Page 9 - 2018 ALASKA NORTHERN NIGHTS LIGHTS

There was a "yurt" (or "ger" as the Mongolians now prefer to call them)
down the hill which was labelled the warming station. We understood

this concept better when we visited it and felt the heat the stove

provided. Welcome retreat from very cold nights we spent outside

looking for the aurora show.

We all enjoyed walking around the compound listening for birds,

enjoying the snowy beauty and feeling some exhilarating cold fresh air

on our cheeks (on hands & feet, not so much). We all enjoyed seeing

the loveliness all around us but we were blessed with only one wildlife

sighting: a spruce grouse! Very fine bird but difficult to photograph
because he was so well camouflaged in the leaf litter beneath the trees

where he rested. When he flew up to a branch above our heads, he