Boondock
We spent the night in the Walmart parking lot (along with about ten other RVs) and woke to a temp. of 51 degrees F. It just doesn’t get dark at night so our schedule is way off. We always feel like we should be doing something when it is still daylight. For example, we really need to get the Lazy Daze clean. That Alaska dirt just doesn’t rinse off. It needs a good scrubbing. Also, having the store so close has caused me to use it as a pantry and just run in when I need something.
University of Alaska Museum Of The North. Fairbanks.
Spent a good part of the day touring the museum at the University of Alaska. The university campus is huge and beautiful and the museum building is tastefully done. It costs $9/senior admission and an additional $5 to see the films they show. We opted to see the films but when they put you in a warm room, in comfortable seats and it is the first time you have seen it turn dark as night in weeks…well, let’s just say it was all we could do to stay awake for the films. The films were actually very good and we did watch them, albeit with an occational nod off. The museum is well laid out with wonderful art and nature displays. The tour books say it is a “must see” in Fairbanks and we quite enjoyed it. They’re open daily and parking is free on the weekends. Also, they have RV parking. Very nice.
Robert G White Large Animal Research Station, University of Alaska.
Near the campus, and run by the university, is the Large Animal Research Station. They say you can see musk ox, caribou and reindeer from the parking area but we only saw some reindeer laying down near the fence. We think they would look much better in the wilderness. There are also guided tours at the research station Tuesday through Saturday. I’m told that they are just doing genetic testing and no animals suffer there. It’s good to know no one is hurting “Rudolf”!
