93 million miles away, light from the sun is emitted through the process of fission in our home star, Sol.
The sunlight, both particle and wave, travels for approximately 8 light minutes until it penetrates the atmosphere of Earth. At 5:00AM in Fairbanks Alaska, it travels through my treehouse loft window, dodges my curtain by mere inches of clearance, and hits me square in the face-- like a dog licking my face, a celestial body uncomfortably wakes me.
I'm in "The Treehouse" in the Fairbanks International Hostel, a primitively yet skillfully built "dry cabin" where I climb a ladder to pop into my bedroom. I'm sleeping in the overflow-- the hostel is filled with seasonal workers and people in a state of life transition.
Dry Cabins are common in this part of Alaska, the gold mining in the region has left groundwater poisoned with arsenic, so lower income and temporary workers inhabit these "Dry Cabin" dwellings on the fringe of town. They have to carry in their own water and I still haven't learned how they shower.
Fairbanks itself is also in its own corner of the world. There are no more cities to the north and west of here. Only Anchorage and Honolulu lie to the South, really. In fact, all of the highways end here. Most of the roads end here too. There is only one, the lonely James Dalton Highway which traverses Alaska to the north to access the Arctic Ocean. The word 'highway' is used loosely here, it's really a haul road that oil companies have opened for use by the public.
Fairbanks is the resting point before the real deal: I'm going up that Dalton Highway tomorrow to the Arctic Ocean.
I've bought food and supplies, I've charged all my cameras and donned them with fresh memory sticks.
The weather says scattered showers until Coldfoot, the half-way point. Go figure.
I've zipped up all liners in my riding pants and jacket. I'll do some stretches. When I get to the last gas station before the highway begins, I'm going to pop off each of the panniers, prop up Lechuza on its center stand, and I'm going to see if I can fit any more fuel into the tank with the bike upright. I'll need every drop to make it across.
This is it. One of the biggest days of my life. A goal I've been working toward for 7 years. There are only 2 options- this isn't an exaggeration:
It's Deadhorse or Bust.
JT - 8/1/2022