Day 16 – Fairbanks:  Our Last tour stop!

It was a very short bus ride from Denali National Park to the city of Fairbanks. You may want click back to the MAP of our second week to see how much we had to travel. So it was only 5 O'clock PM when we arrived at the Pioneer Park in Fairbanks. So, this is still the evening of Day 15. There was a very interesting quilt display where they showed quilts made by local residents of Fairbanks. There were many signs warning persons not to touch any of the precious quilts. It was even the subject of the quilt shown above. At 6:30, we all met at a central building for dinner at the Alaska Salmon Bake. It was totally scrumptious -- more fresh Salmon that we could ever eat. I didn't take any pictures of this meal, probably because I was too busy eating. Elaine normally photographs these kinds of events, but her camera broke on her third picture. This is where we were collected by Julie Stewart, our wonderful Fairbanks host. These pictures are a bit out of sequence, but they show her together with Jim and

It was a "walk around" seeing all the historical displays. Above is the rail car used by our former esteemed president Warren G. Harding. We walked inside this boat.  Jackie, who stayed with us the first two nights in Fairbanks. They took a "red eye" flight out of Fairbanks a day before we left.

Jim expressed our feelings about Julia very well in the following Cinquain.  Fairbanks Hostess   Julia Fairbanks Hostess Shares Self Graciously How Can We Repay? Generous As Julia drove us to her home, she told us she would show us something the others in the tour would probably not see. The Alaska pipe line runs very near her home and has some very nice displays. Below is the sign that shows the exact location of the pipeline in Alaska. The fine print on the right is replicated in the center photo on this page. Below is a picture of the actual pipeline together with a sign telling the distance from lots of places. We are only 148 miles from the Arctic circle?   If you have a GPS, you might be able to determine exactly where we are standing right at this moment. OK, I know you are all really eager to know what the h... is a pipeline pig, and I also know there is no way you can read what is on the tiny sign except for the title. The following will tell you everything. A pig that is retired -- just like us two geezers from Riderwood Village. Clearly, TMI!

Saturday in Fairbanks

Our first stop is a guided tour through this native animal center. Our guide of the event Skulls of Musk Oxen, not a retired guide. The remainder of the day's activity was a guided tour of Fairbanks. The picture right and below was taken in the above museum. Julie collected us at dinner, and we rested for a very busy Last Tour Day.

Fairbanks UU  paid extra to have a space above and below their name. Dinner in the Fairbanks UU sanctuary.