Aurora Borealis! (08-27-14)

To say that I am obsessed with the Northern Lights would be an exaggeration, but not much of one!  I have practiced with the new camera, and even had to get the hang of the tripod.  I’ve never used this one before. 

We left Whitehorse because the Northern Lights were supposed to be active and we were on the hunt for a dark place with a northern exposure.  We found it at Morley Lake.






There is a space science website that you can go to that tells you when the aurora is going to be active, so for the last week, (since its been dark enough at night) I’ve been checking the website and staying up many times till the wee hours, just waiting for the lights to show..  Most nights it has been too cloudy, but we finally got lucky!


As I was sitting, staring out the window in between playing a game on my phone at the lowest light level possible, I saw a green arch in the sky.  First I thought my mind was playing tricks on me, but when I realized it wasn’t, pandemonium ensued.  It must have been comical to see us try to get dressed and put shoes on in the dark. Finally we ran outside- without jackets.  I was too awestruck to go back in and get one, so I was frozen by the time we went back in.

I kept playing with the settings on the camera and I think I finally got the hang of it, somewhat.  It was still pretty cloudy, but the aurora was active for about 30 minutes, at about 2:00 AM.




It started as a ribbon across the sky.  We thought it would be on the northern horizon, but it was directly above us!











It would get bright, then fade away, then get bright in a different place.












 

I should have tried to move a little for this shot- it was hard to see in the dark and we didn’t want to put on any lights.

Sometimes it looked like a curtain, with greens and reddish purple.

It would change color from green to white

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  There were times when it would swirl around, and move from one area of the sky to another.
















The following day we moved about 150 miles, and checked the aurora forecast.  This time we prepared better- shoes were lined up and untied, ready to put on, jackets were right by the door ( I still  didn’t take the time to put mine on!) and we threw the cat in the bathroom so he couldn’t try to escape. Its really dark outside the cities. We spent a lot of time the night before, making sure he didn’t try to get out while we wrestled the camera equipment out. So, we were ready, just in case.


I didn’t even have time to doze off this time.  The lights showed up at 11:40!  thought we were lucky to see them so well the first time, but the display the second night was  mind boggling! We were on a ridge, with great visibility, and finally, there were very few clouds in the sky.  I did a little better job taking the pictures this time!













 





 

Denali Highway Revisited (08-19-14)

After our adventure to the Arctic, we stopped overnight in Fairbanks to regroup.  Regrouping consisted of doing laundry, rinsing the grime off the rig, and picking up my new glasses, which had been delivered to the RV park.



While we were busy taking care of business, Dozer was outside trying to climb into some nearby bushes.  That's not unusual for him.  He loves to explore, so I thought nothing of it, but took him inside for dinner a short time later.

 
After chatting with my neighbor for a few minutes, he told me he was getting a kick out of a mommy mole who was quickly relocating her babies by carrying them one at time in her mouth, from one bush to another. Of course, the bush she was evacuating was the one Dozer had been exploring!  So cute to watch and I am so glad he didn’t catch them!



Once our chores were accomplished we decided that we needed to go in search of a few things. What were we searching for?

1) Denali.  We’re here, and didn’t really see the mountain so we decided that one more shot at it would be worth it.

2) The View- We had already driven down Denali Highway in the rain and fog.  With improved weather in the forecast, we were hoping to actually see the mountains that line the highway.

3) The Aurora Borealis- The aurora forecast is saying that we might be able to see them for the next few nights- IF we have clear skies.

So, here’s how we did on our quest:

1) Denali- Nope, sad to say, after spending more than 2 weeks within sight of Mt. McKinley, we just got one glimpse of it one day.

2) The View-Yup!   We were a little nervous since the clouds were thicker than we hoped and it kept raining on us, but that just created numerous rainbows for us.

We spent a great day driving down this dirt road again.

The mountain views were outstanding and made up for not seeing “the big one”.

We spent the night along this road and Dozer got to get out and explore. The weather was perfect.

We even got to watch a Bald Eagle go about his business.

This is where we spent the night.  We both agree that its our favorite spot so far.










3) The Northern Lights (aurora borealis)- Yes!  This is still ongoing.  We saw the lights for about 5 minutes one night- not enough time to even get a camera.  It was mostly cloudy so it wasn't the best display, and just whetted our appetite.  But at least we saw them!



Every night that the weather might cooperate, we make sure the window is facing north (where the lights would appear). One night that looked particularly promising, we actually slept on the dinette so we could watch out the window.  The lights did NOT show up that night.

I did take the opportunity to play with the settings on my new camera, since I was awake most of the night.  Not many stars were visible. mostly just the big dipper.

We’ll keep trying to see them as we make our way out of Alaska and through Canada.

(We are in Canada now, so internet will be spotty for a while)

Boreal/Borealis (Minnesota, 09-01-12)

Sometimes I'm a little slow to connect the dots.  Several times in our travels we've heard the term Boreal forest.  I just figured it referred to the types of trees that grew in that particular kind of woods, but then we came to northern Minnesota, and I began checking daily to see if we had any chance of fulfilling a long time ambition of mine- to see the Northern lights. Northern MN is one of the better places in the lower 48 to actually catch a glimpse of the Aurora Borealis or Northern lights.  It finally clicked with me that a Boreal Forest is" a forest located in a Northern region".  Much to my disappointment, solar activity is very low right now, which means I probably won't see them, but I found a great website for  checking the activity level  (http://www.softservenews.com/Aurora.htm) , so I will continue to check it every day while we are here in the “Boreal states”.

We've spent the last few days in the awesome little town of Grand Marais MN.  It's right on Lake Superior, and has a small harbor and a cool little waterfront area with shops and restaurants, all within walking distance our RV park. We were extremely tempted to put the boat in the water, but didn’t.

The other night we went to one of the seafood restaurants right on the water, although our plan of eating outside on the deck was foiled by the wind and the sudden temperature drop.

We spent one afternoon hiking to two waterfalls in nearby Grand Portage state park.  The falls were ok, but nothing spectacular.  The hike, although not too long- 4 miles- was difficult due to the heat  and high humidity.

While exploring the area,  we stopped at the Grand Portage Heritage Center, even though I thought I had learned enough about the Voyageurs at Voyageurs National Park.  I was so glad we stopped though- turns out there was a lot more interesting information to be had about that time in history.

In the 1700s, Grand Portage, MN was at the center of the fur trade. This is the spot where the Voyageurs left the water and had to carry their goods along a 9 mile stretch of land. It was here that the Montreal Voyageurs would rendezvous with the western Voyageurs and swap goods. At the Living History exhibit several of the North West Company buildings have been reconstructed. 

We chatted with a fellow making a birch bark canoe in the same manner they were made hundreds of years ago.  While showing us how they were put together, he taught us about how amazing the birch tree is and why it is uniquely perfect for building a canoe.

So, here are some interesting facts:
Birch bark can be peeled from the tree without causing damage to the tree, if done correctly (and he explained how to do that).
Birch bark will rot in the sun but will not rot in water, in fact, water makes it stronger. If a canoe is stored in the dark or used in the water regularly, it will last for hundreds of years.
The bark is used "inside out" for the canoe because the outside, white bark is dead, rotted by the sun, and the orange bark is fresh and waterproof.  A birch bark canoe can carry much heavier loads than it’s aluminum counterpart. The wood of a birch tree is digestible by humans, and is non-toxic.  It is used to make popsicle sticks and tooth picks.