The entrance to a glacier cave at the terminus of the Castner Glacier in the eastern Alaska Range. The ceiling of the cave is covered in fine hoarfrost, with crystals that increased in size further back in the cave.

This is a fairly accessible cave, less than a one-mile approach from the Richardson Highway. But, these formations need to be treated with respect and entered cautiously. Especially now in the melt season, there is talus and numerous rock frequently falling off the top of the entrance, fast-moving water with the potential for outburst floods, and potential collapses of the ceiling itself.

More info on glacier caves and ice crystals:

Last year we heard about the Shovel Creek Fire on Murphy Dome almost every day. It started on June 21, 2019, from lightning. Many residents were evacuated later in the month when it neared two subdivisions. In town, bulletin boards stood outside the grocery store entrances, updated daily with maps of the current fire-lines and general information. The fire grew to over 23,000 acres in July and wasn’t contained until August. Portions burned until the snow fell.

After our long winter, the snow is almost gone. We explored some of the burn areas last night. This is definitely one of the largest burn areas I’ve seen, stretching as far as I could see down the hill. The landscape was full of charred spruce snags with little tufts of dead, copper-colored needles. Quite a desolate look, with just some hints of green and an occasional live tree somehow missed by the blaze.

Wildfire and Burn Area Photos:

In the short summer, water scours the glacier surface creating a ripple-like surface on the ice going down-glacier. At the end of the season, when the first major snow falls the rough surface becomes once again smooth. This was taken at the end of the day when I could really see the shadows from those ripples. It kind of looks like little waves on the glacier.

McGinnis Peak is an 11,400 ft (3,470 m) tall mountain in the eastern Alaska Range. It rises almost 6,000 feet over the glacier below.

Aurora borealis fills the southern sky from the Granite Tors Trail in the Chena River State Recreation Area. The photo was taken shortly after a corona passed overhead and the band moved to the south. You can still see the giant rays of light as they move off into the distance. More story and photos at the link below.

Two Nights on The Tors Trail – Blogpost

Gorgeous color fills the sky over the White Mountains from the Wickersham Dome Trail. Only about 45 miles outside of Fairbanks, this is a great spot for hiking, cross-country skiing, dog-mushing, fat-biking, or snowshoeing. Perfect endless landscapes of rolling hills.

This photo was taken early in the morning of October 6, 2015. I watched for a while as the moon came up over the horizon, followed by a string of the planets Venus, Mars, then Jupiter. I took this shot just as Jupiter rose above the trees and the sky was filling with twilight. It was absolutely incredible to see this all in the northern lights. More story and photos here!

Camping with fellow graduate students at the Granite Tors a few years ago. We managed to find a perfect little spot, about 8 miles in along the trail below the Flying Horseman Tor. If you ever have the chance to hike or backpack near Fairbanks, this is definitely one of the top trails. It’s about a 15-mile loop with 3,400 ft. of elevation gain. It can be done in a day if you’re in shape for it but also makes a very nice overnight trip.

This photo was taken from the Thorofare Ridge in Denali National Park near mile 60 along the Park Road. Looking over a gorgeous vista of the Thorofare River, red alpine tundra with a kettle pond nested up high, and the debris and vegetation covered Muldrow Glacier and, of course, Denali hovering high above all of it above the clouds.

The end of summer brings wonderful color to the interior of Alaska. The leaves and undergrowth typically begin changing by the end of August and are well past peak by the time fall sets in at the end of September. Most of the deep color comes from the undergrowth, red leaves on berry bushes and dwarf birch cover the tundra floors. Then there’s the brilliant yellow and orange canopies of aspen and paper birch trees. This photo was taken at Peat Ponds on the north side of Fairbanks in the Goldstream Valley in early September.