Day 42: Finishing Up Fairbanks

Packing Up for the Trip Back to the Lower 48

Wander Lake-- a Bird Sanctuary at the Wedgewood Resort


 Today we didn't leave the "resort" grounds.  We did leave the room however, to take the "easy  scenic walk" around Wander Lake, located in the Wedgewood Resort Wildlife Sanctuary.  It is supposed to be a hotbed for birds, something we know absolutely nothing about, but we figured the day was almost sunny, the room was awfully stuffy, and we had nothing else to do except clean up, do laundry, and pack up.  So, off we went.

 On the way to the path we found ourselves behind the auto museum where this steam powered tractor was hiding. 
Bob with a Steam Tractor
This allowed Bob to channel both his Farm and his Boiler roots, and to take this artistic photo of the steam gauge.
Tractor Steam Gauge, artfully photographed
The path itself was very well marked and definitely a "path" for a leisurely walk, and not a trail for a hike, as some of my other "walks" around town have turned out to be.

It's Autumn in Fairbanks, AK (Sept 7, 2017)
Autumn is definitely in full swing here, as you can see from the yellow leaves both on the trees and on the path itself.  

 There were several bridges over dry patches that at some point in the year are likely streams.  Here I am standing on one of them.
Lisa at the End of the Bridge

 The main picture is of the lake itself.  It is supposed to be a major bird hot spot. This sign depicts what we were supposed to see:
Wander Lake--a Birding Hot Spot

 This video contains all of the birds we actually saw:




Yup, that's it.  One bird of some sort, and one duck of some sort.  Oh Well.
When we finished our walk we got to work doing laundry, cleaning up the kitchen and the rest of the place, and packing for the next stage of our journey.

 For those of you with our original map, note that we have made a last minute change.  We will be jumping back on the Alcan and driving straight through Tok (without stopping!) tomorrow and stopping in Beaver Creek, just over the Canadian border.  The next day we will be driving straight through Destruction Bay (and definitely not stopping!), and landing back in the US for a 2-day stop in Haines, AK.  (Yes, to get from Fairbanks to Haines you have to go through Canada.)

 This cuts our driving days from 3 to 2, and gives us a full day to explore Haines and to prepare for 4 nights and 3 days on the ferry.

 We catch the ferry to Bellingham, WA from Haines on Monday night, and will arrive back in the lower 48 early Friday morning where we'll begin the Washington and Oregon leg of the trip.

 --Lisa

ADDENDUM:


 Thanks to Tom's Tip we headed out to try to get a glimpse of the Aurora-- and we did.  Here is the best shot we have.  Hard to capture it on an iPhone.

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