On the road to Fairbanks, Alaska

Our first stop on this leg of the journey was only 20 minutes outside of our campsite on the shores of Kluane Lake at Burwash Landing. We visited an amazing natural history museum which had great displays of Alaskan wildlife and lots of information about the different species which inhabit the diverse landscapes of this state.

After a brutal stretch of highway, swollen with frost-heaves, potholes and construction, we arrived many tedious hours later in Tok, AK. If you are ever in the area, you can just keep on truckin'!

When we arrived in Fairbanks, the temperature sky-rocketed to 29 degrees for a few hours and we broke out our shorts for the first time on the trip! Of course, the weather turned after our arrival and we were back to our uniform of fleece and jeans by the next morning.

The bustling city of Fairbanks, AK services a population of close to 100,000 with the surrounding suburbs. This veritable metropolis of the North meant that we were able to load up on groceries, books and other necessities while we were here. Mark got the truck tuned up and in top shape for the road ahead. We visited the University of Alaska's Museum to brush up on native Alaskan artists' work and check out the artifacts from life at the time of the last Ice Age.

We headed out with our sights set on Denali National Park, but another flat camper tire slowed us down. The shredded tire is just another example of the joys of overland travel here in Alaska. Poor Mark was swarmed by mosquitoes while he changed the tire on the edge of the highway. This is our third flat of the trip so far. I guess three's a charm!