Arrive To: The coordinator's apartment opens at noon. Participant rooms are available after 3 p.m. Luggage may be left in coordinator's apartment between noon and 3 p.m.

Dinner: Dinner at 5:30 p.m. in campus dining hall, followed by a short orientation to the program.

Evening: Orientation to the program around 7:00 p.m.

Lodging: Cutler Student Apartment Complex (SAC) at University of Alaska Fairbanks

Meals Included: Dinner

Icons of the Arctic--Field trip to the International Arctic Research Center and the Large Animal Research Station

Breakfast: Breakfast

Morning: NOTE: This itinerary has been crafted a year ahead of time, using the best information currently available. Everything on this schedule will be covered but the sequences may change by next summer. Also, as we get closer to the starting date, events in Fairbank may be announced which we may want to participate in and these will be added to our program if possible. We begin with a field trip to the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) International Arctic Research Center. Class on the development of the Prudhoe Bay oil fields and their impact on the state.

Lunch: Lunch

Afternoon: Field trip to the Large Animal Research Station. The research station is a branch of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Institute of Arctic Biology. Studies of the large ungulates of the Arctic, the musk-oxen, caribou and reindeer, have been ongoing for decades. A researcher or station guide will talk about the biology of the animals and the ecosystems they inhabit. A strong focus is on the different adaptations that the species have made to the same environment. Life cycles and survival strategies will be explained. Pelts, skulls, antlers and horns will be available for hands-on examination and study. One of the highlights of this field trip is the opportunity to see and learn about the musk-oxen. In the same way that seeing giraffes and zebras in the wild indicates you are in Africa, the musk ox is an iconic emblem of the Arctic-you could see bears, wolves and whales in their natural habitats in many other places in the world, but if you want to see musk-oxen in their natural habitat, you must travel to the Arctic. (And have a bit of luck while you're here.)

Dinner: Dinner

Evening: This program has a special focus, offering you the chance to see and participate in one of Alaska's Summer Festivals. Attend the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics, a rare opportunity to watch Native athletes from all over Alaska compete in feats of strength and endurance. The games are ancient and were a way of gathering nomadic tribes together to socialize. It also gave the hunters, gatherers and craftspeople a chance to both practice and to display the skills that helped to keep them fit for the rigors of living totally off the land. It's a huge summer family reunion for the Native tribes of Alaska and is always a highlight of summer in Fairbanks.

Lodging: Cutler Student Apartment Complex (SAC) at University of Alaska Fairbanks

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast:

Morning: Field trip to the University of Alaska Museum of the North. The museum is a world renowned circumpolar research center with extensive collections and information gathered from current and past scientific expeditions in Alaska, America's only arctic state. The museum offers exhibits on Native culture, post-contact history, geology, fauna, flora, the gold rush, the pipeline, the Aurora, plus rotating art and photo exhibits, all housed in a beautiful and striking architectural gem. Special emphasis on Arctic and Sub-Arctic ecology and environment, and the people who inhabit this northern edge of our world.

Lunch: Lunch

Afternoon: Field trip to downtown Fairbanks. Road Scholar is hosted in Fairbanks by Denakkanaaga. Denakkanaaga is a non-profit educational organization founded by the local Athabascan Elders of the indigenous tribe of the vast Interior of Alaska and Canada. Denakkanaaga is housed in the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitor's Center. The center has exhibits and dioramas on the people of Interior Alaska and the ecosystem we live in, with a focus on Athabascan life in the past and in the present. The Alaska Public Lands Information Center, a storehouse of information and exhibits on the public lands in Alaska, is also located in the same building, as is the Fairbanks Visitors and Convention Bureau. We will have access to films and possibly presentations from their staff. Walk around downtown and check out the Ice Art Museum, featuring a video on carving the ice sculptures for the March Fairbanks Winter Carnival World Ice Art Championship. The museum includes actual ice sculptures shown in a refrigerated case. The Fairbanks City Museum is also downtown, along with statues commemorating the "first family" to cross the Bering Land Bridge into the Americas. There is another set of statues nearby commemorating the Lend Lease program, when the American government was flying planes up to Alaska and then on into Russia to support the Allies during world war II. There are also history plaques about Fairbanks and Alaska and beautiful flowers in Golden Heart Plaza on the banks of the Chena River.

Dinner: Dinner

Evening: Our second night at the World Eskimo Indian Olympics. Hang out with the people of Fairbanks and watch different athletic competitions.

Lodging: Cutler Student Apartment Complex (SAC) at University of Alaska Fairbanks

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: You will be invited to make up a sack breakfast the night before at the coordinator's apartment. We usually have boiled eggs, yogurt, fruit, cereal, granola bars, juice, etc available for you to choose from. Depending upon the time of our plane departure, breakfast will either be eaten in your apartment or will be taken with us to eat at the airport while we wait for our luggage to be weighed, sorted and loaded.

Morning: Details on our flight to Prudhoe will be finalized shortly before our program starts in July. The time frame for taking off is anywhere from about 6:00am to 9:00am. The schedule depends upon flying conditions and group size. The planes we use depend upon the load we have to carry. The flight takes about 2 hours and if the weather is clear, we fly low enough to see the land we will spend the next three days driving over. Arrive at Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope of Alaska. Called the North Slope because it is a vast plain that slopes "down" to the north; its rivers empty into the Arctic Ocean.

Lunch: We expect to be in Prudhoe in time for lunch. Lunch at a pipeline worker's camp

Afternoon: Take a bus tour of the Prudhoe Bay oil fields. A guide will explain the structures and talk about the different companies that have field camps there. Stand on the shore of the Arctic Ocean. Be brave-dip your toe in. A full immersion gets you a certificate. (Towels provided) IMPORTANT NOTE: THIS SEGMENT IS DEPENDENT UPON THE U.S. TERROR LEVEL WARNING IN PLACE AT THE TIME OF OUR TRIP. So far, we have always been able to access the oil fields and the ocean.

Dinner:

Evening: Spend the night in Deadhorse, the small private "community" in the Prudhoe Bay oilfields that consists of two hotels, one store, and one post office.

Lodging: Deadhorse Camp

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast:

Morning: Head south on the Dalton Highway to eventually return to Fairbanks. The Dalton Highway is the only contiguous road in the country that links the Arctic with the Alaskan Interior and the rest of North America. Originally just referred to as "The haul road", the Dalton was built in the mid 1970's to enable construction of the pipeline. Today it is the access road for the pipeline maintenance camps and the Prudhoe Bay oilfields. Learn about the technology and engineering of the pipeline and get some close up pictures of it. Commentary in the van by very experienced guides. Topics include the various ecosystems we will drive through, topography, history, geology, land use, flora and fauna, etc. Keep your eyes peeled for wildlife as we merrily roll south.

Lunch: We usually stop for a picnic lunch near Galbraith Lake. The picnic spot is on the boundary area between Gates of the Arctic National Park and The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Politicians refer to The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as "ANWR" when they battle over whether to open this area for oil exploration or to leave it as undisturbed wilderness.) The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge lies about 1/2 mile east and Gates of the Arctic lies about 3 miles west of our picnic stop. One of the most gorgeous places at which I have ever eaten a sandwich.

Afternoon: Summit the Brooks Range going over spectacular Atigun Pass. Atigun is a continental divide. All waters on the north side of the pass flow into the Arctic Ocean; on the south side, all waters flow into the Yukon River. The views both north and south are stunning. Discussion continues on the local environment and the Arctic in general. Continue to Coldfoot, the first restaurant and lodging encountered in the 239 mile stretch south of Prudhoe.

Dinner: Dinner at the "Trucker's Cafe" in Coldfoot.

Evening: Field trip to the Coldfoot Interagency Visitor's Center for a lecture on various northern topics by one of the Gates of the Arctic National Park Rangers who staff the center.

Lodging: Slate Creek Inn

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Field trip to the old gold rush town of Wiseman/cross the Arctic Circle

Breakfast:

Morning: Field trip to the former gold rush town of Wiseman, founded in the early 1900's. Wiseman had hundreds of residents in the early 20th century. Today it has a population of approximately 15 people. Visit with the locals who still live off the land and will discuss subsistence living in the Brooks Range with us. After our visit to Wiseman, we will continue to drive south towards Fairbanks.

Lunch: Continue the drive south. Stop on the north bank of the Yukon River for a picnic lunch. Visit the Bureau of Land Managements small Visitor's Center at the river. Walk down to the bank of the river to dip your hands (or whatever) into the waters of the mighty Yukon.

Afternoon: Drive over the only bridge in Alaska that crosses the Yukon River. As we drive south, we will cross the Arctic Circle (with a stop for photos of course) and return to the Alaskan Interior. The Dalton Highway ends at Livengood about 70 miles north of Fairbanks where we switch to the Elliot Highway. The Elliot is one of the oldest highways in Alaska, built during the early 1900's to access the gold fields north of town. On the way back, we make a stop at a homestead/highway lodge to use the outhouses. As we get closer to Fairbanks, you'll have a chance to observe a small private gold mine visible from the road (just looking, no access). Arrive in Fairbanks.

Dinner: Since we're never sure what time we get back, we always have a simple dinner at the coordinator's apartment in Fairbanks.

Evening: Return to Fairbanks, pick up the luggage you left behind and settle into your campus apartment.

Lodging: Cutler Student Apartment Complex (SAC) at University of Alaska Fairbanks

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast:

Morning: Class: "Alaska Chat" A very informal presentation on life in Fairbanks presented by Denakkanaaga staff. Topics may include the economy, demographics, politics, medical care, schools, wages, health care, plumbing, or lack of, which brings us to outhouses, (a definitely interesting-and fast- experience at forty below) fire protection, keeping cars running at way below freezing temperatures and other varied topics discussing how we cope with a temperature range in the Interior from 99 above to 68 below. Your chance to ask questions of the locals.

Lunch: Lunch in a campus dining hall

Afternoon: Field trip to the University of Alaska Fairbanks Georgeson Botanical Gardens. The university was founded in 1917 as the School of Mines and Agriculture. It still does research and genetic breeding to create plants that will not only survive but thrive in a sub-arctic region. The university has developed hardy grain stock and still maintains fields down the hill from the garden. Migrating birds use these fields as a food source and a resting place, most heavily in May and September on their way in and out of the state as they travel to the Arctic to breed. The gardens include vegetables, flowers, fruit trees and a water garden. The vegetables are huge and the flowers are both huge and extremely colorful, due to the almost 24 hours of possible sunlight we get from mid-May into mid-August.

Dinner: Dinner on campus

Evening: After dinner we will meet at the coordinator's apartment for a fond farewell. Some people may graduate.

Lodging: Cutler Student Apartment Complex (SAC) at University of Alaska Fairbanks

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast will be served in the coordinator's apartment, starting as early as necessary and lasting until about 10 AM. Check out is at 11 AM.

Meals Included: Breakfast