Chena Hot Springs, AK

Hello from Chena Hot Springs in Alaska. Chena H.S. was discovered in 1095 by two Swedish brothers and became a respite for miners and residents with ailments. Chena HS is about 60 miles NE of Fairbanks. The year round resort sits on 440 acres and is known for one of the best places to see the Northern Lights and is home of the only Ice Hotel in the world. Crazy isn't it?

From the moment you walk into the Aurora Ice Museum you are mesmerized by the ever changing colored ice crystal chandeliers above your head (meant to mimic the Northern Lights). There are numerous lit sculptures that take your breath away. The samurai, the jousting knights, the ONLY ice chest board with pieces designed from the likes of the many Artic animals.

The first room holds the ice blocks, harvested from the nearby lake. They are called diamond blocks because the top of the blocks are a frosty color from the ice melt and the remaining ice is crystal clear like a diamond. The room with an abundance of tools used to shape and shine the ice objects. There are sculptures of the Coca Cola Bear, Igloos, Animals and an assortment of snow globes all around the museum. There are four bedrooms at the far end of the Ice Museum with different themes ranging from Christmas evening, Polar Bear, Ice Outhouse and a Gothic. You will be amazed at the Ice Potty and queen size bed. I am trying out the caribou blanket, the bear blankets and the seal blankets all of which come with your room rental along with subzero sleeping bags. Did I mention the Ice Potty is for decoration only. Should you need to use the restroom on your overnight stay you need to use the Port A Pot out back. Brrrrr! And did I mention the price for this winter wonderland overnight stay? A mere $600 a night. The hotel is kept at a constant zero degrees which is fueled by the Geothermal Generator, also on the grounds. Should I book your second honeymoon suite now? There is a full bar and music in the Ice Hotel as well. You sit on caribou covered ice stools and receive an Appletini in your very own Ice Glass. You get to keep your glass by the way. Just don't take it into the Hot Springs or there goes your souvenir!! I think I forgot to tell you that Chena Hot Springs employes two full time ice carvers. All of those martini glasses you see above, they are carved by hand by the husband/wife ice sculpture team. It is truly an amazing place to visit. About 5 years ago, one of the TV stations, I can't remember whether it was HGTV or 60 minutes interview the owner of Chena Hot Springs and was told "An Ice Museum - what a ridiculous idea and no one will come and stay. Why would people pay to freeze?". Boy were they wrong! The Asians, Japanese in particular, love Chena Hot Springs. Remember, I told you there is a daily direct flight from Japan to Fairbanks so they can enjoy the hot springs, the hotel and view the Northern Lights.!!!

Then we toured the GeoThermal Plant. This building is what fuels the entire resort, 440 acres, for very few pennies a day according to the gentleman who owns Chena HS. He was a construction worker on the original Pipeline and dabbled in Therma energy. He has since teamed up with United Technologies to expand the capabilities of GeoThermal fuel. Why doesn't Hot Springs, Arkansas have GeoThermal fuel to heat and cool their town. It would certainly cut a lot of costs!Then we toured the Greenhouse. Again, living the Alaskan Subsistence living lifestyle, Chena Hot Springs resort gets all it's fresh vegetables and fruits from the Hot House. The lettuce and tomatoes were delicious in our salmon salad. The Korean we met on our tour just graduated from Cornell with his PhD and was heading back home. He thought he would stop by Chena Hot Springs on his way.

On our way back to Fairbanks, we asked so many questions of the shuttle driver he finally offered to take us to the Pipeline visitor site so we would quit asking so many questions. Those of you that know me well know I ask a lot of questions when I want to learn about something. If I don't ask questions, that is a sign I don't really care about the topic!!! I remember last summer getting to ride in Judy Marcom's son's farm combine and after about 20 mins into the ride (which was an hour long) he said, "What do you do for a living? You ask a whole lot of questions?" So here is one of the viewing areas of the TransAlaska Pipeline. The Pipeline is 800 miles long and crosses 3 mountain ranges and 800 rivers and streams. It was started in March 1975 and completed May 1977. Over 15 billion gallons of oil have been moved through the Pipeline since Jun 1977. This Pipeline pushes about a million barrels of oil per day. That is a lot of "Black Gold" so says Jedd Clampet of the Beverly Hillbillies. The Pipeline is over and below the surface of the ground in Alaska because of several reasons. It can not disturb the natural environment so if it is buried it has to be where the perma frost will not be interrupted. It is build over 12 feet high above the ground so that the animals (moose, bears, caribou, etc) will not be impeded by the size of the 48 inch diameter pipe. If it is above ground, the pieces sit on frames that are earthquake proof, they shimmy back and forth for up to 11 inches. On the one picture you will see these funny looking pipes rising above the stanchions. Those are coolers to keep the perma frost frozen. They are full of liquid nitrogen and through a complex process cold air is pushed into the perma frost to ensure it stays frozen. Otherwise with that many barrels of fuel running through the pipe it would heat up and melt the perma frost. Very cleaver!!! the funny looking thing in the pipeline is called a "Pig". There are several "Pigs" sent up and back through the pipe line to clean the sledge (waxy stuff) off the walls of the Pipeline every 4 - 7 days. It was amazing to stand under this Trans Alaskan Pipeline. This pipeline produces 15% of our fuel for the United States. The last picture is one of the original trucks that took supplies up to the Pipeline workers. You can see how big those tires are to haul heavy equipment and food supplies up and down the Pipeline. This gentleman purchased this "hauler" and since he had a "hauler" he decided to haul a house from one side of Fairbanks to the other side. Why? Just because he could. He is referred to as the "Fairbanks Funny Guy".

So that was my my trip to Chena Hot Springs. My next blog is all about the Fur Rondy, the week leading up to the Iditarod. Traditionally, the Alaskans brought their furs into Anchorage to trade and then celebrate dog sled races (only 25 miles). This was the 75th year for the Fur Rondy. A summer carnival in the middle of the freezing winter. I hope you view those pictures too. I am looking forward to David arriving on Thursday for the Iditarod. Until then, stay warm.

Hugs from Sheryl the Nanuq of the North.