Alaskan Tourists in a Cold Climate

We were Alaskan tourists in a cold climate the whole time we traveled to see the Northern Lights.

In January 2024, we boarded planes headed to the frozen tundra.

Why?

Because our astronomer son told us this would be the best year to see the Northern Lights for the next dozen years.

Twelve years from now, I’ll be even older and even more concerned about the cold.

So, we booked a tour and off we went.

It was wonderful.

And cold.

Cultural History for Alaskan Tourists

On our first morning in Fairbanks, we stepped out of the hotel wearing all our many layers of clothing.

I hadn’t taken five steps before my breath fogged my glasses; it turned to frost, and then I couldn’t see anything.

My son returned to lead me all four blocks through -37 degree weather to the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitor Center.

Once I reached the museum, I laughed at the girls in our party–whose eyelashes were frozen white.

This is the type of museum we like — full of natural history exhibits and sections about the folks who’ve always lived there, or who have come in the last 130 years.

We learned about building the Alaska Pipeline, what it was like to winter over during pioneer days, and the beautiful ways Native Americans adapted and decorated their possessions.

The exhibits presented interesting views of local life; a theater showed videos on the same, and the friendly docent even showed me how to track the Northern Lights.

An exhibit about the first Episcopal bishop to Alaska even included the airplane he flew to visit his parishioners around the state.

Notable Highlights for Alaskan tourists in Fairbanks

Our third trip as Alaskan tourists meant we missed the black flies. (They were hibernating!)

The enormous land mass charmed me all three times.

I even wrote a novella in 2013 using a true story I gleaned from the fascinating pioneer histories.

So, of course, I visited the Tanana-Yukon Historical Society in Fairbanks, where I saw familiar stories and names.

All my research rushed back as I examined Alaskan gold rush photos and a display of a pioneer’s winter hut.

I don’t know if I’m the only historian who does this, but I quickly engaged the docent, and we swapped tales.

My family wandered off in search of something more interesting. “Mom always talks to the people running the museums,” my son explained.

To my surprise, I also saw pump organs, not only in the Fairbanks museums, but also in Chena Hot Springs.

We’ve got my grandmother’s matching pump organ here at home in our living room!

Everyday life prompted lots of discussions!

Among ourselves, we discussed what life looked like in a frigid climate.

I’d read about car engines needing to be plugged in, but never saw it before.

Driving out of town, we could hardly see anything out the window–our breath fogged the windows, and then they crystalized.

It’s hard to be an Alaskan tourist in the wintertime!

But how do Alaskan tourists drive?

Carefully, on studded tires and with keen eyes watching for ice, moose, snow drifts, as well as vehicles that have slid off the road.

Without cell service outside of town, a car problem can turn into a nightmare very quickly.

Our two-hour drive to Chena Hot Springs, thankfully in a warm van, took us through snowy landscapes over frozen rivers, and I didn’t see as many houses as I expected.

“85% of people in Alaska (out of a population of about 750,000 people) live within 15 miles of Anchorage or Fairbanks–the largest cities,” our driver explained.

She answered many questions along the way, including the surprising fact that most Alaskans build their own homes.

The “working” growing season is so short, available carpenters are few in number.

She also warned us to watch for moose, “because you never know when you’ll see them along the side of the road and we don’t want to run into one!”

Visiting the actual hot springs

Founded in 1905, Chena Hot Springs boasted a 106-degree (Fahrenheit) outdoor spring.

Even though it was -30, we hurried out in our bathing suits to slip in.

That’s a 136-degree swing in temperature. Getting in, then out again, and hurrying to our towels was shocking.

The temperature contrast meant moisture rose from the water onto our faces and hair.

It immediately froze and turned white.

I now know what my daughter’s hair will look like when she reaches my age!

We enjoyed our trip to see the Northern Lights (see this post with photos), and my husband is pleased.

I have no interest in visiting Antarctica now!