A few weeks ago, the weather in Fairbanks was hovering in the -30 degree range. I can’t honestly fathom what that feels like, although I’m certainly confident that I would not like it. During our time here, it’s been a more tolerable temperature, ranging from -10 overnight to almost 10 during the day.
We collected our luggage and got the shuttle to the hotel. The lights were ever so slightly visible on the ride, but I was so exhausted I couldn’t see straight, let alone appreciate subtle light changes in the sky. After a solid night of sleep at Pike’s Waterfront Lodge, we got our car and learned when & how to plug it in so the oil doesn’t freeze.
Since the dog ate my last good pair of mittens, we went to a local outdoor gear outfitter. I figured if anyplace would have warm mittens it would be here, and I was not disappointed! Kiddo got a snood and I have to admit, it’s pretty awesome.
A stop at Walmart for groceries and we were off to Northern Sky Lodge, about 45 minutes west of town. Roads around here are not salted. In hindsight, that makes sense, but it surprised me in the moment. Salt melts snow, but at some point, it will get cold enough here that the melted snow would then freeze to solid ice which would be treacherous. Also, the snow here almost feels fake. It’s super light and fluffy and blows all over the place. So, they plow a lot of it away, but the roads still are snowy and can be icy. Taking turns is not for snow-driving novices, and more than one car skidded right through stop lights. I see now why many visitors do not rent cars. Thankfully, I grew up driving in bad weather and am comfortable driving slowly and cautiously in such conditions.
Friday we decided to make the 2-hour trek over to Chena for the hot springs. On a map, it looked close, but Alaska is so vast that everything is actually super far apart. It was thankfully a nice day and the driving was easy.
Chena hot springs had mixed reviews so I was wary of what we’d find. I have to say, some people have unreasonable expectations. Many complained that the rocks were slimy. It is a NATURAL HOT SPRING, so yes, there will be some natural algae. I found it to be perfectly nice. The water was about 102-106 and was crystal clear. The walkway to the spring was covered so we didn’t freeze to death getting in and out, and there was also an outdoor hot tub and an indoor pool and 2 more hot tubs. We enjoyed watching the steam cling to our hair and then turn to ice. A very nice $20 afternoon!
We had an exorbitantly priced lunch at the resort restaurant before heading back to the lodge to try to wait for the aurora to show up.
Vacation Days 