Monday, September 2, 2019 (Labor Day)
Fairbanks to Copper Center
This morning we headed south out of Fairbanks on the Richardson Highway. Just down the road is the town of North Pole, Alaska. North Pole is known for its year-round Christmas decorations, and the Santa Claus House is a large gift shop selling all things Christmas related. The walls of the store are covered with children's letters to Santa, and Santa himself was there today (and presumably every day) in person.
Santa Claus House, North Pole
Jana and Santa
A few days ago, we stopped at a great little gift shop with many taxidermy mounts, but The Knotty Shop, between Eielson AFB and Salcha, has really gone all out with their display of stuffed Alaskan wildlife in group poses and action scenes. I wouldn't want to mess with that wolverine...
Another awesome gift shop in Alaska
Taxidermy menagerie
Wolverine!
The Richardson Highway is Alaska's oldest highway, beginning first as a gold rush trail, then transitioning to a wagon road, a motor vehicle road, and finally a paved highway in 1957. The Trans-Alaska Pipeline parallels the highway, so we saw it off and on throughout the day.
1,200-foot-long Tanana River Pipeline Bridge
With all day to make our way to Copper Center, we pulled over at every excuse. Rika's Roadhouse, part of the Big Delta Historical Park, was an important stop on the Valdez-to-Fairbanks Trail in the early 1900s. The cafe and gift shop were closed for the season, but the grounds and buildings were still open for a self-guided tour.
Rika's Roadhouse
Vintage classic, needs some love
The Alaska Highway a/k/a Alcan Highway was built during World War II to connect Alaska with the lower 48. It begins in Dawson Creek, British Columbia, and ends at the Richardson Highway in the little town of Delta Junction at “Historic Mile 1,422.” It would be interesting to make the drive, but from our house to this intersection is almost 4,000 miles!
Delta Junction, Alaska
What exactly is happening here?
The stretch of Richardson Highway between Delta Junction and Copper Center was some of the most scenic of this tremendously scenic vacation. The fall colors were at their peak, and the snowy Alaska Range was absolutely breathtaking. I think this was my favorite few hours of the whole trip!
Breathtaking Alaska Range
Along the Richardson Highway
Pipeline through wilderness
800-mile marvel of engineering
Gulkana Glacier
Around 6:30, we finally arrived at the very small town of Copper Center (pop. 328) and figured at this “late hour,” we better find some food before heading to our lodging. Allegedly, there are two restaurants in this town, but we only found one, the Copper Center Inn & Restaurant. They close at 8:00 on Mondays, so I'm glad we didn't miss it, and I'm glad they were open on Labor Day. We had a Reuben and a French dip. The portions were huge and the food was delicious!
Tonight we're staying at the Sawing Logzz B&B, found on Booking.com, and it is AWESOME! At $140, it was a bit of a splurge, but in Alaska you can pay just as much for someplace mediocre. Sawing Logzz is inside a private home, of which they rent out the bottom floor. They can accommodate up to seven guests, but they only rent to one party at a time, so we had the whole place to ourselves! There was a king-sized bed, private bath, living room, and a kitchenette stocked very generously with continental breakfast items. Luxury!
Outstanding lodgings!
The bottom floor is ours alone
Sweet suite
And the bedroom
It was pitch black outside the B&B tonight, and we were able to see the aurora borealis, but it was nothing like two nights ago. The proprietor said the lights had been visible here on Saturday as well, at the same time we saw them in Fairbanks, and again confirmed how lucky we were to have seen such a great show! It was a very clear night, and we saw tons of stars.
Tom
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