| Date: Thursday, July 17, 2003 |
| Starting Location: Kulane Wilderness Village, YT |
| Destination: Fairbanks, AK |
| Trip Description: We got on the road about 10 this morning. The Alaska Highway through the Yukon is full of frost heaves. Basically, the road resembles a roller coaster with steep, short hills. There were many construction zones along the route. We arrived at the Alaska border around lunchtime. The guy at the border was a "by the book" type. He actually checked our birth certificates! It looked like he was training someone. We ate lunch at a roadside overlook. I prepared sandwiches with fresh smoked salmon, mayo, and cheddar cheese. They were very good.
The trip from the border to Delta Junction was rather boring. It's geting cooler as we headed northward toward Fairbanks. I would say the temperature was in the 50's most of the day. It was cloudy with patches of drizzle near Delta Junction. Between Delta Junction and Fairbanks, the sun broke through and warmed things up a bit.
Tonight we will be at our most northerly point. Fairbanks is still at least 200 miles from the Arctic Circle by highway. On the way to Fairbanks this afternoon, we saw a moose eating by the side of the road. We were unable to photograph it.
Tomorrow we are planning to visit Denali National Park. Denali (Mt. McKinley) is the highest mountain peak in North America at an elevation of 20,320 feet above sea level. We may do a flightseeing tour, or a dayhike in the park, depending on the amount of time and money we have.
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