The Longwood University @ the Arctic Circle team is preparing for the 2018 experience in Alaska.

To apply for this adventure go to: http://go.longwood.edu/arcticcircle.

Today was the last official day of the class. We decided that it would be great to end the class with a excursion to Denali National Park. This was a surprise to the class and we told them at the end of the persuasive arguments assignment at Marion Creek Campground.  Everyone was excited about taking this excursion!  We had a very early start for the two hour drive south of Fairbanks to the national park.

Danali National Park was a sharp contrast to the voyage taken in northern Alaska.  There were more people at Denali National Park, while we were there, than the entirety of people that we saw along the five days traveling along the Dalton Highway and back — including Prudhoe Bay.  There was so much commercialization around the park — shopping and hotels were abundant.  We drove into the park and ate lunch in the park.  We were able to get some great views and pictures of Mt. McKinley!

Mt. McKinley — It is the snow-covered mountain on the left side of the picture.

After lunch we had time for the last reflection — the turning point reflection.  This was an opportunity for the students to reflect on how the journey to Alaska had affected them and influenced their views on travel, public lands, and general education.

On the trip back to UAF, we had a group dinner together to celebrate our time together in Alaska.

Once back at UAF, we ended the travel experience with a final meeting to debrief our day and to look forward to the future assignments that will be completed after the students return home. The class still will have about three weeks of coursework remaining.  The students will take all of the information gathered in the travel portion in Alaska to help complete assignments.

The students (and professors) had a wonderful time in Alaska. We all learned so much about the state of Alaska, the oil, and oil pipeline industry. It has given us all a new perspective to the oil industry.

After breakfast we broke camp and left for Fairbanks.  The first stop was a quick stop at Coldfoot for gas — and some more coffee.

We stopped at Yukon River briefly for gas before continuing the journey to Fairbanks.

We stopped for lunch at Hess Creek.  The bugs were very bad at this stop.  Most people in the group wore bug nets most of the time outdoors because of the bugs — mostly mosquitoes.

Our final stop before Fairbanks was another stop at the Pipeline Vistors’ Center to recap the experience of the Dalton Highway.

We made it back to UAF (University of Alaska Fairbanks), where we stay in Fairbanks, in middle afternoon. The students had some time to move in, unpack, shower, and rest.

We ended the day with a trip to North Pole, Alaska.  The goal was to eat dinner and have time for place-as-text North Pole, but the meal took a very long time, so there was not much time left for other activities there.  We debriefed the trip on the way back to UAF. It was very different from what everyone expected.

This morning, we leave Deadhorse to return to Fairbanks.  We will make it to Marion Creek Campground.  Unlike the two campgrounds on the way to Deadhorse, Marion Creek Campground is the most modern: it has a water pump and a campground host. Having a water pump available is nice so that we are able to refill our water vessels.  One major concern for us on our trip from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay and back was the lack of food and water (and gas) supplies available along the Dalton Highway. We purchased five to seven days of food that we carried with us for the entire time that we traveled.  Except for our time in Deadhorse we ate the food from the coolers.  Lots of bagels and sandwiches were eaten.

The Dalton Highway and the Trans-Alaska pipeline are fairly close together for the whole trip.  Sometimes the pipeline is buried and sometimes the pipeline is above the ground.  There are many times when the pipeline is not visible from the road. This was a little surprising to me as I expected the pipeline to be in view most of the time.

Pipeline farther away

Pipeline closer to road

Road and pipeline close

Pipeline buried

Pipeline

Driving back toward Fairbanks today, we see several herds of caribou and musk ox.

Caribou

Musk Ox

We stopped for lunch at Galbraith Lake campground — a very nice second visit.  During lunch we had a very good debrief of our trip to Deadhorse and especially the Prudhoe Bay oil fields and the Arctic Ocean.  These debriefs are one of the great benefits to these interdisciplinary courses.  Each student observes something slightly (or not so slightly) different from another student. During these debriefing periods all students have a chance to share their observations and thoughts.  The visit to the Prudhoe Bay oil fields helped students (and professors) to catch a small glimpse of the large footprint that the oil industry has on our society.

Approximately one third of jobs in Alaska are associated with the oil industry.   The Alaska Permanent Fund dispenses payments each year to residents of Alaska. This fund was set up when the Trans-Alaska Pipeline was built so that all Alaskans would benefit from the oil transferred through the pipeline.  The people of Alaska tend to have a positive view of the pipeline.

Debrief during lunch

We stopped at one beautiful lake later in the afternoon. Unfortunately, no one remembers the name of the lake.

Beautiful Lake

Before dinner, we had time to take a hike into the forest surrounding the campground.  At the end of the hike we spent some time on a personal reflection for the backcountry-as-text assignment. This was a wonderful place because there were no human-made sounds around — one hope for this assignment.  It is very difficult to visit places that are completely quiet of engines and other human-made sounds.  We were very lucky in Alaska to have many such places.

Marion Creek

Marion Creek

Dinner tonight was spaghetti. As discussed above, we had to buy meals that would be reasonable five to seven days later.

After dinner, the students participated in their Persuasive Arguments assignment.  Each student was given a ‘stance’ on the pipeline issue (possibly one that they may not agree with) and was given 4-5 minutes to persuade the other students to agree with their stance.  The students did very well with this assignment — very impressive work — especially since there was only a few days to prepare their argument.

Students preparing for the Persuasive Arguments assignment

Beginning of the assignment delivery

We ended the evening with a nice conversation around the picnic table.

Today, we went into the Arctic Ocean!  The Arctic Ocean is not accessible to the general public because the Prudhoe Bay oil fields are along the entire coast.  To access the Arctic Ocean, we must register for a tour (set up before we arrived in Deadhorse) — which requires giving basic information for a security check.

Multiple pipelines from different oil wells

We had a great tour of the oil fields.  Our tour guide, AJ, gave us a lot of information about the operations of the oil fields.  Although most of the oil wells are owned by two companies, BP and Conoco-Phillips, there are many international companies present for support and/or exploration. AJ had a lot of information about the Prudhoe Bay oil fields, and about Alaska more generally.

Then we arrived at the Arctic Ocean!  All of us went in the water — it was COLD!

The Arctic Ocean

Students at the Arctic Ocean.

After our trip to the Arctic Ocean, we had some time for showering (and warming up) before lunch.  After lunch, we took a trip to the general store. It was a fun trip. The store had a mixture of souvenirs and basic necessities.

The afternoon was spent working on assignments, talking with people around the hotel as a part of their place-as-text assignment, and resting. We had some free time during the evening so that the students would be ready to drive south on the Dalton Highway on Sunday.

While the students were resting, we had to replace a tire on the large van.  We heard many stories that flat tires are not uncommon on the Dalton Highway.  We were lucky that we did not have a flat tire while driving to Prudhoe Bay, but one tire did develop a leak and could not be repaired; so we had to replace it.

On June 21st we set out from Fairbanks with the intention of sleeping on the Arctic Circle. The Arctic Circle is he southernmost point at which the midnight sun is visible on the summer solstice. In other words, we got to experience Alaska’s famous midnight sun!

Driving to the Arctic Circle campground took us by some beautiful places:

First stop: Walmart in Fairbanks – not so beautiful, but necessary. There are very few stores between Fairbanks and Deadhorse.

Second stop: Trans Alaska Oil Pipeline Visitors Center in Fox, AK. Our class studied pipelines in Alaska and Virginia – so this was a must. Here we got to see our first pipeline pig.

Pipeline Pig — used to inspect and clean pipeline

Third stop: Gas station in Fox, Alaska. This was the last time we saw gas for under $5.00 a gallon until we got back to Fox, six days later.

Forth stop: Lunch at the Arctic Circle Trading Post in Joy, AK. Gifts are available here. We ate “out of the coolers” on the front porch and were joined with a friendly squirrel (our first wildlife of the trip, luckily not our last).

Arctic Circle Trading Post

Fifth stop: Dalton Highway sign! To get to the Dalton Highway from Fairbanks you must travel about 70 miles of the Elliott Highway. We were excited to start up the famous Dalton Highway, made famous by the TV show, Ice Road Truckers. You can read a New York Times article about the Dalton here.

Sixth stop: Yukon Crossing Visitors Contact Station. This is a BLM (Bureau of Land Management) managed stop with access to gas and pit toilets. The students spent some time reflecting on the banks of the Yukon River.

Yukon River

Seventh stop: Finger Mountain BLM Wayside. Here students climbed on rock formations that hunters used as markers for where they were and where they were going.

Students at the top of Finger Mountain.

View from Finger Mountain

Around 6:00 pm we made it to the Arctic Circle. The position of the Arctic Circle is not fixed; as of 1 July 2017, it runs 66°33′46.7″ north of the Equator. I (Dr. Pederson) got our 12 passenger 4×4 van stuck in a mud puddle (a rather large mud puddle) on the way to our campsite. Camping at the Arctic Circle is rustic. There is one pit toilet for the entire campground. That is the only amenity.

We made it to the Arctic Circle

Day one of the Dalton Highway was action packed. All along we followed the Trans Alaskan Pipeline. We would continue to do so for days to come.

Day two coming soon!

While on the Dalton Highway, we did not have internet or phone service. Therefore, the blog is behind schedule. As a way to catch-up and document our monumental journey, I will be adding a blog post for everyday we traveled over the next several weeks.

Stay tuned!

Today was a busy day. Students started out at the Museum of the North learning about the culture, history, art, and ecosystem of Alaska. Then, we ate lunch at Pioneer Park. Pioneer Park is a public area that many tourist visit. From Pioneer Park, students went to the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center. There a park ranger explained politics of public lands in Alaska from many perspectives. Lastly, students discovered Fairbanks in their Place-As-Text exploration.

Tomorrow, we will leave Fairbanks to travel the Dalton Highway. I (Dr. Pederson) will not be blogging for a few days because we will not have internet or phone service. Mr. Josh Blakely will be updating the blog with our progress and locations.

Stay tuned!