Alaska Cruise, Yukon & Denali

 

Thursday, 17 August – Dawson City to Fairbanks AK
 An easy morning with both checkout and bags out at 9. That was welcome, because we had been awake, wandering the streets at 3 am hoping for Northern Lights. Sadly, there were none. Some in the group did see them the night before. 

WW2 "19 Set" for tanks.
Owned one back in the 60s.

With a couple of hours before departure, we found our way to the museum, to learn more about the fascinating history of this place. 

Gold Rush Necessities

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It was a beautiful morning, so we sat outside the hotel until Linda arrived with the bus to take us to the airport. Security was quick – set up on the tarmac and all-human except for their wands.

[the ticket taker registered us on a laptop siting on a car hood] There was one plane on the runway, a 737 with Air North markings. We had it to ourselves, using about 46 of the 120 seats. Easy to get a window seat and take some photos. And easy to get accustomed to a life style involving private charters. 

Formalities at Fairbanks were quick and easy, and soon we were rolling our bags to a drop-off and boarding the bus to our Westmark Hotel. We had a couple hours before our rooms were ready, so we went for a walk to find lunch. It was dull, windy, chilly and damp and the area we walked through seemed somewhat run-down, but eventually we found a delightful little coffee house with eclectic furnishings and a nice light menu. 

Back at the hotel, our keys were soon available and we found our nice, large, comfortable suite. Just one night here, though, so we won’t be settling in. At 6:15 a blue bus pulled up in front and several of us got on to go to the Alaska Salmon Bake & Palace Theatre Show. These are at the Pioneer Park. There are outdoor grills and stands where we got salads, drinks, sides and dessert. The dining hall was a bit warmer than the outdoors, so we enjoyed our meal there. Then we walked to the theatre, 

 

where we sang, laughed and applauded the vaudeville-style show by 5 talented performers who explained Fairbanks and its history in song, dance and recitation. Really enjoyable.

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