{"id":26141,"date":"2026-09-18T19:55:22","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T23:55:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/?p=26141"},"modified":"2026-09-19T13:34:22","modified_gmt":"2026-09-19T17:34:22","slug":"fairbanks-seward-and-valdez","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/index.php\/2026\/09\/18\/fairbanks-seward-and-valdez\/","title":{"rendered":"Fairbanks, Seward and Valdez"},"content":{"rendered":"
Position: 60\u00b010’56.7″N 149\u00b038’25.5″W<\/a><\/h6>\n

After learning that the US Fish and Wildlife Service<\/a> maintains Deadman Lake<\/a>, a free campsite just over the border in Alaska, we headed there with all possible haste. Despite the incongruity of his Mohawk hairstyle, the US Border Patrol agent couldn\u2019t have been more welcoming as we crossed back into the United States from Canada.<\/p>\n

Like the National Park Service, the USF&WS is a part of the Department of the Interior. We have a senior lifetime pass for access to everything under their aegis. Honestly, that pass is one of the great bargains and a good reason for growing old. It also gets us a 50% discount on paid campsites and has paid for itself many times over. Deadman Lake has no fresh water and lots of bugs, but we couldn\u2019t beat the price or the view.<\/p>\n

Fairbanks<\/h6>\n

Alaska\u2019s second city is Fairbanks. Originally a trading post, Fairbanks grew during World War II and the through the Cold War as a staging site for the construction of military depots across Alaska. Later, when oil was discovered in Prudhoe Bay, the city became the nexus for everything Trans-Alaska Pipeline<\/a> related. That included entertaining workers on their days off and gave the city a boomtown vibe during the 1970s. No surprise then, that Fairbanks is the starting point for motorcyclists riding up the Dalton Highway to the furthest point north on any American road.<\/p>\n

Having completed a motorcycle trip from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay, Carol asked me if the drive would be worthwhile? My assessment was that the unpaved road might be more mechanically risky and uncomfortable than beautiful. But you get bragging rights and the north side of the Brooks Range is one of the prettiest, most ethereal places I have ever seen. Daylight at 70o <\/sup>north latitude is evocative, no matter what time of day it is. Here is a video I took riding over the Atigun Pass in 2014 that might give you a sense of the roads and scenery.<\/p>\n