Managing the list

1. Arctic Ocean
2. Enter the Arctic Circle
   
3. Northern Lights - DONE!
   
4. Iditarod start in Anchorage
5. Denali Bus Tour - Maybe I'll settle for putting my name in the lottery and driving it. Driving it would be more comfortable and unusual.
   
6. Kenai Fjords
7. Glacier Bay
8. Wrangell-St. Elias - DONE!
   
9. Hike a volcano
   
10. Midnight Baseball Game (summer 2011)
    
11. Yukon Quest
12. Ice Park
13. Walk on a glacier
14. Winter Solstice (winter 2011) I want to watch the moon circle the sky almost uninterrupted
    
15. Wildlife/Glacier Cruise - let's see a puffin!
    
16. Outhouse Races - DONE!
    
17. Anchorage - DONE!
18. Anchorage Zoo - DONE!
19. Polar Bear in the wild [In Barrow you can watch a polar bear feast on a whale carcass]
    
20. Chena Hot Springs - we should have drinks in the ice hotel bar
    
21. Less Developed Hot Springs - Tolovana Hot Springs would fit the bill
    
22. Permafrost Tunnel
23. Alaskan Railroad
24. Tour the super computer
25. Touch a musk ox
26. Visit Santa at the North Pole - DONE!
    
27. Get a PFD!
    
28. Play with the super cold. Water disappearing, bananas shattering, whatever.
29. Museum of the North - Done!
30. Alaskaland! (aka Pioneer Park) - DONE!
    
31. Salmon Bake (mmmm) - DONE!
32. I'd like to see the salmon run at one point. Anyone know where I can see a river so full of fish that I could just reach in there and grab one? Or are those rivers all claimed by bears?
33. Ice Museum
34. Gold Mine (any one of the cheesy tourist attractions will suffice)
35. Midnight Sun Baseball Game
36. Summer Solstice
37. Midnight Fun Run

To be attempted this summer:

1. Enter the Arctic Circle - Aaron isn't sure he wants to do this. This may or may not happen. Easy weekend camping trip.
2. Denali Bus Tour
3. Kenai Fjords - I'm going to Kenai this summer even if I have to go by myself.
4. Glacier Bay - I'm hoping to combine this with the Kenai trip.
5. Hike a volcano
6. Walk on a glacier - Easy to combine this with Kenai
7. Wildlife/Glacier Cruise
8. Permafrost Tunnel - Day trip in Fairbanks.
9. Alaskan Railroad
10. Tour the super computer
11. Touch a musk ox
12. Ice Museum
13. Midnight Sun Baseball Game
14. Summer Solstice
15. Midnight Fun Run

Updates

1. Arctic Ocean
2. Enter the Arctic Circle
   
3. Northern Lights - DONE!
   
4. Iditarod start in Anchorage
5. Denali Bus Tour - Maybe I'll settle for putting my name in the lottery and driving it. Driving it would be more comfortable and unusual.
   
6. Kenai Fjords
7. Glacier Bay
8. Wrangell-St. Elias - DONE!
   
9. Hike a volcano
   
10. Midnight Baseball Game (summer 2011)
    
11. Yukon Quest
12. Ice Park
13. Walk on a glacier
14. Winter Solstice (winter 2011) I want to watch the moon circle the sky almost uninterrupted
    
15. Wildlife/Glacier Cruise - let's see a puffin!
    
16. Outhouse Races - DONE!
    
17. Anchorage - DONE!
18. Anchorage Zoo - DONE!
19. Polar Bear in the wild [In Barrow you can watch a polar bear feast on a whale carcass]
    
20. Chena Hot Springs - we should have drinks in the ice hotel bar
    
21. Less Developed Hot Springs - Tolovana Hot Springs would fit the bill
    
22. Permafrost Tunnel
23. Alaskan Railroad
24. Tour the super computer
25. Touch a musk ox
26. Visit Santa at the North Pole - DONE!
    
27. Get a PFD!
    
28. Play with the super cold. Water disappearing, bananas shattering, whatever.
29. Museum of the North
30. Alaskaland! (aka Pioneer Park) - DONE!
    
31. Salmon Bake (mmmm) - DONE!
32. I'd like to see the salmon run at one point. Anyone know where I can see a river so full of fish that I could just reach in there and grab one? Or are those rivers all claimed by bears?
33. Ice Museum
34. Gold Mine (any one of the cheesy tourist attractions will suffice)

Getting ready to cross some more off the to do list!

This weekend: Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Awesome.

Tomorrow morning we're going to leave early, drive south and set up camp at Squirrel Creek. We had planned to check out Liberty Falls, because the campsites are within view of the falls, and I'm pretty sure that white noise would lull our precious, precocious little girl to sleep. Oh well, another time maybe.

Saturday we'll spend in the park, loving life. We'll drive the McCarthy Road (supposed to be quite a harrowing trip) and walk across the footbridge to the town known (in its day) as the place for wine, women, and good time. Now, it's just an amazing little place in the middle of our country's largest national park.

On Sunday I would really, REALLY like to drive to Valdez and then take the ferry to Cordova. Outside of Cordova is a glacier that is advancing at a rate of 500 feet per year. That is incredible! Lonely Planet's Alaska guide says that you can hear the glacier before you see it. Amazing. Truly. And the viewing platform includes a view of the harbor filled with icebergs that have just come off the glacier. Plus, calving is at its best right now. But the ferry ride will be $420 round trip. That, my friends, is a lot of money. Especially for someone who just lost her job. Anyone want to sponsor my ferry ride?

Even if we don't find a sponsor, Valdez should be interesting. It's in the Alaskan rainforest, and I really can't wait to be in my first rainforest. Especially since that particular rainforest is in Alaska. Awesome. Several short hikes around town offer great views, and if I weren't bringing a baby, I would try my hand a little kayaking. Somehow, taking a baby on a kayak in a fjord full of glacial ice and ocean animals seems irresponsible.

Monday we will either drive back to Fairbanks, or I will have convinced Aaron to head over toward Anchorage. We could see the Zoo, enjoy a few hours of city life, maybe even step foot in an exotic retail environment like Target. If we did that, we could spend Tuesday enjoying Kenai and Wednesday and Thursday we could drive slowly back to Fairbanks. I worry that pushing through all day on Wednesday would be too much for Adelaide. Maybe we should just drive Tuesday night? We might miss all the sights. Decisions, decisions. If I can talk the hubby into a few more days, we can restock the 'pantry' in Anchorage.

[I think the hubby's on board for Anchorage, Seward, and Kenai National Park. SWEET!]

The weather for the next few days looks good. Some rain tomorrow, but that's ok for while we're in the car. A little extra rain may even make the waterfalls more beautiful.

Menu
Breakfast: blueberry bagels with cream cheese, oatmeal with raisins & PB
Lunch: tortillas with PB and honey, PB&J
Dinner: Spaghetti w/zucchini & squash, Mac n' cheese w/ broccoli, and grilled cheese w/ carrot ginger soup
Snacks: pumpkin granola, dried bananas, gorp, peaches

And we don't even need a cooler! Generally, we try to eat mostly organic, and we avoid processed foods whenever possible. When camping, even stuff like pop tarts count as food.

Let's see, our food is packed, my clothes and the baby's clothes are in the pack with the stove, toiletries, and bear spray, and the tent is by the door. I just have to pack the hubby's clothes (or disrupt his nap and get him to do it), get the sleeping bags to the door, pack the baby's diapers and we're off!

Potential numbers to be crossed off: 6, 8, 9, 13, 15, 17, 18, and possibly 25.

2 - Done!

April 5th was a great day for Aurora Borealis in Fairbanks. We slept through it. But we did see amazing stuff on April 6th!

Too bad I don't know how to take pictures of them yet. Oh well, one day soon. For now, we just drink coffee after dinner, bundle up the baby and drive to the top of Ester Dome to watch. And have our socks blown off.

Scratch one more off the list!

14 - Done!

Adelaide and I went to the Outhouse Races on March 21st, 2010.

An Alaskan To Do List

I'm making this official. Y'all can keep me accountable if I let us leave the Last Frontier without finishing my list.

Here it is, in all its glory:

1. Arctic Ocean
2. Enter the Arctic Circle
   
3. Northern Lights - DONE!
   
4. Iditarod start in Anchorage
5. Denali Bus Tour - Maybe I'll settle for putting my name in the lottery and driving it. Driving it would be more comfortable and unusual.
   
6. Kenai Fjords
7. Glacier Bay
8. Wrangell-St. Elias
9. Hike a volcano
   
10. Midnight Baseball Game (summer 2011)
    
11. Yukon Quest
12. Ice Park
13. Walk on a glacier
14. Winter Solstice (winter 2011) I want to watch the moon circle the sky almost uninterrupted
    
15. Wildlife/Glacier Cruise - let's see a puffin!
    
16. Outhouse Races - DONE!
    
17. Anchorage
18. Anchorage Zoo
19. Polar Bear in the wild [In Barrow you can watch a polar bear feast on a whale carcass]
    
20. Chena Hot Springs - we should have drinks in the ice hotel bar
    
21. Less Developed Hot Springs - Tolovana Hot Springs would fit the bill
    
22. Permafrost Tunnel
23. Alaskan Railroad
24. Tour the super computer
25. Touch a musk ox
26. Visit Santa at the North Pole - DONE!
    
27. Get a PFD!
    
28. Play with the super cold. Water disappearing, bananas shattering, whatever.
29. Museum of the North
30. Alaskaland! (aka Pioneer Park) - DONE!
    
31. Salmon Bake (mmmm)
32. I'd like to see the salmon run at one point. Anyone know where I can see a river so full of fish that I could just reach in there and grab one? Or are those rivers all claimed by bears?
33. Ice Museum
34. Gold Mine (any one of the cheesy tourist attractions will suffice)