Going to Alaska. Some advise please.
 

This is my first post. Hello fellow quilters. Hope to see the northern lights in Feb/Mar. Does anyone live over there, up that way and can give me ideas of things to do and best places to stay ect. Bombarded with info from the net and travel agent. I just want some plain and simple local knowledge please. Oh and some quilt shops worth a visit too of course. Can't go anywhere without buying fabric!

p.s I am in Australia. Many Thanks

We just got back from Alaska in September. We have a motor home plus I have a brother in Palmer, Alaska. How long are you staying and what mode of transportation will you have? I"m assuming you are flying in, than renting something? I'll contact my brother and see if I can give out his email to you. PM me so I can give more personal info!

Here is list of quilt shops. I visited the one in Skagway, very nice and one in Soldotna, small but mighty!


http://www.quiltvisionusa.com/Awesom...uiltShops.html

Welcome to the board from Minnesota USA and happy quilting :)

I loved my Alaska trip. But I would never go in Feb or March. The weather is too severe those months. We went in August and it was 70* inland, cold on the water.

We took a cruise ship from Vancouver then a land tour across to Fairbanks. I have friends that rented a car and drove themselves.

I never wanted to go to Alaska, I prefer warmer places, but my cousin in Australia wanted to, so we all went, 12 of us, and it was a great vacation, I enjoyed it.

We lived in Anchorage for 14yrs and we loved it. You are going during the cold winter months. Dress very warm and bring boots depending on what activities you plan on doing. If you are lucky you will see moose and maybe a bear. It is a beautiful state.

There were not many quilt shops when we were there but that may have changed. Google will help you with that. Order a copy of The Milepost magazine before you go if you can. It will have information too. Have fun.

My Granddaughter and two Great Granddaughters live in Fairbanks. Short days and long nights, very cold. No place for me. I like cold but, it is ridulous there.

Any advice on best time to see the Northern Lights? I've always been curious about that. Is it easy to do, or is it kind of chancey? Are some places and times of the year better?

We've traveled Alaska a few times but never saw the Northern Lights there. We finally saw them about 3 am on Hwy 37 in B.C. at Meziadin Junction while camping, really eerie! (summer) I would not choose to travel Alaska in the winter months, visiting in a home is one thing, but out & about..... brrrrr!

I saw the northern lights a few times while we lived there. I only saw white and green colors while a friend saw multicolored. While there you will be able to buy cd's showing the lights in case you don't get to view them first hand.

Anchorage has a nice shop, I was there 2 years ago.

Thanks 4 your reply .If I miss the lights in Alaska, I will go 2 Tasmania for the Southern ones. Maybe

Should I thank each person for a reply? What is the correct etiquette here? Thank you for your welcome.

My research tells me- Feb 9 and Mar10, 2013 best nights (dark moon) to see the lights. Could you please ask your Granddaughter do they get a good showing in this months? Yes it is going to be very cold, may as well get the full experience of Alaska and my moneys worth. Thanks x

Lived in Alaska for 54 years before moving to Florida in 2007- Your picking the coldest time of the year for a visit. Northern lights can be a hit or miss, nights have to be clear and then they are usually very cold. As for quilt shops, Anchorage has a few (look in yellow pages) Kenai has the "Kenai Sewing Center" which was packed to the gills last time I was there. They have just too much to drool over. Small store in Seward (where I had lived) there was one in Palmer & Wasilla, Eagle River, but who knows what has changed since I lived there. Enjoy your visit & welcome to the board.

The Northern Lights if out will be seen best not in the city near street lights. If you are in a nice unlite spot you will see the beautiful light "show" much better.
Meanwhile enjoy the show below...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOBgL5cvJww

'Silver Thimble" in Ketchikan

'Russian Tailor' in Skagway

Sitka has a great little quilt shop!

When i visied Alaska in early February several years ago, there was only 15 minutes of sunlight a day. The days were a gray cloudy color temperatures were 72 degrees below zero and they had at least 4 to 5 feet of snow on the ground. It is beautiful but as others have stated dress very warm and remember to plug in your vehicle when not in use.

Blessed be
mickey

My DD had a contract job in Bethel, Alaska for three months. She will never go to such a remote area again to have to live there but said Anchorage was nice to visit.

We have friends who live in Alaska.............both couples, WINTER 7 mo. in Arizona.

Hello from Seward, Alaska! You'll love it up here! By February and March, the days are getting longer, but there's still plenty of darkness. Keep in mind that you won't see the Northern Lights if it is cloudy - you'll need good clear weather, which translates to cold! It's been an unusual winter so far in that it's been clear almost constantly. Last year, we were all buried in snow up to our eyebrows or worse. Bring good warm gear, so you can stand outside to ooh and aah. You might have better luck on the lights if you get farther north, and stay away from well lit areas. As for quilting shops, there are MANY quilters in Alaska - that's our winter sport for sure! You should have no trouble finding shops even in the most remote areas. Enjoy your trip.

I worked near Denali last summer and there were 2 nice quilt shops. One was across the street from the Princess Denali Lodge but it closes during the winter months. There is also a very small but nice shop in the town of Healy but I don't know what the roads would be like to get there. I went to Fairbanks and Anchorage once during my time there (Fairbanks is 2 hours from Healyand Anchorage is 4!). There were several quilt stores in Fairbanks and one that I visited in Anchorage. It was really nice! My suggestion is if you are going to either location, Google them. I stayed at the Westin in Anchorage.

I lived there for over 20 years and my brother still lives there. If you want to see how some tour companies do it, go to www.roadscholar.org and search for Alaska. They have lots of ideas and they use good hotels, motels. Good place to start

http://www.roadscholar.org/n/program...x?dID=1-683GJT

Note that it can be 30 degrees F or -40 degrees F in winter. It is very very cold in Fairbanks. Where are you planning on being, Anchorage or Fairbanks? Note that the Aurora is not guaranteed. I only saw it a couple of times and considered myself lucky.

Fur Rendevouz in Anchorage is a nice time but cold and lots of darkness. Still we went up then to visit family once. Not a good time to drive around and visit Denali Park and see animals.

Lots of nice quilt shops. My brother delivers mail to them.

The best place to see the northern lights on a regular basis is in Fairbanks, at that time of the year they are very prolific. Used to stand on my porch when I lived in North Pole and turn circles with them dancing all the way around me.

There is a book that lists a lot of the quilt stores in Alaska that is a Northwest Quilters directory, or there is also a national one.

If you give me some info on where you are planning to go I will try to give you information for those areas. There are quilt stores in just about every area of Alaska and each one has their own specialty.

You can pm me with the info if you like.

Also be aware that many places in Alaska are not on the road system and many of the shops mentioned by other members are not accessible by road. We have very few major highways that connect the towns and so mode of travel and if it is available at that time of year are also a consideration. Will be glad to help you with info where I can.

I live in Tok, and I will be glad to answer any questions.This is kind of connecting the dots my oldest daughter went to Australia in 2007 for 3 weeks with a student ambassador group, she loved it.Depending on where your going i will try to tell you all of the quilt shops that I know of.That time of year will be cold and for that reason you should be able to see the northern lights it has to get down to at least 38 degrees to be able to see them. Here is my e-mail address [email protected] I hope I can help just e-mail me. My name is Mary

Welcome to the board! No advice on Alaska, Connecticut is cold enough for me LOL!

Kitty 63, I was born and raised in Alaska and still live here. Your best bet for seeing the Aurora is in Fairbanks. Look at Chena Hot Springs. They have cabins, hot springs and other things. It can be pricey to stay there, but hear it is well worth it and your chances of seeing the Aurora are higher. You won't see them in a city because of the lights. You will want to wear warm clothing and boots. Layer your clothing and you will stay warmer. When we recreate outside we wear long underwear and dress in layers. Alaska is beautiful and each season offers something different. You will NOT see bears in the winter as they are hibernating. You have a high possibility of seeing moose. Our winter has been very unusual with lots of subzero weather. We live north of Wasilla and usually have a lot of snow by now and only have a couple inches on the ground. As for quilt shops, there are a number of them around the state. Someone mentioned the one in Skagway. It is very nice but I doubt you will be going there. It's not the "tourist season" there. You can find some very nice fabric in Talkeetna, Wasilla, Seward and Anchorage. I'm sure there are a number of shops in Fairbanks also. Quilters are everywhere. I hope you enjoy your trip.