Fairbanks,
Alaska Information Site!
Fairbanks, Alaska information on activities and events for
our visitors and friends.
[To add a page or link to
this site, see the disclaimer at bottom of this page] |
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To help you learn more about
Fairbanks Alaska & plan your visit to our great state, we have made available
here a number of resources.
Fairbanks, Alaska is:
Fairbanks,
Alaska, 358 miles north of Anchorage (by way of the Parks Highway), likes to think that it (instead of Delta) is the end of the
Alaska Highway. Its central location makes it the focal point for the tiny
villages scattered throughout the surrounding wilderness, and Fairbanks is a staging point
for North Slope villages such as Barrow and the oil fields of Prudhoe Bay.
Yet,
unlike Anchorage, it still retains its down home "frontier" feel.
It is contained within the North Star Borough, similar to a county, but
which is roughly the size of New Jersey!
Alaska may be known for its
harsh winter climate, but Fairbanksans prefer to enjoy their wonderful summers to the fullest while they can. The Interior has
temperatures ranging from 65 degrees below zero in the winter to 90
degrees above in the summer.
Gardening is big in the Interior.
[Photo of gold panner is courtesy
the University of Alaska
Archives;
Musher is David Arlan Rogers.]
Fairbanks is called "The Golden Heart of Alaska," a
reference to the character of her people as much as to the location in
Alaska's interior, or to the discovery of gold in 1902.
Because we are just 188 miles south of the Arctic
Circle (above which the sun neither sets during
the summer solstice, nor rises during the winter solstice) we also have very long summer
days. The shortest winter day of the year has less than three hours of sunlight, the
longest (around June 21) never really ends, though officially it has over 21 hours.
[Photo of Denali (Mount McKinley)]
We hope that with our site we are able to answer your questions
about our city, and that you will even consider visiting in the off season, too. Many of
our attractions - the Aurora Borealis
(northern lights), dog
races, etc., cannot be enjoyed in quite the same way in the summer. And besides, winter
rates are often lower. Please take advantage of our search engine to explore
this site - it will often make your seach much quicker. It is below the
menu on the left.
Our State Is:
now known as "The Last Frontier" but before
that it was known as
"The Land of a Thousand Smokes" due to
activity of 140 volcanoes (52 of which have been active since 1760) and
earthquakes. But
it is a huge state, with room for a wide variety of landscape, from small waterfalls
like this one, to huge mountains, flat treeless tundra, hot springs, glaciers, and on and
on. We cannot do our state justice describing it here, or even showing you pictures. You have
to experience our state. And much of the fun of the trip is here, in the Interior.
Click here for more Help with this site:
[Disclaimer: Information in
this site on specific attractions is presented for your information and
convenience in planning your trip only. Because our purpose is to tell
visitors about Fairbanks, we are happy to list non-profits for free on the
appropriate page (like churches) and will also update existing information
if you email us. For a charge, we will add approved links from businesses to the appropriate
page on this site, add a text paragraph with links, or even write you a page of your own.
See our faq page for more information and prices. ]