Leaving the Wilderness – August 4, 2018

Before we left the Copper River Lodge, we took a short excursion with sled dogs on what looked like a surrey with bicycle tires.  Bear in mind it was still raining. Yup, I put on my new waterproof jacket, put the hood over my head and headed outside to meet the 4 dogs who were going to give us a ride.  They brought a fellow along with them named John and he did the introductions.  There was Lily and daughter Shelly, Tony and dog-in-training Nadine.  These four dogs pulled us around at probably 20 miles an hour with no hesitation and John told us on snow they can go faster.  The entire family of dogs is 17 strong which includes 3 retirees who just sit by the fire most days.  We spent time getting to know the dogs and hearing about how they are trained.  Really fun.

The bus arrived and we all piled on for our trip to Fairbanks on the Richardson Highway that parallels the pipeline most of the way.  At one time this highway was just a walking trail called “dead horse trail” (I can only guess why) used by the prospectors to get to the mines.

Oil Pipeline through Alaska

The story of the pipeline is fascinating if you ever want to look it up but, in addition to the conflict and history, the engineering that had to go into it is amazing.   The oil has to be heated so it will flow easily in the cold but warm oil could melt the perma-frost in some areas.  They developed a method of taking CO2 from the air and create refrigeration where necessary.  Some of the pipeline is above ground and some is buried under rivers and on Caribou trails.  It is a real masterpiece of technology and environmental protection.

We  stopped at an old roadhouse still functioning for lunch and were treated to lots of old stories and antiques from years gone by.

Garden at Rika’s Roadhouse

Tanana River by Rika’s Roadhouse on the way to Fairbanks

Last stop before we got to Fairbanks was the North Pole, AK

Who else but Santa at North Pole