It has been a while since I sat down and wrote a blog.  For a while I had plenty of thoughts about what I wanted to say.  Recently, words have been a bit slower to come.  Who knows why.

As I get back into it, thought I would write a story about my most recent trip with Carol. 

Carol and I went to Alaska in late February.  She has mentioned for years that she always wanted to see the Northern Lights and I decided it was time to check that item off her list.  I did not object to the idea, just needed to figure out how best to do it.  

There are many ways to see the Aurora Borealis.  In fact it dipped far enough south last year in 2024, you could see it in Park City.  We were out of town, so we missed that.  Don’t feel bad for us, we were someplace in France.  You could travel to almost anyplace way up north; Scandinavia, Canada, or even Alaska to see the lights, assuming there was sufficient solar activity to trigger the phenomenon. I decided Alaska would be a good place to have this adventure.  It was fairly easy to get to from Utah and not horribly expensive. 

Some years ago I came across an article, I think was in Sunset Magazine, about this place called Borealis Basecamp, located about 30 miles north of Fairbanks.  There were igloo-shaped structures you slept in, with HUGE windows facing north.  There were also activities and an on-site restaurant.  

I checked Aurora forecasts (NOAA) and started booking the trip.  You are at the whim of the weather when you try to see the lights, so in my calculations, more time on the ground meant a better chance to see the dancing lights. We spent three days in Fairbanks and managed to stay busy.  

We took a tour to the Arctic Circle (yes, we made our picture standing in front of the sign noting we were at the Circle with a latitude of about 66° 33' N).  This is the place where sun never rises during the winter solstice.  There is no daylight that day. 

We also visited four museums in Fairbanks including the Mushing Museum, the Museum of Ice, the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center and the Museum of the North on the University of Alaska, Fairbanks campus.  All were excellent, entertaining and enjoyable. We used Lyft to get around town. 

I am glad we planned our trip for a week in total, three nights in Fairbanks and four nights at the Borealis Basecamp.  While in Fairbanks, we did not seek the sky until our last day.  Glad we were not Aurora watching then.  

The Basecamp sends a van to pick up guests in Fairbanks (and delivers them back to Fairbanks at the conclusion of the trip, in our case, the airport). There were many cool things about the Basecamp. First, if the Aurora appears, they have a doorbell that wakes you up so you can go watch.  You don’t even need to leave your bed, the Aurora is outside your window. Second, there are activities during the day.  Carol’s favorite was the sled dog ride. Our host raced in the Iditarod in 2024.  If we had been driving home, I think an Alaskan Husky puppy would have found its way home with us.  I enjoyed our helicopter ride, where we saw a wolf feeding on a moose carcass.   There is a fine dining restaurant, a bar and a snack bar, the food was excellent. 

In our case, I admit it, I made a HUGE mistake.  We visited during a full moon.  You could still see (and photograph) the Aurora, but the accompanying stars get washed out.  The light show is not as vivid to the naked eye as you might expect. You can still see it. To enhance your view of the Aurora, just point  your phone (or camera) up.  Digital sensors seem to love the Northern Lights.  So when the doorbell rang the first time our first night, we jumped out of the bed and marveled at the light show above us out the window.  I scrambled to get dressed and grabbed my camera on a tripod and went outside.   I started with the exposure I had researched.  ISO 1600, f/2.8 and 15 second Wow, waaaay too much light.  So overexposed. So I backed my ISO down considerably, (ISO 400, f/8 and 15 seconds) and captured some pretty nice images. 

After the thrill of capturing some nice images, I decided I need to try to find some different compositions.  The lights are so ephemeral,  they dance and twist, appear and disappear.  One night we watched a rocket get launched into the lights as part of the Ground Imaging to Rocket Investigation of Auroral Fast Features (GIRAFF).  That was unexpected.  No photographs, but sometimes you just have to enjoy what you see and take that home with you.   I love it when someone says, in this case it was Carol, “Did you see that?” This was not a photo-specific trip, but it yielded some nice ones, as well as some great memories to go with them.  

What could be better.  How we did it:

Alaska Airlines via Seattle to Fairbanks
Hampton Inn/Fairbanks
Arctic Circle Tour with Alaska Arctic Adventures
Borealis Basecamp Delta Airlines via Seattle to Salt Lake City

This was a rather luxurious way to see the Northern Lights.   If you want to do your own thing, but concentrate on a photography experience, check out the Aurora Bear .
Stay in Fairbanks (I suggest north side of town, so the Hampton Inn or the Hyatt Place, with lots of restaurants nearby,  You don’t need a car)