I want to come visit Alaska from the UK - Totally confused as when to come.. (Kaktovik: 2014, home) - (AK) - Page 10 - City-Data Forum

Jonotastic · 10-16-2009, 05:28 PM

I can imagine Nome being a fun place to visit during that time!

Moose Whisperer · 10-16-2009, 07:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Floyd_Davidson

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moose Whisperer

LOL. I'm arguing with Bill Clinton.

Why all the gratuitous insults? Just read what was actually said and stop making things up.

Hey, nice to see that we finally agree on something - being compared to Bill Clinton is an insult!

Floyd_Davidson · 10-16-2009, 11:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom UK

Ok, still looking at End March (18th) / Early April (5th).. Thinking Barrow for a week.. then down south for 10 days. At least these are the dates I've found flights.. Also options in February..

What is possible in Barrow without spending a fortune.. Are there any cheaper options to the hotels? How can you get out of town? 4x4? snowmobile? How much would guides charge? Also what is this trip south Floyd?

The Spring festival is the first week of April? What goes on?

The end of March is a good time, in terms of weather and sunlight, to see the Arctic. By the third week in March we get just over 12 hours of direct sunlight, with about 1-1/2 hours of civil twilight before and after (about 15 hours of light per day). It usually is also fairly warm by our standards (probably with temperatures ranging from -20F to + 20F), though windy (10-20mph most of the time). Definitely a dose of Arctic Winter!

Note that February is much colder, and darker. But seeing how we live in winter is also very interesting, and if you can manage to get lucky and come just when we have Qivgiq (the Messenger Feast, but dates won't be known until maybe December), it would be a very special treat. (Use google to learn more about it.)

The Spring Festival at the beginning of April includes a parade, lots of Arctic games for all ages, indoor activities and outdoor activities. It is intended to be a local community celebration. Things like harpoon throwing contests... :-)

You have three options for hotels in Barrow, and in March you might even get off fairly "cheap". I wouldn't recommend the King Eider hotel, but either the Airport Inn or the Top of the World Hotel are okay. They are not inexpensive. In March you can probably get a room (I mean a bare dormatory room, with a good Internet connection, but with no running water except in the communal facility down the hall) at the NARL Hotel. It is operated by the Barrow Arctic Science Consortium (BASC) to provide rooms to visiting scientists, but they'll rent a room to anyone if they have the space, which in March they almost certainly will. The problem is that it is out at the Ilisagvik College (the old Naval Arctic Research Lab area), about 6 miles from town. Cab fare to town is $9 a trip. I'll haul you back and forth as much as possible though, but it does mean extended stays in town. It's just a minor inconvenience, not a big deal.

Snowmachines are pretty much the way to get away from town at that time of the year. Which probably means you aren't going to do much! It requires some serious clothing (as in several hundred dollars worth) to go snowmachining here in March. You can also freeze yourself quite easily on a 4-wheeler just riding around town! One thing that can be done (it costs about $120 for an 8 hour tour) is visit Point Barrow in a 4-wheel drive van or Humvee. There is a remote chance of seeing a polar bear in the process.

The "trip south" that I mentioned can be done on a snowmachine at that time of year, but from some time in mid-June onward it can be done with a 4-wheeler. The idea is to basically jump across the tundra to various lakes, and follow the edges of the lakes southward. There are places where fishing is possible, caribou can be found, all sorts of birds nest, and there are a few cabins that may or may not be available (or may be occupied and might invite you in for coffee and caribou soup).

Here is an example cabin, though this one is on the ocean beach southwest of Barrow about 18 miles.

Hence of the various places one can get to out of town, Point Barrow is the only one that is likely at any time of the year. The best time is May and June. In late July we can get a little ways down the beach to the southwest, and as more ice melts the distance become greater. The realistic limit is just over 20 miles, and it is August before we can get that far.

And at any given time, the beach is not safe if there is any significant wave action. So nothing there is a guarantee. Any trip like that depends on too many variables to call ahead of time. We just do whatever it is that can be done the day you get off the airplane.