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4 March 2016 / leggypeggy

Hot to trot and off the radar

World Ice Art Championships sculpture

Sweet Motion of the Northern Lights, by Don Lowing, Peter Slavin, Jeffrey Meyers, Dean DeMarais. 2007 World Ice Art Championships, Multi block sculpture, second place, realistic.

There’s been a heat wave in Canberra over the last week and another week of heat is predicted. With temperatures running about 35°C (95°F), Poor John and I have decided to go to extremes to beat the extremes.

We’re on the way to the annual World Ice Art Championships in Fairbanks Alaska. Our plane boards in about 20 minutes (thank goodness for Sydney airport’s wifi). After the ice competition and in the hopes of seeing the aurora borealis, we drive 10 hours further north, to a place called Coldfoot (I hear you say, Cold? My Foot!).

So in the short-term I’ll be offline for at least a day, and gearing up to take plenty of photos to share. In the longer term, after Alaska we’ll do Seattle, Tampa, the Caribbean, Cuba and then a bit of South America with a repositioning cruise, of all things, back to Los Angeles.

Stay tuned for more like these from earlier championships.

World Ice Art Championships sculpture

“Leap” 2005 Ice Art Championships, Fairbanks, Alaska. First place single block competition by Steve Brice and Aaron Costic

70 Comments

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  1. Lesley Snow / Mar 4 2016 2:12 pm

    Another adventure! Yippee!!

    Liked by 2 people

  2. derrickjknight / Mar 4 2016 2:13 pm

    Enjoy the trip

    Liked by 1 person

  3. weezaj / Mar 4 2016 2:23 pm

    DANG have probably missed you – but have a wonderful trip and safe travels, and look forward to lots of tales of lots of great adventures!

    xL

    Liked by 2 people

  4. Vicki / Mar 4 2016 2:28 pm

    Sounds like a wonderful excuse to beat the heat! Seems like you’re sharing it with Melbourne today and over the next week.

    Can I come and carry your bags? You only have to pay me porter’s fees, the airfare, accommodation fees, meals and a bit of pocket money for me to spend on the way 🙂 I promise not to complain too much about the weight of the bags.

    But seriously, it sounds altogether a nice mix of travel experiences and Alaska is one of my all time favourite armchair travel destinations.

    I’ve got several DVDs on Alaska so will be keen to see your photos and read about your experiences. Don’t forget to collect some recipes along the way.

    Travel safely and in good health……

    Liked by 2 people

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 6:37 am

      Oh bummer, Vicki. Your offer came through after we took off. Maybe next time. 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      • Vicki / Mar 5 2016 10:11 am

        Just remembered my passport expired last year too. I guess it’s not worth renewing now (that I can’t afford to travel).

        Liked by 1 person

      • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 11:50 am

        I won’t like that comment, but commiserate with you instead.

        Liked by 1 person

  5. Curious to the Max / Mar 4 2016 2:28 pm

    Can’t wait for the “boob” pictures! (you might have to wait until you hit Los Angeles to find the photo-op subjects).

    Liked by 1 person

  6. gerard oosterman / Mar 4 2016 2:33 pm

    Enjoy it all, and be gentle with poor John.

    Liked by 2 people

  7. Yvonne / Mar 4 2016 2:53 pm

    Wow, what a wonderful adventure. I hope you get to see the beautiful Northern lights. See ya.

    Liked by 2 people

  8. Coral Waight / Mar 4 2016 3:11 pm

    Gosh, you get around, Peggy. Have a great trip.

    Liked by 2 people

  9. legominifigurestravel / Mar 4 2016 3:32 pm

    Have fun on this great adventure!

    Liked by 2 people

  10. draliman / Mar 4 2016 7:08 pm

    Alaska? Wow, I thought you were going to say you bought a new air-con unit 🙂
    Enjoy your trip!

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 6:40 am

      Air-con would have been cheaper than the trip. Hmm, maybe we should have given that option more thought.

      Liked by 2 people

  11. Rashminotes / Mar 4 2016 7:22 pm

    Sounds great Peggy! Have a great trip and look forward to reading all the stories:)

    Liked by 1 person

  12. afterthelasttime / Mar 4 2016 8:50 pm

    Never heard of this particular competition however it looks great and your trip north will no doubt be adventurous! No wifi in that area for sure!

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 6:41 am

      No idea how much wifi there will be, but I’ll be trying to keep in touch here.

      Liked by 1 person

  13. Worlds Biggest Fridge Magnet / Mar 4 2016 9:51 pm

    That is the MOST extreme reaction I have ever heard of to a heatwave!!
    Have great time Peggy.

    Liked by 1 person

  14. joylovestravel / Mar 4 2016 9:56 pm

    What an amazing trip – sounds just incredible. Looking forward to reading about it!!

    Liked by 2 people

  15. spearfruit / Mar 4 2016 11:48 pm

    Have a wonderful trip! I look forward to the pictures – stay warm. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  16. poshbirdy / Mar 5 2016 12:04 am

    These are amazing. What a great idea for a trip!

    Liked by 2 people

  17. White House Red Door / Mar 5 2016 12:48 am

    Have a fabulous trip! Can’t wait to read all about your adventures!!!

    Liked by 1 person

  18. simpletravelourway / Mar 5 2016 2:44 am

    We arrive in Ecuador on April 6. Any chance our paths might cross?

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 6:45 am

      Not sure, I’ll have to check the dates. And given that we’ll be on a ship, we’ll probably only be near the coast.

      Liked by 2 people

  19. susan@marsha'sbungalow / Mar 5 2016 3:13 am

    Hate the heat that much? I am most jealous of your stop in Cuba – and the entire journey sounds wonderful. Happy and safe travels.

    Liked by 2 people

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 6:46 am

      To be honest, I don’t mind the heat. But if you want to see ice sculptures, you have to go someplace cold.

      Liked by 2 people

  20. vagabondurges / Mar 5 2016 4:33 am

    Ha! I love it! I love y’all’s approach, and the awesomeness that is Australian Travel. Enjoy!

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 6:47 am

      Australians do venture far and wide, and for long periods of time. At two months, this is a short trip for us.

      Liked by 1 person

  21. wfdec / Mar 5 2016 6:36 am

    Please can we have an explanation of how they get the colour into the ice.

    Liked by 1 person

  22. Carol Ferenc / Mar 5 2016 6:43 am

    Oh, I hope you do see a good display of the Northern Lights, Peggy. At times they are spectacular! This sounds like a wonderful trip. I’m looking forward to more!

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 6:48 am

      I’m so looking forward to seeing the Northern Lights. I hope they are visible at least one night.

      Liked by 2 people

      • Carol Ferenc / Mar 5 2016 7:45 am

        I hope so, too, Peggy.

        Liked by 1 person

  23. Deb / Mar 5 2016 2:32 pm

    Wow that ice sculpture is amazing! Have you ever seen the aurora borealis before? I would love to, it looks magnificent! Safe travels and enjoy!!

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 8:18 pm

      Haven’t seen the aurora before, so really looking forward to the prospect. We’ve arrived in Fairbanks so it’s all systems go now—after I get some sleep.

      Liked by 2 people

      • Deb / Mar 6 2016 12:54 am

        Oh I just got the chills thinking about how thrilling this will be for you. I hope it’s the best one yet!! Get your sleep, you don’t want to be tired.

        Liked by 2 people

  24. Sheryl / Mar 5 2016 2:51 pm

    The ice sculptures are incredible. I’ve seen sculptures at a few small competitions, but they were nothing like these. The trip sounds like it will be wonderful..

    Liked by 2 people

  25. Jean Boyd / Mar 5 2016 3:10 pm

    Alaska….in March? You are brave.
    We’re in Panama City, Florida, stop by on your way past!

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 5 2016 8:21 pm

      Luckily we have good coats. Sorry we’ll miss Panama City. Flying from Seattle to Tampa.

      Liked by 1 person

  26. mistermuse / Mar 6 2016 1:25 pm

    I hear that the Eskimos in Coldfoot give tourists a hotfoot. Maybe you’d better go barefoot/:)

    Liked by 1 person

  27. tony / Mar 7 2016 2:10 am

    Hi Peggy

    Enjoy your trip! Looking forward to more posts. It’s been 36 to 38 in Hyderabad most of the time I’ve been here. Much the same as Canberra on and off. You’re pretty safe to avoid the heat in Alaska.

    Thanks for the like. The exposing of the art career continues…

    Tony
    http://breadtagsagas.com/

    Like

    • leggypeggy / Mar 7 2016 3:49 am

      Hi Tony

      Glad we are both enjoying some extremes. Love hearing about the development of your art career. Cheers, Peggy

      Like

  28. Liz / Mar 7 2016 4:48 am

    I wish I could fit into your carry on luggage and go to all those lovely places you mention, including coldfoot…I hope you enjoy the annual World Ice Art Championship.

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 7 2016 5:09 am

      We’ve been to the ice art championship once in daylight and then we’ll go again tonight. Pics coming soon.

      Liked by 1 person

  29. pagedogs / Mar 7 2016 12:26 pm

    Alaska’s having a crazy warm winter but it looks like the weather will be cold enough to keep the ice sculptures from melting while you are there. I hope you have a clear sky and plenty of aurora activity. Watching the northern lights on a cold Alaskan night is pretty magical. And Coldfoot … well, Coldfoot is different. You’ll see what I mean! Enjoy.

    Liked by 1 person

    • leggypeggy / Mar 7 2016 8:28 pm

      Yes, the weather is much milder than we expected, but the sculptures are holding up. Saw them tonight and got a glimpse of the aurora too. Heading for Coldfoot in six hours and heading to bed now. Maybe no posts for five or six days.

      Liked by 2 people

  30. Wannabe Supermaman / Mar 10 2016 2:18 am

    Have an amazing time, really looking forward to seeing the ice art pictures!

    Like

    • leggypeggy / Mar 13 2016 6:09 pm

      Thanks so much. I’m downloading pics now and hope to get together some interesting posts.

      Liked by 1 person

  31. barkinginthedark / Aug 12 2016 1:26 pm

    cool.

    Liked by 1 person

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