Alaska Caper -- Day 14

June 17, 2007
Posted by: Dick Wilson

Today was another easy day in Fairbanks. You might even say we indulged ourselves in slothful ease.

At about noon we rode out to the Chena Hot Springs. The scenery was beautiful as we traveled through boggy areas along the Chena River where we saw several moose (below), the first of such critters that we had laid eyes on this trip. The Hot Springs itself is somewhat of a tourist trap, and I must say by Idaho’s standards a bit too commercial and way too crowded. Steve took a plunge in the hot water while I walked around and spoke to tourists from diverse locations, including Belgium, Germany, and South Africa. They all seemed like pleasant and adventuresome people who were very much enjoying their Alaska experience.

When we got back to the motel, two guys showed up on their filthy dirty GS bikes. They had ridden all the way from Prudhoe Bay today, over 500 miles, 300 of which is on gravel. I can’t even imagine how much effort and stamina it would take to accomplish a ride of that proportion, and they were old coots like Steve and me.

I began surveying my luggage and culling anything which was not deemed essential. I ended up with a bag of stuff weighing over 20 lbs which I will take to FedEx before we head off to Denali National Park tomorrow.