A Tale of Two Hot Springs, part 2

Cheena Hot Springs is wayyyy easier to get to, paved road all the way. Along the way, I hook back up with Ed&Sandy, Bob&Tammy, and Dennis&Carol at a great little boondocking spot on the way to Cheena. We just hang out, hike a little, watch the wildlife, and socialize. Dave and Jan Wilson drop by for a visit. This is one of the things I wanted to do in Alaska: just sit and watch the world go by.

  

I promised Carol I wouldn’t post this, so here it is. LOL

  

Cheena is a neat place, and looks like it’s been there a long time. The resort is a full-service destination, and offers rooms, a lodge and restaurant, tours, activities, gift shop, RV sites, and, oh yeah, a hot springs. The RV sites are along a tree shaded creek, and really are quite nice, no hookups, but there’s a dump station and water available.After a short drive on easy road, I pull into a nice spot at the resort, and head for the springs.

  

There’s this very interesting tour bus parked close by: Apparently, all those little windows are sleeping cubicles, and the other side opens up into a big kitchen. A group of up to 24 people live onboard this thing and travel around. Definitely different, and apparently quite self-contained. Oh, yeah, they have an airstrip too, and apparently you can get a pretty big plane in here!

  

Still heading towards the springs… the resort has a lot of old rusty vehicles and equipment laying around, and has turned them into flower boxes. The decorations definitely have that “Alaska” feel.

     

There is a really big outdoor pool with a fountain and a massage jet, and there’s a large swimming pool and indoor hot tubs. The outdoor pool is adults only, which makes it a quiet place. The water temp varies in different areas of the big pool, so you can have it as hot as you like, and there are rocks to play lizard on. I like it!

        

We check out the restaurant for dinner, and it’s good, if a bit pricey. Everyone else heads out the next day, but I stay for another night, and do the soak, drink beer, soak, eat food, and soak thing. I walk around the resort, and discover big animal pens, including a bunch of Caribou, lots of neat cabins, old equipment, and the big thermo-generating facility that uses the hot spring water to provide the resort’s power.

           

Finally, I pony up some bucks for a tour of the Ice Museum, and the tour does not disappoint! It’s in a big insulated building, and the temperature inside is a constant 25 degrees. They have loaner parkas for you at the entrance, and you have free run of the inside. Everything in there is carved out of blocks of ice, and it’s really cool (pun intended!). There are even 2 rentable hotel rooms with beds, if you care to stay the night on ice…. I’ll pass.

           

And what ice palace would be complete without a full service bar? We sit on ice stools, and share a “appletini”. It’s tasty, seriously alcoholic, and you get it in a hand-carved ice glass! Thank you ma’am, can I have another?

  

Here’s to Cheena Hot Springs, where you can be really hot and really cold, just not at the same time. See ya down the road!