Northern light and Nature: Awesome Guide to Alaska

Winter rates are always so much lesser on the accommodation, tours, and car rentals. And the limited six sunlight hours bring forth the beauty of the glowing aurora borealis. Snow and ice remain for longer, and with temperatures averaging minus 7 degrees, mean fun with the dog sledges and the Iditarod sledge dog race, which is over 1,000-miles! The Reindeer comes out, and the seals and whales have no problems being watched. It’s time for the Fur Rendezvous festival in Anchorage. People in Alaska never complain of winter conditions. They have fun instead and even have an annual outhouse race on sledges pushing outhouses up or down the racecourse. So, let’s discover the best Alaska has to offer without much ado.

While summertime is beautiful in Alaska, it is the celebrated wintertime that offers plenty of things to do in Alaska. Unbelievable but true is the fact that Alaska is one of the best tourist destinations, especially in winter where it is celebrated with much fanfare. So, get your sledges on, make peace with the harsh conditions and winter landscapes, and have the fun times you deserve on a winter vacation to Alaska. Here are just some of the most celebrated activities to do.

Winter adventures are the best things to do in Alaska. And the watching of the mystical Aurora Borealis and the Northern spectacular lights perhaps the best winter experience in the long and harsh Alaskan winters. From early September to late April, the city of Fairbanks sees the visitor’s throng here to catch the best views since it is directly under the oval of the aurora and is perhaps the best place to see the Northern Lights. The earth’s natural and rather strange behavior that takes place year after year is a must-do on an Alaskan trip, and being a part of the tour makes this experience more pleasant. The best view spots, the best times which normally are just after midnight, the weather conditions, and safe transportation are among the prime factors you should consider before you book a tour. Anchorage, Brooks Range, and Fairbanks are the three top spots for viewing, and there is a slew of tour operators who are informative and well-experienced in making your vacation well worth the trip and travails of Alaskan winters.

The Northern Lights and the aurora borealis can be seen only at night time, and the three factors for viewing are that the celestial displays should be frequent; you need clear skies, and the weather should be normally mild in comparison to the harsh Tundra conditions. The unpredictability of the lights can be offset by watching for activity in the early evenings. The aurora tends to peak between 10 pm and 2 am of solar time, which is normally 2.5 later during daylight saving times and 1.5 hours at other times. Thus, during fall and spring activity peaks between 12.30 midnight and 4.30 am. Most people check the weather and specialized apps that let you know about the aurora activity.

Running of the reindeer in the thickly wooded birch forests is only one of the possible things to do in Alaska in winter. Close by to downtown Fairbanks is the like-named Running Reindeer Ranch, where you get to interact and learn about Santa Claus’ famed reindeer sledges, running the reindeer bulls, studying them up close and learning all you can about the shy but sometimes curious and aggressive reindeer. Jane, the ranch owner an Alaskan educates you about the flora, fauna, and forests of Alaska, which leads you through games and trails that are reindeer-themed and educative. When that is done the hospitable lady invites you indoors for a hot drink to learn more about adapting to life in the Arctic stories, techniques, and simple thought-provoking measures they use to keep their pristine home theirs and that of the reindeer of course.

The Running Reindeer Ranch is located at Goldstream Road in Fairbanks of Alaska-99709. Contact her 907*455*4998 for running the reindeer events and community competitions involving reindeer.

Exploring ice caves on the Guyot Glacier is one of the favorite pastimes and things to do in Alaska. The 8m high glacier was melted out by the warm water stream on the cave’s floor. When such carving by water happens to form large caves without destroying the glacier, the resultant cave is sediment-filled and resembles a water-following sediment ridge, also known as the esker. A visit to these glacier ice caves is a lesson in science as the iridescent blue glowing cave is an experience of another world. While most caves are the rock which is covered with ice and water-cut the Guyot ice caves are pure ice, which is water-cut. Hence the filtered bluish effect and ever-changing shapes and sizes of the caves which follow nature’s pattern of freezing, getting cut, melting and evolving year after year. If you want to be adventurous, then take a helicopter ride over the densely canopied birch rain-forests of the Arctic, land on the glacier, explore the alpine glacier caves and don’t forget the fantastic photoshoots to flood the internet with.

When you talk of the Aurora Ice Museum, you know there’s bound to be a hot spring somewhere. The Chena Hot Springs Resort and the ice museum are highly rated things to do in Alaska, which are open all year. The museum is completely made of over 1,000 tons of snow and ice maintained at exactly minus 7 degrees Celsius. Now that’s cold, and the museum thoughtfully loans you a parka to take in the many ice sculptures of Heather and Steve Brice’s gallery for the master ice-carvers of the world, climb atop the observation tower, and visit the ice bedrooms named Christmas tree, children’s fort, and polar bear. The Northern lights room can be used to experience the aurora borealis, and the ice outhouse may land up in the competition of running the outhouses on a sledge up or down a race track by different teams. Even the chandeliers here change colors mimicking the aurora and the northern lights. The Aurora Ice Museum is located at #17600 of Chena Hot Springs Road in Fairbanks of Alaska-99712. Call them on 907*451*8104 for more details.

Among the best things to do in Alaska are meeting up with the huskies, learning about dog-sledges and dog-mushing the favorite sport of the Alaskans, and of course, the 1,000 miles Iditarod dog-sledge race. Jeff King the 4-time winner of this race and several other Arctic Tundra dog-sled races has opened his huskie ranch and homestead to visitors to experience first hand the travails, techniques, and sporting preparations for dog-sledging with huskies, dog-mushing, playing with the puppies and more as you visit Denali. Shuttle buses ferry the tourists from their Denali hotels to the Huskies Homestead. The address for the Husky Homestead is PO Box #48 of Denali National Preserve and Park of Alaska-99755, and their phone number is 907*683*2904.

Some of the Juneau things to do in Alaska include humpback whale watching. Alaska has more wildlife than humans and is surrounded by luxuriant rainforests, age-old glaciers, and trails to explore the Arctic wildlife. Juneau Whale Watch runs tours where you get to hear the whales whistling to each other and slowly surfacing for a breath of fresh air from the icy depths of the icy-cold Tundra waters. The tour takes 4-5 hours and starts at Juneau downtown from where you head out to Fisherman’s Bend in Juneau port at Auke Bay Harbor. The slow-moving whale watching boats are customized to allow you to also take in the rare views of sea lions, bald eagles, seals, Alaskan black bears, and more. When the orcas or humpback whales are sighted or often heard the captains cut their engines to allow them to approach the boats while they hunt for food and frolic among themselves. The nicest part is that you never have to get wet and can watch them from heated cabins with huge viewing windows. Juneau Whale Watch is located at #76 of Egan Drive, Suite #300, in Juneau. Call them on 907*723*9209.

Fishing and Alaska are synonymous in summer. But rather than accept the cold temperatures and keep their angling rods and gear in the closet during winter, the Alaskan anglers and fishing enthusiasts dabble in ice-fishing, which has become a popular art and things to do in Alaska of late. While it does sound simple enough, ice fishing is only for the daring and die-hard fans for who the fish-tug is akin to a drug.

Comfort and safety are perhaps the greatest challenges to the Tundra ice and Alaskan winter ice-fishing. It requires specialized equipment and lots of initiative as often the weather changes abruptly, the 4-6 ice layer melts fast, and help can never be found easily. Besides, frostbite and extreme cold require ample preparation too. The Large Southern lakes of Louise, Skilak, Summit, and such take much longer to freeze than the smaller lakes of the northern Kenai
 Peninsula, Tanana, and Matanuska valleys. A word of caution! Never venture out alone in the Arctic cold, be it for fishing or otherwise.

The Alaska SeaLife Center is located at #301 on Railway Avenue of Seward in Alaska-99664-380. They can be contacted for reservations, information, or event details on 907*224*6300. Why is this center on the Resurrection Bay shores part of the interesting things to do in Alaska? The Alaska SeaLife Center is the main public aquarium and forms the unique single facility for the marine-mammal permanent rehabilitation. The 115,000 sq ft center opened in 1998 and preserved through education, conservation, research, and rehabilitation of the fragile marine Alaskan ecosystems. Most of its funds came from the damages paid for the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill near Alaska, which upset the balance of the mammalian and marine life systems.

The center’s viewing windows provide visitors with the opportunity to interact with species like the puffins, Steller’s sea lion, and harbor seals. Interactive sessions with animals and park rangers help you understand the importance of the preservation and conservation efforts that are ongoing as you watch the video camera footage of the sea lion rookery or engage with the Chiswell Island exhibit on a free-self guided tour or a paid tour for behind-the-scenes animal interfacing time.

The 6-million-acre Denali National Preserve and Park is one of the best things to do in Alaska. Firstly, stop at the Denali Visitor Center, which includes a bookstore, restaurant, bus stop, gift shop, railroad depot, and bag check-in facility besides being the welcoming and information center. Check out the exhibits, the park features, and how you can interact best with nature by speaking to the rangers and guides of the park and buying yourself a map of the trails of Denali. Heard of the film ‘Heartbeats of Denali’? Well, check it out too! Denali National Park and Preserve can be contacted for further details on 907*683*9532.

The Sitka National Historical Park is an important one among the many things to do in Alaska you have lined up for. The National Parks Service runs this day-park, which speaks about the fight of the native Kiks.ádi Tlingit people against the Russian traders who dominated the North Pacific not too long ago. Ever seen a Totem pole? This cultural symbol goes well beyond being just a decorative item and lines the many trails of the park. Discover why they are there and more about the culture and Tlingit objects at the Visitor Centre. Ever heard of fighting with hammers? Well, the clan leaders used these as is testified by the hammer of Katlian, the Tlingit leader in the 1804 Battle against Russians.

The Russian Bishop’s House in the park is a piece of rare colonizing architecture that allows you to peek into the Elbridge W. Merrill collection of 1,000 original glass plate negatives century and the cultural history of Alaska and its Tlingit tribes. It is also a great place for events, learning, meeting park rangers, scientists, and the community itself. The park is located at #103 of Monastery Street in Sitka of Alaska-99835. You can call in for details of events on 907*747*0110.

Are you an animal lover? One of the most important things to do in Alaska for you would be to visit the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, Portage, Alaska, or AWCC for short. Do your bit at the AWCC, which takes in the orphaned and injured wildlife animals that battle the unbelievably harsh winter conditions in the wild snow and ice of Alaska. The animals receive curative treatment and medical aid besides a lot of love from the tourists and AWCC who try their best to release them into the wild. When this is not possible, they try to place them at other centers after rehabilitation. Some that do not get adopted continue at the AWCC.

In parting, let us remind you that we have just seen that in winter, you never lack in things to do in Alaska. Besides, you get to have the best winter vacation of a lifetime. Rather than keep complaining about the long and tedious winter season, enjoy yourself discovering the various beauties of Alaska like the Alaska SeaLife Center, Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, Portage, Aurora Ice Museum, Denali National Park or the Sitka National Historical Park. Have some fun with the huskies, reindeer, dog sledging, snowmobiling, Alpine skiing, or even heli-skiing if you wish. If you want to add to this list then head north and meet us in a hot pool or under the stars watching the Aurora Borealis in wintertime in wondrous Alaska. See you soon!