Athabaskan Fiddling Festival

What do Alaskans do when the weather is numbingly cold and the nights are long?  There's a limit to how many times you can play Monopoly or watch your favourite movie or play cards or play games online.  After a couple of weeks of that, it's time to come up with something that brings people together, that's lots of fun, that gets the blood flowing (in addition to doing Tai Chi, of course) and gives folk an outlet for their talents.  The Athabaskans have the perfect solution.  When the days are nearing their shortest and the winter temperatures have set in, they hold a Fiddling Festival in Fairbanks and they really let their hair down - young and old, very young and the young at heart.

It's an important date in the Cultural Calendar of Fairbanks.

Tai Chi all over.

One of the great things about Taoist Tai Chi is that there are groups in many places and you can attend a class with friendly people when you are passing through. You have a shared enthusiasm for Tai Chi and everyone knows the procedure.  In addition, it's not difficult to find a place to either do a set or two or practice some standing jongs.  You don't necessarily need to have others around you and you don't need specialised equipment.  Just go ahead and do it at your leisure and reap the benefits.

I was lucky enough to be able to attend a class in Fairbanks.  When I looked online to see if there was a branch in the middle of Alaska, I didn't expect to find one; but there most certainly is a group and  I was made feel very welcome and enjoyed doing Tai Chi with the group in Fairbanks.  I was surprised by a generous offer to take me for a scenic drive and lunch in a warm cafe which serves healthy home cooked meals.  Many thanks Dave and Mary for your generosity and concern for my warmth.  The day was a real highlight for me.  When are you coming to Brisbane?  I would like to return your hospitality.

The friendly group at Fairbanks.

View from the dining room at Chena Hot  Springs

Opposite our classroom in The Morris Thompson Cultural Museum Fairbanks.

Among the other fossils at Churchill Northern Studies Centre.

Amazing Alaska.

And so I returned to Alaska with very fond memories of 2010.  That visit and the people I met had inspired me to return for a different experience.  The tales of extreme cold and short days seemed so incredible to a tropical girl that I wanted to experience it for myself.

Alaska is like nothing else.  It is so different from any other place.  The lifestyle and the people are shaped by the climate.  The people are fiercely proud of their state, it's wildlife and ecology and the way they live their lives.  Many people, probably most people, say "I came here for a few weeks/ a summer/ a contract and never went home. It gets you in, no doubt about it.  However, life in Alaska is not easy for people, animals and plants.  Like our deserts, it's a tough place to survive; and like our deserts, it is stunningly beautiful.  I went to this place with two major goals: to have a snow and ice experience and to see the Northern lights and I certainly achieved both.  Wow lucky me!

It took me more than twelve hours to make it from home to Fairbanks, Alaska.  Sue and I were departing on the same morning for different destinations: me to Alaska and she to Africa.  Having had her fair dose of short cold days, Sue decided to fly half way across the world for a dose of Kenyan summer and wildlife.  Her flight departed a couple of hours before mine but it was to a Portland airport we went at 5 am.  OMG!  Breakfast together at the airport and off she went to exotic places while I caught up on Aussie news online.  Then it was my turn to fly to Seattle and then to Fairbanks.

I didn't have a lot of time in Seattle but I opted for a massage instead of lunch and then rushed to the departure gate.  Flight delayed.  Goody, time for a snack.  Finally loaded and off we went, a three hour flight to Fairbanks and a nap on the way.  However, I couldn't sleep.  Too excited.  Alaska here I come.

The next morning I opened my window and

...it had snowed during the night.  Oh joy! Oh bliss!  I ate breakfast and headed off for Safeway to buy some snacks.  I could see it from my window and it was just a short walk.  OK it's been snowing so it's cold. Put on lots of warm clothes and off we go.  Tramp through snow.  Yes it is cold.  Skate across the ice on the road.  Be careful.  Great, I know where I am.  There's the Taoist Tai Chi Society.  Now I know where to go on Monday.  Nice and close to the hotel.

Gosh !*# it really is cold.  Everything hurts.  Better beat a hasty retreat back to the warm hotel.  Never mind.  I'll acclimatise.

What on earth is this?  The cars are all plugged in and they have things coming out of the front.  How very strange!  Ah, so that's how they keep warm enough to start.  If the cars need little heaters, well so do I.  Get warm quick!  It's getting dark too.  Is it that late already?

Back in my room and finally starting to thaw out, I look out the window again and notice there are very few people on the street - only cars.  Lesson number one, even the locals don't walk in this, they drive.  Silly me.

Opposite the hotel is a beautiful Art Deco building.  Formerly government offices, now private offices.

Autumn colours.

One of the sights I was wanting to experience was the changing colours of the trees in autumn.  One of the best examples was literally right outside my front door.  Some trees change from green to yellow and others change from green to orange to fluorescent red.  Such beautiful colours.

From this to this in less than two weeks.

Then there was a lovely surprise.  Two years ago, I did most of my Tai Chi on the back deck and I had a little companion who thought I didn't see him steal bird seed over the fence.  As I was doing Tai Chi one day, I glanced out the window and who/what did I spy but my little mate up to his old tricks.  This time, he/she was very chubby and looking well and truly ready for winter.  Still as cute as ever.

Halloween.

I happened to be at Sue's forHallowe'en and I had hoped to carve a pumpkin (no matter how badly) but I just ran out of time.  Nevertheless, I wanted to participate so I was the one who answered the knocks on the door and distributed the candy (lollies and chocolates).  American children are just like Australian children; full of anticipation of eating sweet things.  I hadn't realised it was just a time to dress up as anything.  I was surprised when children showed up as Ninja turtles and princesses.  I had expected to see all witches and cats and ghosts.  And adults have Halloween parties.  Just an excuse for a party.  Why not?

Later, Sue took me around the neighbourhood to see some of the decorations.  As not the photographer of the year, I didn't disappoint but it was fun.

And not forgetting ...

The dogs.

I had been anticipating this part of the trip with great excitement.  I love dogs and I will never forget my previous experience with sled dogs in Alaska.  We were supposed to go on a sled dog ride but how do you do that when there's no snow?  Never fear.  Where there's a will there's a way and instead of a sled we had a chariot.  Who cares!  I just love dogs.

And so we went to Wapusk Adventures to be greeted by Big Dog (Dave) and his kennel of puppies and sled dogs.  Dave is a local and larger than life with endless interesting and amusing stories about his life growing up in an Inuit community and his passion for dog sledding.  My trusty roomie, Gerry, and I had opted to ride together and we were first cab off the rank.  The whole kennel of dogs went biserk when the sleds/chariots appeared and the handlers were stretched to the limit trying to prepare the dogs and keep the teams stationary.

Restrained from the front.

And from the back.

Time to go and we were off so fast.  Our charioteer advised us that if we wanted to change places half way through, we had better be quick because he wasn't sure if he could stop the dogs.  We managed it but those dogs can really move and we had to hang on for grim death all the way. All too soon it was over and we had completed our IDIDAMILE.

Fellow charioteers

Ever present polar bear protection.

Just love sled dogs.

And other Canadian wildlife.

Once I had seen a few bears, I was able to turn my attention to other wildlife in the area.  Almost everything was white!

Ptarmigan.

Snowy owl but not it's best side.

An armed Mountie protecting sightseers from polar bears.

And a prize for the first person to guess the target of this award winning shot.

.

Arctic fox (stuffed).

I did see some Arctic foxes but they were too far away to photograph.

What now for these majestic creatures?

There is no doubt that polar bears are charismatic and smart.  They capture the imagination of people all over the world.  What trends have researchers found in polar bear survival?

It would appear that certain populations may be in decline on the basis of some measurable criteria.

• The length time of the freeze of the sea water seems to be reducing.  At this point, it is for about one week at the beginning and the end of the winter freeze as compared to 30 years ago.  One of the implications of this is that bears have less time to hunt and to build body fat to see them through the long summer fasting period.  This also applies to breeding females who will give birth to cubs in their dens and who will need to ensure those cubs put on about 11.5 kg in three months.
• A female bear need to carry almost 200kg of fat to see her and her cub through pregnancy an hibernation
• The size of litters seems to be smaller.  Triplets have become a rarity.  Fewer cubs are surviving.
• The total number of bears is down 20%.

The good news is that scientists are learning more and more about polar bears every year and using that knowledge to advocate for the bears and to put in place means to preserve these animals which have captured our imagination for so long.

A grizzly paw and mine.

A polar bear paw and mine.

Hello big boy!

Give us a cuddle.

A love affair to remember (cont.)

Here you can see some muddy paw prints as the bear stood up against the wall of a local gathering place in Churchill to smell the kitchen exhaust fumes.  Every precaution is taken to preserve people and bears and, in 1969, the Polar Bear Alert Program was instituted as a way of doing this.

Polar bears who/which are not deterred by loud gun shots and who continue to frequent the town face some time in jail.  After their incarceration, they are tranquillised and taken to another location in the hope they will not return.  Special traps are placed in strategic places around the town and then the bears are put in a special holding facility out of town until their release.

Accommodation for 30 transgressors.