August 24th: Just back from Prudhoe Bay

"Hey Squirrel, check out these pictures", I said, as we sat on the porch eating some peanuts. "I took your advice, and went all the way up to the top of Alaska, at Prudhoe Bay."

"Cool", Squirrel said, "Let's see them."

"Here's the first one. I took this one just a little north of Fairbanks, where I came across this sign that said I was at the Arctic Circle. When you're north of the Arctic Circle, in the summer the sun never sets, and in the winter it never rises."

"Here's a picture from when I was driving along the Alaska pipeline. You can see the pipeline on the left."

"I know of this road", Squirrel said. "It's called The Dalton Highway, and it takes you from just north of Fairbanks all the way to the top of Alaska at Prudhoe Bay. In fact, it's the only road up there."

"And it's all dirt and gravel", I said. "Just like you said, I took two spare tires with me. And it's a good thing, because I only saw three other cars all day!"

"What's this last one?", Squirrel asked.

"This is a picture of the front of the 'hotel' I stayed in. It's not really a hotel though, it's more like a metal building with small rooms, and really thin walls. They said they don't get many visitors, but that I was welcome to stay. They were all very nice, and I got to meet a native Eskimo."

"I'm glad you got to go Al. Not many people have a chance to go all the way up to the top of Alaska like that, and I've heard it's a great ride."

"It sure was, and thanks for the suggestion. But boy, I wouldn't want to live there in the winter time. When I left this morning it was 30 degrees, and this is just August! And in the winter there is no sunlight. I don't know how they do it."