towards Castner Glacier, where we had hired a guide to take us on a hike and also do a photo shoot, as we had our son and his friend, who were seniors in high school. This was great as we drove through the north pole on our way, which was so nice to see. Our guide was amazing as we met up and he then took us to the start of the trail, which we would have missed had we been on our own. We had fun walking and learning more about Alaska through his knowledge of living there, but also having help to go through two rivers to get to an ice cave. The ice cave had broken in two because of the summer melt. It was nice to have someone take photos of us, and they came out great. Then we had pizza in Delta Junction and headed back. This night we had a very active evening, early morning with the Aurora Borealis lighting up the skies.

We got up and packed up as this was the last day and we had a late-night flight. We drove to Chena Hot Springs resort and did the tour of their Aurora Ice Museum. This was a nice thing to do and see how creative people can be with ice. It was not very big, so it did not take up a lot of time. We then got to enjoy the time in the hot springs and hot tubs that they have. The water can defiantly get hot in spots and catch you by surprise. Once we were done, we enjoyed eating at the restaurant on site and took our time eating. Then we headed back to Fairbanks where we took the time to stop and see the pipeline. This is free and does not take long to look at but does give you great information about the oil industry. Then we went for a meal in town and then it was back to the airport to drop off the car and head home. We even got to see the Aurora Borealis as we took off on the flight, which was a nice ending.