Day 14: Tok, Alaska to Fairbanks, Alaska

We planned a break along our drive from Tok to Fairbanks in North Pole, Alaska. Desmond was quite excited about this stop and for the last few days kept asking, “Is this the workshop?” every time we stopped. Mom was worried he’d be disappointed when we got there because we weren’t exactly sure what he was expecting. Plus, it was about 70 degrees out, so not the winter wonderland we all imagine the North Pole to be.

Magical North Pole, AK

 

Our stop consisted of visiting the Christmas gift shop and talking to Santa. Desi had been telling us he planned to thank Santa for fixing “Big Clock” this past Christmas (his favorite clock, which had not been working was magically repaired on Christmas morning). He ran up to Santa and thanked him and Santa was a bit confused and had a hard time understanding what Desmond was saying as he plopped Big Clock down in front of him. He wasn’t interested in taking photos with Santa and just wanted to run around the store and see how many clocks he could find among the souvenirs. Trudy was very agreeable to sitting on Santa’s lap, however, and I think Santa enjoyed her company.

D thanking Santa for fixing his clock.

Trudy enjoying Santa's company

After I had picked up a few ornaments to take home, we headed outside to visit the reindeer. We were disappointed to see they were way back inside a pen and not accessible. However, my mom, who is very outgoing, had no problem asking if we were allowed in (since there were already a few people in there with the animals). The caretaker said yes, we could, for a small donation. So Mom gave her a few dollars and she, Desmond, and I went inside. The reindeer had collars with their names (Vixen, Prancer, etc. were all represented) and they were pretty docile and friendly. I enjoyed petting their antlers, which were surprisingly soft due to the velvet they were covered in. Desi scratched their heads. We asked a few questions and were on our way. I think visiting the reindeer made it a bit more worth the stop, especially for Desmond.

Petting the reindeer

We reached Fairbanks and had a few hours before dinner, so we secured a site at River’s Edge RV Park and drove a short distance to Pioneer Park. According to The Milepost, the mile-by-mile book that details what is located at each point in the journey, Pioneer Park is a great place for kids. Dad remembered going there on a previous trip to Fairbanks and was lukewarm about going. However, he didn’t have any other suggestions, and I wanted to pick a place Desmond would like, so we went. It would remind a person of Greenfield Village (Michigan) or Carillon Park (Dayton): a hodgepodge of old buildings relocated in a central place that help tell the story of Fairbanks' and Alaska’s history. They had an old paddle boat, many log cabins, and a few other buildings, as well as a really great playground, a train, and a beer garden with a restaurant.

Playground at Pioneer Park

Testing the old machinery at Pioneer Park. I didn't believe we'd actually be in shorts in Alaska.

Desmond enjoyed looking at and playing with all the old gears and artifacts as well as playing on the playground. I enjoyed popping into the various buildings in order to learn a little about Fairbanks. I noticed there were a lot of log cabins; when I think of log cabins I think of them being built in the 17 to1800s. However, since Alaska was settled much later, many of them dated from the 1920s-1940s, totally different from the architecture I’m used to seeing from the 20s to 40s. I just don’t think about people living that lifestyle so recently.

Alaskan Amber at River's Edge. Take that, Corona!

Since we ended up leaving Pioneer Park sort of late, we picked up some KFC for dinner and ate it at the RV park. The location was really nice, right along a river, as the name suggests. We took our dinner to a picnic table along the river and enjoyed some beautiful Alaska sunshine while we ate. Mom and I walked to the grocery store to pick up some necessities with Trudy and planned to have a beer along the river while Tommy put Desmond to bed, but in the end, Tommy met me by the river and we chatted while enjoying an Alaskan Amber.