48 below and the outhouse

Well I have had two big experiences here. I have felt what 48 below feels like and also what it is like to use an outhouse in 48 below. Forty-eight below is so cold that it is beyond words.... The difference between 20 below and 48 below is significant enough that 20 below feels better than 48 below. Not great, but better.

So while I don't have any good pictures of the outhouse yet I can tell you a couple rules about using an outhouse in really cold weather.

1. Make sure that you bring toilet paper from inside. This may sound funny but while there is toilet paper in the outhouse, it is 48 below zero. The paper that you bring from the house is a little warmer.
2. Make sure the outhouse you are using has a Styrofoam seat... They are much warmer than wood slabs or porcelain. I can't even imaging what porcelain would feel like. Brrrr...
   
3. Make sure you only use the outhouse if you really have to otherwise find a store to use the public toilet.
4. Use it fast.
   

I will stop talking about the gross stuff now...

It is not easy getting daylight outdoor pictures because there is not much daylight to work with.




This is a picture of were Pete and his girlfriend park their cars. To the right of the black truck is a path that goes through the woods to their cabin.




This is the Ice Bridge that runs on the Chena river. The Sun you see is at 12:00p.m. which is as high as the sun gets in the sky.









This is the road around Pete's house. See how the snow is hanging on the trees? The snow will stay there until a wind blows. Most of the time there is no wind in Fairbanks so the trees always have this snow on them. Thanks goodness there isn't any wind. The wind chill would be very dangerous...

This is the Sunset over Fairbanks

Today, I hope to call the person that invited me to visit their school. Tonight we will be going to see African Footprints at the Colosseum.. I am also going to go into downtown Fairbanks to an ice museum and see the rest of the sites..

Oh by the way, the weather is getting better and I might actually see above zero today or tomorrow. The forecast changes everyday so I never know what it will exactly be like... I suppose that is not much different than the "lower forty-eight.

Stay Warm.....