Fairbanks, Alaska

Fairbanks, 358 miles north of Anchorage. Its central location makes it the focal point for the tiny villages scattered throughout the surrounding wilderness, and Fairbanks is a staging point for North Slope villages such as Barrow and the oil fields of Prudhoe Bay. Fairbanks is called "The Golden Heart of Alaska," a reference to the character of her people as much as to the location of Fairbanks in Alaska's interior, or to the discovery of gold in 1902. Alaska may be known for its harsh winter climate, but Fairbanksans prefer to think of their wonderful Alaskan summers, and enjoy them to the fullest while they can. The Interior has temperatures ranging from 65 degrees below zero in the winter to 90 degrees above in the summer. Gardening in big in the Interior. Alaska Gardens abound. Because Fairbanks is just 188 miles south of the Arctic Circle (above which the sun neither sets during the summer solstice, nor rises during the winter equinox) we also have very long summer days. The shortest winter day of the year has less than three hours of sunlight, the longest (around June 21) never really ends, though officially it has over 21 hours.