It was our final day in Fairbanks and we’d end it with a bang – we hoped! This was another excursion I’d booked almost immediately after knowing we were traveling to Fairbanks – the Northern Lights and Chena Hot Springs tour.
Chena Hot Springs is an unincorporated community about 60 miles northeast of Fairbanks. The Chena Hot Springs Resort caters to the tourists by creating a winter wonderland with the hot springs at the center.
We were met by our Alaska Wildlife guide Bob and made the 1.5 hour trek from Fairbanks to the community with 12 new friends from around the world. The tour was a long one – starting at 4:30 pm and ending at 2:00 am. It was the only tour I’d booked that included searching for the Northern lights. The rest of the time we’d hunted for them on our own. So it would be interesting. Not that there’s much you can do to ensure tourists see them. Right place, right time…
Bob was gregarious and engaging – asking where we were from and what we’d done in Fairbanks. And, as seemingly always, we kept our eyes out for moose on the way there. Again, lots of moose tracks; no moose. As we drove further from Fairbanks we lost the traffic, the light pollution, and modern civilization. Apparently folks that live this far out live “off the grid” and have learned to fend for themselves in -50 degree winter. Unimaginable to this city girl.
The first item on the agenda was a tour of the Aurora Ice Museum located on the property. This is the world’s largest year-round ice environment and all of the ice and snow were harvested at the resort. Inside is the Aurora Ice Bar where tourists can purchase an appletini served in an ice glass. Per our amazing tour guide and bartender we should drink the martini and take the ice glass outside where we should make a wish and smash it! Consider it done!
At 25 degrees, this was a very cool place – pun intended! Of course the bar was my favorite part, but there were many other sculptures including an igloo, ice chandeliers, and a castle where – believe it or not – weddings are often held.
We acted silly with the bartender and other guests, I drank my lovely appletini and then we really needed to get out of there because, damn that’s cold!
The tour guide had made reservations for all of us in the resort’s restaurant but John and I’d decided to bring our own as the restaurant was IMO over-priced and had pretty average reviews. And we were much more excited for the hot springs!
The pool is nothing overly fancy but there are decent changing rooms and amenities. Once you’re changed, you’re funneled through an outdoor hallway and can walk directly into the hot springs. Let me tell you, that’s a cold walk! But once your feet touch the hot springs which hold steady at 106 degrees, you warm up quickly. And it feels absolutely amazing!
It also looks amazing! The pool is surrounded by rocks topped with this winter’s snow. Beyond the rocks are the mountains; at this time of year still covered in snow and oh so pretty. And the steam rising from the water gives it an ethereal look.
Since we were so much earlier than the rest of our party, the pool was not yet too crowded and we wandered around appreciating the hot(!) water surrounding us and the incredible scenery beyond. We also got to see the pool during daylight hours which was nice as once the sun went down it got very, very dark.
We literally soaked in those hot springs for 3 and a half hours; chatting to each other, learning about new people and of course, looking for the Aurora. It did make a brief appearance! But not nearly as spectacular as the prior night.
It was a lovely last night in Alaska, filled with great conversation with the man I love, meeting new people, learning about Chena Hot Springs and Fairbanks, pampering and of course an appletini in an ice glass at an ice bar! What more could I ask for?!?!