North Pole, Alaska News

Happy St. Patrick's Day March 17th!
Be you Irish or not, may the luck of the Irish be with you!
Listed below are video links to some great Irish and Irish-American musicians, and read on for news from North Pole:

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY
March 17, 2010
(Click link to view video)

Mary Black - "Song of Ireland" video
The Waterboys (Mike Scott) - "Room to Roam" video
Eileen Ivers - "Bygone Days" video
Tim O'Brien - "The Garden" video
Tim O'Brien and the Chieftains - "Shady Grove" video

Enjoy!

North Pole News

Most of the major events taking place this month are in Fairbanks or in Chatanika, some are in North Pole. Listed below you will find information about the top things we like to do in March, along with more detail about the events below.

As we mentioned last month in our North Pole News, one of the major events taking place this month is the 2010 World Ice Art Championships located in Fairbanks. The Ice Park opened its doors on February 20th and will remain open through March 28th.

To learn about additional events, visit our About Fairbanks page and click the What's New link to preview a sampling of activities and events happening in Fairbanks this month - there is a lot going on here in the Interior of Alaska! As always, sometimes we add additional information or photos throughout the month, so be sure to check back occasionally.
Photo above: Ice Mermaid reaching for pearl. Photo taken at previous World Ice Art Championship. Click photo for larger image.

Top Things We Like To Do in March
We head to the Ice Park several times during the month-long celebration of the World Ice Art Championships. The kids love the ice slides and so do the adults. The ice sculptures are so spectacular and well worth a visit. You can read about the Ice Park and see photos from previous World Ice Art Championships below.

The Festival of Native Arts brings Native dancers and their music from around Alaska, and occasional tribes from outside Alaska. It's a wonderful way to see traditional singing and dancing as well as the beautiful costumes worn by the tribes. This event starts on March 4th and will run through the eve of March 6th at Charles Davis Concert Hall, located at the University of Alaska. Festival hours are 6pm to midnight.

If time permits, we drive out to Chatanika and catch the "Outhouse Races." Recent changes to this event mean the Outhouse Races will start on the road, rather than the F.E. Mining Camp. This two-day event features some creative and fun outhouses and the people pushing the outhouses tend to be dressed as creatively as the outhouse itself. There's lots of other interesting activities going on throughout the two-day event and there's live music at the lodge.

The Open North American Sled Dog Race is held on Second Avenue in downtown Fairbanks, bringing top mushers from Alaska, Canada and the world. These sprint mushers are some of the fastest racers in the world and worth a visit during the three-day event.

Event Details

Chatanika
Chatanika Days 2010 is the place to be March 20 to March 21 to catch the annual "Outhouse Races," starting at 2:00pm each day. This lively and fun event features an outhouse attached to skis, which is pushed down the road by a 4-member team, with one member resting on the throne. The objective is to be the first team to arrive at the Chatanika Lodge. There's also a snowmachine tug-of-war contest, a long-john contest, a human ice bowling contest, snowshoe races (bring your own snowshoes for this contest), a bucksaw contest and live music. Call (907) 389-2164 for more information.

Fairbanks
Open North American Sled Dog Race
The 65th annual Open North American Sled Dog Race will take place in Fairbanks March 19th through March 21st, starting on Second Avenue at 1pm each day. Unlike the Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race, this race is a dog-mushing sprint race. This race also hosts the world's fastest mushers competing in the oldest, continuously run sled dog race in the world. Please visit our About Fairbanks page for times and contact information.

Weather
Its been getting lighter out each day and we welcome the return of the sun and the light it brings. Each new day brings 4 to 7 minutes of additional daylight, which adds up to 28 to 49 minutes of additional daylight per week. By mid-April, it will remain light until approximately 10:30pm (at night), so we gain a lot of daylight in a short period of time. By summer, it's light 24 hours per day.

During March our average low temperature is usually -20 and the average high is zero to 20 degrees, but sometimes daytime temperatures can also be colder or warmer, depending on the winter. If you plan on traveling to Interior Alaska in March, be sure to bring plenty of warm clothing, since temps can vary from year-to-year. Also check the North Pole Weather Forecast for the latest information below.

Current Weather in North Pole

2010 World Ice Art Championships - Feb 20 to Mar 28
Sponsored by Ice Alaska, this world-renowned event brings ice carvers from around the globe. Opening day is February 20th. The Ice Park will remain open daily from 10:00am to 10:00pm through March 28th. The Ice Park is located at Phillips Field Road in Fairbanks.
Photo: Entrance to the ice park and World Ice Art Championships - photo taken at 2007 Ice Park. Click photo for larger image.

Ice Carving 101
Single-block ice sculptures are carved from a large block of ice by a team of two persons, while multi-block ice sculptures are made up of ten blocks of ice, carved by a team of up to four persons. There will be over 100 artists from many different countries producing ice sculptures, with some sculptures rising to 25 feet in height. The sculptures will be scattered across several acres of tree-lined paths at the ice park for viewing.

Single-Block Competition - Feb 23-24
Multi-Block Competition - Feb 28 - Mar 5
Awards Ceremony - March 6
The competition for the single-block ice sculptures will be held February 23 - 24. For the multi-block ice sculptures, the competition will be held Feb 28 - Mar 5, culminating in the awards ceremony on March 6th. Single-block ice sculptures are carved from a large block of ice by a team of two persons, while the multi-block ice sculptures are made up of ten blocks of ice, carved by a team of up to ten persons. This year there will be approximately 55 single and multi-block ice sculptures, scattered across several acres of tree-lined paths.
Photo: Ice mermaid reaching for pearl in clamshell. Photo taken at previous World Ice Art Championships. Click photo for larger image.

Kids Ice Park
The Kid's Ice Park is a great place to twirl in an ice bucket, slide down a carved ice Mammoth or crawl through an ice maze, so be sure to bring the whole family. And for you adults that are still young-at-heart, the Kid's Ice Park is a great place to play.
Photo: Entrance to Kid's Ice Park. Photo taken at previous Kid's Ice Park entrance. Click photo for larger image.

For more information and photos, please visit Ice Alaska or our Alaska Photo Gallery.


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