Making our way into Fairbanks

 This is a picture of a tired dog. Apparently Liz, Nan and I wore him out. It is such hard work watching the three of us wash the rigs.  You just can't nap or anything with those power washers hitting the side of the "bus."   


"Finally," sighs Herschel, "We can head on down the road towards Fairbanks and I can get some sleep....I mean navigating, done."


All five of us made our way into Fairbanks and parked last night in the Walmart. You know that a store is RV friendly when they have "RV and boat parking" marked on the pavement along the outside edges of the lot.  Liz did have to explain to Mitch that the rows of electrical outlets were not for RV'ers but for the Alaska cars and trucks in the winter.  Come shop at Walmart in January and you don't have to worry about the engine freezing while you linger in the store.

We all got oil changes on our vehicles either yesterday or today and we are ready for the next few thousands of miles.  Mitch decided yesterday that she needed to head back to TN and left this morning. She said that she was going to stop and see Beth so I don't know which roads she is planning to head out on but she knew that the rest of us are planning to wander slowly around the state after Denali and she was missing George.....   There were hugs and goodbyes and we are all hoping the see more amazing things on her blog.  (She also found out that the 3g for her iPad does not work in Alaska.  She was not pleased.)

Before making our way into Fairbanks we stopped one more night at Rika's Roadhouse. It is a neat historical. Parking with no hook-ups in a large but level parking lot for a minimal fee and the dogs loved the hiking around the buildings.   Somehow the Back lots of Chevron stations and Walmarts are not their idea of good dog sniffing, hiking spots.

Liz treated us to soup and a sandwich at the small restaurant.  They forgot to tell me to hurry (before the tour bus was scheduled to pull in and I almost started wandering though and around the old buildings too soon.

Here is the same building from another angle.  Some of the buildings were original and some were reproductions.  They all were beautifully put together to keep warm in the Alaskan winters....

This one was the original cabin for the old ferry. It appeared to currently being used by some of the summer staff.

This is a picture of the roadhouse itself from the back. The section on the left is the original and the wing on the right was added in later years.

I really liked this old boat, especially after walking along the swollen river and thinking of actually depending upon it for travel up and down those waters. That river is big and was rolling along willing to take anything down with it.

And without additional comment, I wanted both my kids not to expect one of these as a gift at Christmas....It was sort of tempting, being the price had been reduced and all...

 More pictures of the old cabins and then one of the cabins as they still stand.  All three are still there lined up in a row.

Remi wanted to share with his friends that he is beginning to get to know his "Aunties" also.  If you notice he is walking with his tail up and marching right along.  He does look up when Birdie talks to him and sometimes does a double take....as in "Wait, wait, how did you get the lead!"

The note below explains this unusual contraption.  Both Nan and I found this one interesting and helped remind you that not all the mining was about large dredges or pans.

Another shot of the tight log work....

The boys waiting on the front steps of the Roadhouse while their "Aunties" stepped inside to look around at the displays.  

As we drove the remaining miles into Fairbanks the next day after over-nighting at the Rika's parking lot we made several stops to gawk along the way.

Just to give you an idea of the amount of water that goes through in the spring....

We also stopped at the Knotty Shop.  Anyone who has seem my father's drift wood sculpture would understand when I say that these are posted in his memory....

These birds where displayed inside the shop along with a bunch of other stuff that you could spend  mucho money on.  Birdie can tell you what each one is and which season you will find that specific coloration. 

This shot is for the pottery folk/s following the blog....interesting handles.....

And this is a picture of lonely "purple" steps that thought they were going to be left behind like the first set that found a new home at a rest stop in West Virginia.  Well, these were left behind but I remembered them in time to turn around and retrieve them.  Note to self, when you offer to be the "sweeper" in the line of rigs and you are the last one out of the lot, you can't expect anyone else to spot for you!  My knees were glad to have the steps back on board where they belong.

 More of our Fairbank's wanderings as the week goes along We are in the state recreational park and the dogs are happy for the grass and trees.....