Days 5/6

Hello Readers, well we made it safely back to Fairbanks and now have cell and internet again. It was a wild trip. We left FB on Friday morning around 0730. There are about 75 miles of paved hwy before you actually get to the Dalton Hwy. But 'paved' doesn't necessarily mean nice. We would be cruising down the road about 55-60 and suddenly some frost heaves would just about bottom out the suburban and then nearly toss you airborne...needless to say the kids thought it was the best road ever. The Dalton Hwy (the Haul Rd) is about half paved and half dirt for the first 175 miles and then all dirt/gravel after that. We drove it to mile 189. Ironically the dirt/gravel parts are almost nicer than the paved parts because there are no huge potholes that scare the heck out of you and nearly rip the suspension out at 50mph. We did have 2 full size spares with us just in case. Our first stop was at mile 60 for the 'HotSpot Cafe' and lunch. Its basically a shack, but man do they have some great hamburgers. Our next stop was about mile 120 when we crossed the Arctic circle. It is just a parking lot with a big sign, pretty cool nonetheless. After that we drove to Coldfoot at mile 175, which is also the first buildings other than a few outhouses since mile 60. Coldfoot consists of an airstrip (4 airplanes total), a visitor center, and a truckstop/inn. Here we were able to get a flightseeing tour in a Beaver on tundra tires. It was a great flight, KM rode in front and the kids all got headsets which they thought were very cool. At one point the pilot put it in a big sideslip to drop down into a canyon and we were headed right for a huge granite face...I thought KM and my Mom were going to jump out for a second there, a cool thrill for everyone. we flew up through the Gates of the Arctic National Park/Preserve and then made a short field (and I do mean SHORT) landing on a gravel bar in the middle of the river. I would have never thought a Beaver could have landed there. Then we took off again, spotted some Moose feeding in a lake and then back to Coldfoot. A very cool experience. Then we drove another 15 miles up the road to Wiseman AK population of 12. There we stayed in a great little B&B. The kids got to play with their 4 sled dogs and throw about 5000 rocks into the river. The cabin was cozy and nice but sleep was tough since the sun never went down...very weird. We talked with the owners about hunting/trapping and gold mining. They've lived there full time for over 15 years, with two very well adjusted children ages 9 and 12. They have a phone, generate their own power via wind, solar and generator. They hunt for most of their food, 2 moose and 2 sheep a year for a family of 4 and they run a very nice B&B. An interesting existance to be sure but not for everyone...not for me either. Our drive back to Fairbanks was uneventful, a bit sloppy at times as you can see from the pictures of the car. 35 miles out the kids finally got bored and antsy so we broke down and put a video on for them, we figured they've done a fantastic job for just over 1000 miles so they earned it. Tonight KM and I ran the Midnight Sun Run, the furthest north 10k in the US. We had a great time and even ran the whole way. Now its time to collapse and rest. Tomorrow is the Solstice festival here in FB and then a riverboat ride before our return home on Monday. Enjoy the pictures, I'll post more later, but now I must sleep. Storm