Jump to content

My drive up to Fairbanks, Alaska


mthq

Recommended Posts

Well well we meet again! So rather than taking the 30 minute flight, I decided to take out the rambler and drive my way up the last frontier to the golden heart city... FAIRBANKS. Yep, with enough money to live on enough Hostess apple and lemon pies along with a shelter to stay in (my brothers summer dorm at the university), the trip was well worth the 6 hour drive. Did I learn anything new? Why yes I did! As my brother best put it, "Fairbanks is the 1980's version of Anchorage". The ciggerette smoking, confederate flag waving, and... long male hair truley lived up to my expectations.

fairbanks1.jpg

fairbanks2.jpg

A statue honoring the Italian explorer who couldn't find any gold and thus landed here to rest in frustration.

fairbanks3.jpg

fairbanks4.jpg

UAF --one of the few locations of the controls to the Mars rover.

fairbanks6.jpg

fairbanks10.jpg

fairbanks10a.jpg

fairbanks11.jpg

fairbanks12.jpg

fairbanks13.jpg

fairbanks13a.jpg

fairbanks14.jpg

fairbanks15.jpg

fairbanks16.jpg

Dillingers has real good cornbeef

fairbanks17.jpg

My brother in the 3E car. No its not a cheesy tribute to Dale Earnhardt, rather it was ment to be No.33 until a crew member realized my brother was painting the first 3 the wrong direction on the roof of the car

fairbanks19.jpg

Johanson Expressway

fairbanks20.jpg

fairbanks21.jpg

fairbanks22.jpg

fairbanks23.jpg

On the way home, I couldn't resist but take this shot at the tallest point in North America.. Mt. Denali :)

fairbanks30.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Replies 13
  • Created
  • Last Reply

My! Thanks for the Photos. I traveled once on the road between Fairbanks & Anchorage. I remember that view of the Mountain though it was called Mt Mckinley then. Is the road still gravel most of the way?

It looks like the same Fairbanks from the 1970s. Just dirtier now. Oh and I see they have a Walmart now. :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Suprisingly urban.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I know. It seems like it's a lot bigger city than it really is (like 100,000 instead of 35,000).

Alaska is quite a deceiving state. Most people think it's all just frozen tundra. I used to have some relatives who were stationed in the state, and I know I was quite surprised when my family went up to visit them and found Anchorage and Fairbanks to be as big as they were.

Nice photos, BTW.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I remember that view of the Mountain though it was called Mt Mckinley then.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

In 1897, the U.S. "officially" named the mountain Mt. McKinley, but Denali is the official name currently recognized by the State of Alaska. The mountain commonly goes by both names, however.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've always wanted to visit Fairbanks and Anchorage.

I visited Juneau last summer with a group from my University and we helped clear trails and build an outhouse. (The old one was, well, a bit substandard and had spiders crawling all over it.)

Alaska is absolutely beautiful! And while the people of Juneau are a bit hostile to tourists.. once you tell them you're not there for the day from a cruise ship, they warm up quite a bit.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the cool photos. It's great for many of us to see a part of our country, so far away, and we haven't been able to visit to see for ourselves. One of my dream trips is to go to Alaska in the Summer, and hopefully, I can do it in the next decade or so. And, I would elect to do it in a vehicle, as well...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.