Four hours. That was the total amount of possible sunlight in Fairbanks today. Yes, you read that right. Four hours. It wasn't until about 1:15PM that I actually saw the sun on a trip up Chena Ridge. At this time of year the sun sits so low on the horizon that if you're not high enough in the hills, you won't see it. At our house in North Pole, the sun spent the entire day just below the treeline.
Sunset on the Alaska Range 12/11/2009 3:35PM
Believe me when I say it could be worse. Our northern neighbors in Barrow haven't seen the sun since November 20th and won't see it until January 23rd when it might be visible for a whopping hour and nine minutes. That is if Old Man Winter cooperates. If a storm system moves in that hour and nine minutes could easily vanish. The good news is they weren't completely devoid of light; the moon rose in Barrow today at 2PM and didn't set until almost 10PM. That's 8 whole hours of... moonlight. Let's hope there are some romantics in Barrow.
Fairbanks will continue to lose 3-15 minutes of possible sunlight a day until December 24th when the tide turns and we gain one whole minute. I'll admit that a minute doesn't sound like much, but we'll take what we can get.
I would do a lot of sleeping with that little light! Love the photo, and your hats! Hope all is well with you and Kathy.
Guys, I envy you for living in the Alaskan Beauty. Someplace I always wanted to come see.
Jesse, I hope you have a night life. Otherwise, you are just SOL...
Helping you live your American dream...
Crimony, and I complain when the sun sets at 4:30 p.m.
Since I don't like to drive in the dark, I arrange my schedule to be back home by 4:30 p.m. daily.
If I lived where you are, I'd become a house hermit.
I can't wait until the days begin to get longer and longer and longer. I love the daytime. I love summer. I want light.
I know that has to be hard to deal with. It would make me sleepy I think with no sun. Today SC feels like Alaska!
Beautiful picture but I don't know if I could take that much darkness. I hope you have a great weekend Jesse
Wow, Jesse and Kathy, that doesn't even look real! Stunning picture and thanks so much for posting it!
Very beautiful Jesse. I love 'cozy' so I'd probably enjoy being bundled up in a warm cabin all winter even if there wasn't too much sun. Thanks for sharing your photos as I have always wondered about life in Alaska.
Great pictures. With 4 hours of light you really have to schedule your showings at the right time!
We spent our summer vacation there and we loved it. Thanks for sharing what looks to be a georgeous experience.
shelton
I'm not sure I could handle only an hour of sun or for your neighbors no sun. But, during the summer, I think I could enjoy the fishing... Is it a good trade off? Only time will tell as I eventually plan to take that dream fishing trip to your state.
Jesse...Thanks for the great pic. I am sharing all of them with freinds I made on my trip.
My Prayers are with you!
Hi Jesse...Ah, but the summers are wonderful if you love light and I sure do. Beautiful photo as always.
Kate
My wife loves darkness Jesse so maybe we should move there. Seems like you would bump into a lot of stuff though LOL. Cool part of the world in many ways.
We don't have it that bad in Southeast, but I am thankful for tanning beds!
Jesse,
Stay safe and warm, guys.
Our shortest days were 25 min, and usually I never saw that, as I was at work at that time, and maybe Sundays was the only time when you could see these 20 minutes of gray day, and never with sun. The sun was supposed to come out first time in january, but you usually do not see the first sun until late March or April.
Believe me, it is nicer in Florida than in the Arctic
Laura - It is tempting, I'll admit! :)
Ponoco Mountain - It's beautiful country...come for a visit!
Michael - Isn't that the truth. Does a roaring fire and a glass of wine constitute a night life?
Lenn - It will be the first of February before we see the sun make it until 4:30 before setting. The 24-hour sunlight in the summer here more than make up or it though.
Laura - There are a lot of people with SAD... we know more than a few who tan during the winter to get their sunlight fix. :)
Paddy - Thanks... Hope you're having a great weekend too!
Leesa - Thanks! :)
Susie - We have a few cowboys up here.. A warm fire, a little libation and a cowboy and you would be all set.
Gary - We do... inspections are fun in the dark too... or not.
Shelton - Summers are spectacular! Glad you had a great time.
Todd - It's a GREAT trade off. We actually need the dark winters to rest for the coming summer.
Bill - We'll look forward to your making a retun trip sometime. Thanks for the prayers!
Kate - Thank you! We do love the light of summer... and are usually on the go all the time.
Gary - If she loves darkness, she would be in heaven up here right now. Come summer though, she might be in trouble.
Debbie - Isn't that the truth. A friend of ours goes a couple of times a week for her sunlight fix.
Jon - You know the dark arctic winters all too well. At 25 minutes you were worse off than Barrow. That would be a little much for even me, I think.
Hi Jessie,
This is so interesting, I can't imagine spending that much time in darkness. You're an amazing bunch in AK.
Jesse....
You know that I love this stuff. great photo my friend!
This is a gorgeous photo Jesse! You provide the sunshine with your sparkling personality!! xxoo
Oh, Jesse, your photo has me feeling nostalgic for the years I lived in Barrow. What a beautiful photo! Thank you.
Holy cow, Jesse, I had no idea. I mean, I'm pretty clueless when it comes to Alaska. I know you sometimes have the sun out at midnight, right? But I had no idea you live with only a few hours of sunlight during the day. Let me ask something really stupid: is it pitch black the rest of the time? Or just kinda gray outside?
Bet you get some great snow?
Hope you are enjoying winter, we have gotten more snow last night that in over 10 year
Merry Christmas from your friend in Charlottesville!
Spectacular! The 4 hours of dark was pretty disconcerting for me when I was in your part of the world fishing but you DO live in an awesomely beautiful part of the world!
Just wanted to check in and let you know I've been thinking of y'all!
I am not to sure how I would be dealing with just 4 hours of sun a day. I have enough trouble dealing with 3 or 4 rainy & cloudy days in a row.
What an amazing photo! Even though you're not getting much sunshine right now, it's still making for some awe-inspiring moments. Thanks for posting it :)
Stunning picture Jesse, and it's completely foreign to most of us to even grasp what that type of day would be like with such a limited view of Mr Sunshine !
... it dowes produce beautiful sunsets though :o)
I hope all the snow doesn't cause you too many problems today. I am so ready for some warmth and spring.
Jesse,
This is odd to come back to the post that late, but still.
I love your photos, and I am always fascinated that you are able to make those winter photos. I lived in the Arctic for 13 or 14 years, and I had summer photos, but I practically do not have winter photos.
I was never able to do anything meaningful in winter. Technical difficulties were obvious, but they were not all. Even though the shutter refused to work, and actually you could easily damage the camera, as frozen shutter was fragile, but even if not, the timing was so off, that sometimes you could even hear barely moving, as at low temperatures it was losing flexibility. And professional photographers were washing the camera in some chemical concoction to remove the grease, so that it does not freeze.
In addition to technical, I never solved the problem with getting a shot of a blizzard. All you get is a blurred photo, but I never figured how to catch that wind with tiny icicles pinching the skin and making the face bleed...
So, I enjoy your photos instead.
Wow, that is an amazing shot. It amazes me how beautiful your state is yet 99% of people in the United States will never get the chance to see it first hand. So, keep your photos coming for those it may never get the chance.
That is absolutely beautiful... What a lovely shot. My Uncle William wants to come check out the whales. I hope we make it this year. I am really looking forward to meeting you two. :-)
Beautiful pictures Jesse but I'll bet Sunglass Hut doesn't sell many pairs of shades this time of year.
Hi Jesse,
I've been MIA for a while too and just wanted to remind you that many of us in the Rain miss you and your fantastic photos. I hope everything is good with you and Kathy and we miss you. Someone reached out to me - it was very kind - and I'm paying it forward. Best wishes,
Gail
Beautiful pictures Jesse but I'll bet sunglass hut doesn't sell many paris of shades this time of year.
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Just was thinking about the different states and Activerain members I know in them and you came to mind.- Have not seen you around, hope all is well.
Love your photos Jesse. When I grow up I wanna be able to take pictures as cool as yours.
OMG! I have NO earthly idea how I missed this--especially when I kept checking in for updates from you (and realized that I just had to go to FB to find them)! This is the most gorgeous photo I have EVER seen! You MUST enter this into a contest or sell it to a magazine--something--this is simply breathtaking, Jesse!
Thanks for sharing this and hope you're doing well!
Hugs to you and Kathy...
I could vacation in your sunset picture.