Home»Alaska in late November

While we have been to Alaska in the summer, we have never been there in the winter. In November of 2009 we visited Fairbanks, and then drove to Anchorage and on to Homer on the Kenai Peninsula. It was -37 F when we arrived in Fairbanks, it slowly moderated to a balmy +26 in the following week, which we understand was an anomaly. The drive south to Homer was a reminder of years living very high in the Colorado mountains. Stunningly beautiful, but stark. Leaving Fairbanks, the bitter cold, blowing snow, avalanche chutes, barren rock faces, stunted stands of spruce growing over permafrost, glacial till instead of real soil, endless stands of forest, and all else you may imagine was a re-eduction. Anchorage was danker and warmer, being closer to the sea. Homer was almost tropical with +45 due to its immediate proximity to the sea. We like Homer in particular more in the winter without the overwhelming stream of tourism. Maybe I like Alaska more in the winter, period.