In Search of the Aurora - Fairbanks, Alaska

We leave for Alaska in just a week and we’re in countdown mode. We’ve been preparing for our upcoming trip for a few months now… airline tickets, lodging, car rental and don’t forget all that cold-weather clothing and gear we’ll need.

We booked the airline tickets first with American Airlines in October using free mileage points. American partners with Alaska Airlines and we managed a combination of first and coach class seats for a total of ~$22 total out of pocket. We were feeling pretty chuffed about that.

We also booked a midsize SUV AWD vehicle with Enterprise for which we paid a very hefty price. The price includes well over $100 in facility, service fees and taxes for a 5-day rental, but we’ll need wheels while we’re there, so...

AirbnB in Fairbanks… our home for the week

More recently, we booked an apartment with a full kitchen through Airbnb for five nights with a plan to cook our own meals and spend our last night in an airport hotel (reservation made) which offers shuttle service to the airport to avoid the early morning hassle of a car return as well as saving a day’s car rental fee.

Living in Las Vegas, our closet was sorely ill-prepared for below-freezing temperatures. It gets cold here once in a while, but nothing compared to the Alaska Interior. We’ve been watching the temperatures in Fairbanks for the past few weeks and to say it’s very cold there is an understatement. It’s bitter, arctic, biting, icy, freezing cold and the forecast reflects it. Take a look!

-30°F is the high one day? -41°F is the low? Yikes!

We’ve certainly experienced extreme cold temperatures in the past. David’s parents used to live in Kremmling, Colorado high in the Rockies, and we visited them many times in the winter when temperatures dipped to -40F. The key is layers, layers, layers! Keeping those temperatures in mind (and it’s hard not to), we set about outfitting ourselves with cold-weather gear.

David tried several warm, down-insulated parkas before settling on one from REI, most of which was paid for with REI Co-op rebates from last year. I was fortunate to find an extra heavy ski parka at the local thrift shop ($8) which fits like a glove. I then purchased warm gloves, scarf and a fleece-lined beanie. David already had a warm beanie, scarf and gloves so he was all set. We both bought balaclavas to keep our faces from freezing solid and our noses from falling off.

Neither of us had warm winter boots. David found a pair of heavy-duty lined boots at Walmart and I lucked out once again at the local thrift shop. David is convinced that only women get rid of perfectly good clothes and footwear. Men, he says, keep them till the clothes rot and/or the men die. We hate spending too much money on clothes/footwear we’ll seldom wear in the future, so this solution works for us.

We already own several pairs of long thermal underwear tops and bottoms as well as heavy woolen socks. I also sprung for fleece-lined jeans. David has heavy winter Carhartt pants and feels he’ll be warm enough with multiple thermal layers beneath. Long-sleeve shirts, flannel shirts and heavy sweaters will complete our cold-weather clothing gear.

Brennan and Hannah gave us a large, durable Patagonia duffel for Christmas and we intend to cram it full for the trip with an additional carry-on suitcase for non-outerwear and personal items. We’re beginning to stage all the gear on the floor in the office (read that ‘tossed into the pile’). It’s all part of the anticipation.

Perhaps our most important purchase was for filming the Aurora Borealis. After all, it doesn’t make sense to take this trip and not be able to share what we see! David purchased a new/used Canon DSLR EOS-70D camera with lenses that work well in low light conditions… like photographing the Northern Lights in the middle of the night, for instance. He also bought a tripod and a handy backpack to protect and carry the camera and all the gear. The camera works with a remote shutter, so in theory, once the camera is set up, we can sit in a warm car intermittently and take photos without fear of frostbite.

Brennan suggested hand warmers for our hands and the camera as well. Beyond sticking them in our pockets, the hand warmers can be wrapped around the camera lens to keep it operational in extreme cold. Amazon just delivered several packs of ‘Hot Hands’ to take with us.

What did we forget? Not sure, but there’s always something. Luckily, Fairbanks has all manner of stores and shops, so we’re sure to find whatever we need somewhere in the city. In the meantime, we’re counting down the days and minutes.

So there you have it… we’re almost ready for our mid-winter excursion to Fairbanks, Alaska in search of the Northern Lights. We’re hoping the Northern Lights gods approve of the plan and cooperate with clear weather for our viewing pleasure.