The Japanese are cutting-edge people. First, they revolutionized auto manufacturing, then they became the gurus of the electronics field. Now they’re pushing the envelope in the travel industry–and right under our noses–kind of.
It seems the Japanese have “discovered” Alaska. But they’ve done so in atypical fashion, not in the way most of the inhabitants of the Lower 48 might approach the mission. The Japanese are going to Fairbanks during its seemingly most foreboding and least hospitable seasons. They venture to the Great North in the dead of winter or early spring in a sojourn to witness what few global inhabitants have ever seen–a glimpse of the Northern Lights.
“The aurora borealis is a big light show in the sky,” says Tom Hallinan, professor of geophysics at the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. “Energy from the sun in the form of a stream of electrons and protons, called solar wind, reaches the Earth in about 2 1/2 days. They interact with the Earth’s magnetic field. The end result is energetic electrons follow down along the magnetic field lines and reach Earth’s atmosphere in two circular regions that surround the poles. That results in phenomenal color displays.”
Fairbanks, as Hallinan notes, “is the only major U.S. city with any hope of seeing the aurora. And magnetic fields appear to be weaker over Alaska, and that lets more particles down in the atmosphere. On a clear night and with a northern horizon, you will see aurora sometime in the night.”
Masato Kuno, a young bamboo fencemaker from Nagoya’s Kariya City, explained the aurora’s allure this way: “Pyramid . . . Eiffel Tower, person make. But aurora, nature make. Nature is a workman. And nature did a very fine job.”
Kuno first came to Fairbanks with his wife, Maki, a year ago. Recently they returned with Maki’s sister, Miki Miyatta, who explained her reaction this way: “First it snowed. Then the aurora came out. There was drama and surprise. I thought, `This beautiful Earth; everyone should see (it).’ “
Kuno compared the aurora to a woman, but not because of the fickle nature of its appearances and disappearances. “It is a challenge to make this sky,” he said, waving a hand at the milky-green spirals of light. “Challenge like birth.”
The Ah, Rose Marie Bed and Breakfast is a traveler favorite and business recipient of this vacation rush. Eight clean rooms, elegant breakfasts, a Japanese Ofuro bath, a downtown location and a distinct world traveler clientele has given owner John Davis a host of winter and springtime Japanese guests. “There is a lot of speculation as to why the Japanese are so enthralled with the aurora,” says Davis, “but no one knows for sure. I’ve asked many guests, but it remains a mystery. They do get excited though. I remember one New Year’s Eve, four Japanese guests had joined me in a small party. Around 8 o’clock we looked outside and the whole sky was a dome of lights. One guest danced in the snow and cried. They partied outside for another two hours.”
Displaced eastern lawyer, poet and tour guide Nicholas Nappo wrote down the words of Hiroki Ito from Kawasaki, Japan: “The hot springs cleansed my body and the aurora cleansed my mind. Now I’m refreshed and can go back to my real life in Japan.”
“The Japanese have a reverence for the great expanses of wilderness and sky,” says Nappo. “They often jump up and shout `Tsugoi’–which means something akin to marvelous in Japanese.”
Nappo runs 40 Below Tours in Fairbanks (907-451-1125). He picks up tour customers about 10 p.m. and heads out of town about 25 miles to the top of Cleary Summit. At a ski lodge that stays open solely for the night watchers, he puts out cakes, cookies, fruit and green tea as his customers get warm and watch through the huge plate-glass windows. “Then we go outside. From up there, there is a 360-degree panoramic view, and the sky is carpeted with stars. You can see forever, and if there’s an aurora, you’ll see it there,” says Nappo.
Nappo offers hoken to his guests. “It’s insurance, in Japanese,” he continues. “I charge $60 for the tour, but for an extra $10, I’ll give insurance. If the aurora is weak, I’ll return $25. If there isn’t any at all, I’ll give $50 back.”
And what can you expect to see from an aurora display? Kelly Bostian, managing editor of the Fairbanks News-Miner, had been on a hunting trip to Prudhoe on the Arctic Sea last fall. After dinner in Coldfoot at sunset, he began the 8- to 10-hour drive back down to Fairbanks. “We were watching from the car and saw a hint of green early. In another half hour a green line came and went. After 1 a.m., it got to the point where it was a solid green line waving with a hint of pink.
“Forty-five minutes later it was wild over the sky. Shimmering purple and violet pink ranges lasted for about 15 minutes. We stopped and got out of the car to watch. Then they were gone.”
But the best way to watch them, says Bostian with a laugh, is from a hot tub. And you can find that at Cheno Hot Springs Resort, which accommodates the aurora-minded traveler with loving care. (You can stay at the resort or purchase a pass to use the springs.)
About one hour from Fairbanks by car, the resort is built atop steaming mineral water–discovered about 1904–which flows from the earth at about 150 degrees. You can soak serenely in the outdoor spa (the water having been cooled to a refreshing 104 degrees) and watch the aurora’s dancing shifts of colorful columns streak across the sky.
“People usually sit in the spa, then go roll in the snow, then go jump in the pool. It’s pretty invigorating,” suggests Cheno Hot Springs marketing director Julie Lester. “And you get some very unusual hair styles as your hair freezes.”
A popular viewing area at the resort is the aptly named Aurorium, where a solid glass wall allows patrons to view the Northern Lights while sitting in front of a fireplace.
There are no phones at the resort, but if the aurora is out, someone will come around to wake you if you ask.
Steve Grubis, retired University of Alaska researcher and professor, has spent more than 30 years in Alaska: “To witness the waving colored lights across the sky–shimmering and dancing–is nearly a spiritual experience.”
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For more information on viewing the Northern Lights and other winter-time activities, contact the Fairbanks Visitors and Convention Bureau, 550 1st Ave., Fairbanks, Alaska 99701; 800-327-5774 (www.polarnet.com/users/fcvb). Cheno Hot Springs can be reached at 907-452-7867, or visit its Web site at www.AlaskaOne.com/chena/
