From Coldfoot (MP 175) to Deadhorse (MP 414), Dalton Highway goes through the Brooks Range, one of the most remote and least disturbed wildernesses of North America. Locals say that is where the grandest arctic scenery is. I cannot agree with them more. Soon after Coldfoot, we left the boreal forest behind and entered the treeless region of the high arctic. It had a very different kind of beauty than we used to see.
1. Along Dalton Highway.
2. Along Dalton Highway.
Just when we thought it couldn't get any better, we saw hundreds of caribous slowly running along the highway on our left. We drove pass the herd, stopped on the side of the road. The herd kept moving, caught up with us, and somehow half of the herd decided to cross the highway in front of our car while the other half stopped not far from the highway, started eating. There was a hunter nearby, waiting for his chance to get closer to the caribous, so he could bow hunt. Firearm hunting is prohibited within 5 miles on either side of the highway. Further on the drive, we spotted dall sheep on nearby mountain, and muskoxen along the highway.
3. Caribous along Dalton Highway.
4. Caribous crossing Dalton Highway. The hunter is waiting ~50 yards ahead, on the right side of the road.
We arrived at Deadhorse in early afternoon, plenty of time for our 5:00 pm Arctic Ocean Tour. (For security reason, tour has to be booked 24 hours ahead of the time. So we called from Coldfoot the day before.) There were six people on the tour. The tour guide was a security officer working for the oilfield. He showed us a video first, then talked about their life in Deadhorse. There is no family housing or school here. All workers are flew in from Anchorage or Fairbanks. They live (in dorms) and eat for free, work 7 days straight, 12 hours a day, then go home for 7 days off. Their salary ranges from 50K to 200K. As a PR thing for the oil companies, the guy highly praised how good the companies take care of them, care about their safety and environment ... Really? What about the oil spill on North Slope this March, spreading ~265,000 gallons of crude oil over an area used by caribou herds? The spill is the subject of a criminal investigation of B.P.'s Alaskan operations, which uncovered BP has ignored employees' concerns regarding pipeline corrosion since 1999!
After the talk, the tour guide drove us past a security check point into the oilfield. The place is so HUGE! I wouldn't be surprised at all if Deadhorse is bigger than Fairbanks. He drove for 20-30 minutes, past many UGLY buildings (things here are built to be functional, not for looks), finally reached the Arctic Ocean. The weather was beautiful, 60F, sunny and breezy. The water was freezing. We could see arctic pack ice in the horizon. We stayed for 30 minutes before heading back, in time for dinner.
There is no restaurant in Deadhorse. The hotel we stayed offers dinner buffet between 6 to 8 pm. There weren't many choices, but the things they offered were pretty good, especially the caribou stew. I had two large bowls of it :)
5. Arctic Caribou Inn at Deadhorse, best hotel in town :)
6. One and only gas station at Deadhorse ($3.79/gallon). Gas has to be trucked in from Fairbanks ($2.89/gallon).
As we often did when we were in Alaska, we got up in the middle of the night to check out the northern lights. That night we saw the best northern lights we have ever seen. It started out just like all the other nights. The lights were there, but not very active. Within 15 minutes, it started to change. Green/white-ish lights were dancing all over the sky for almost 30 minutes. The activity died down after 2:00 am. Later that day, we heard other tourists talk about getting up at 12:30 am and 2:30 am, hardly saw anything. We happened to got up at the right time.
Over the next two days, we drove slowly back to Fairbanks. The drive was even more beautiful this time due to the fall color. From Coldfoot to Fairbanks, color was just starting to turn when we drove north, 3 days later, they were at peak. It felt like we were driving inside a picture. I wish I can stop time. I want to forever live in that moment.
7. Along Dalton Highway.
8. Dalton Highway with Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline along the way.
9. Fall color along Dalton Highway.
10. Fall color along Dalton Highway.
(To be continued)
How Deadhorse Got Its Name?
From the Prudhoe Bay Journal by Deborah Bernard
......
Once upon a time, a very famous, very rich man in New York set up a $6 million trust fund for his son. The only catch was this son couldn't collect the money until he was 35 years old. The young heir went to Alaska to do odd jobs and wait until his 35th birthday came. In the meantime he met some people who owned some gravel hauling equipment. He talked the father into co-signing a loan for this company, which despite the sincerity of the owner, was in danger of financial bankruptcy.
So, the father co-signed a loan for this company. Things went from bad to worse. And he found himself in possession of several dumptrucks, pieces of equipment and a hauling company. He put the heir in charge of it, and named it "Deadhorse Haulers."
Now, at this point, the story branches out into two versions.
One story says that "Deadhorse Haulers" got its name because, at that time, the trucking company had the contract to haul away dead horses in the Fairbanks area. A summertime contract.
The other story says that the father, disgruntled that he was financially responsible for the ill-fortuned gravel company, said, "I hate to put money into feeding a dead horse." Hence, the name.
......
