One of our first hopes for being in Anchorage was to see moose. We have a count going, and our current moose sightings in town are up to 7. Usually we see them while driving which is not very convenient for taking pictures. These guys (or gals) are so huge! Half of his legs are hidden in the snow in this picture.
Seeing the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) was another Alaskan sighting we hoped to have. This was one push for coming to Alaska during the winter. You can't view the Northern Lights during the summer months in Alaska since it doesn't get dark enough. The Northern lights have a predicted forecast like the weather. We kept checking the aurora forecast predictions for a high activity night. We drove into the mountains to get farther away from city lights. When we got towards the end of the mountain road, we rounded a curve which turned us facing north. Instantly, we were greeted with a stripe of stunning green light across the sky like in the picture below.
We stood outside for about a half hour mesmerized by the green light. It was a cold, clear night. Very cold! We were bundled in our long johns and layers. I was expecting the lights to be a cloud-like appearance, but it wasn't like that at all. I loved how we could see the stars against the dark sky looking through the Northern Lights. For quite a while, the lights glided ssssslooooowly across the sky.
Then in an instant the color started to spread out faster to cover more sky. We saw expansive sheets of color swaying across the sky. Rays of light streaking so we had to look up and up to see how far they went.
The edges started to glow as a stunning pink band of color.
Towers of light were growing from the large sheets of color and shooting off away into the sky. They were dancing for us! We said there's no comparison for seeing this display of beauty. We stayed for another hour to continue watching. It was hard to leave because the auroras were stunning and we didn't know if the sky would explode with dancing and action again.
From talking to local Alaskans and other travel nurses, it seems we were very blessed to be out at a time when the lights were so active and vibrant. Caleb and I drove away saying this was one night we'll never forget. It left us in a state of awe. God shows his beauty to us all throughout creation in nature. The Northern Lights are a true work of art from God. We're keeping our eyes on the predicted forecast for the next few weeks to see if we can get in some more viewing before we have too much sunlight at night to view them anymore.
We went back to view them again, and although we didn't see an active vibrant show like the previous night we were still in awe watching the beauty of the lights slowly moving in the sky.
When we were ready to head back down from the mountainside, we saw a couple cars parked and one car facing us with their headlights. The wind has been blowing snow over the road and the snowdrifts packed and froze on the road. A van trying to drive up got stuck and was blocking the road. People were pushing the vehicle, and trying different things for the van to grip the road but the tires kept spinning. A truck drove down to the stuck vehicle, and the driver hopped out with a tow rope in his hand. They hooked it up to the van and it took quite a while of pulling and maneuvering before they got the van in the right position for it to move. Definitely the Alaska winter experience!
Much more Alaskan fun to come in the next blog posts.....running with reindeer - snow sculptures - a frozen lake and a glacier - snowy mountain views
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