On our arrival at the Inn, we drove into a village type setting of historic homes and small greenhouses. The grounds were well cared for, the grass freshly mown and the flower beds bursting with color. Gravel walkways between the homes made enjoying the Inn that much easier. There is ample off-street parking and a manager is always on-site, so The Eagle was quite safe for the night.
Our room was number 93, in the Boswell House. As we entered the home, we noticed that care had been taken to preserve the historic era of this building. Furnished in keeping with the mode of the day, there were 5 guest rooms and a large common room. The original hardwood floors gleamed and next to the large fireplace was a bookcase brimming with information about Alaska. There were some concessions to modern technology, of course........a color TV in the common room and each guest room had a telephone with voice mail and a private bath.
Our room overlooked the center of the "village" and had a queen size bed, chair, night tables and a radio alarm clock. The huge double hung window was open slightly to catch the afternoon breeze, making the room a very comfortable temperature. I worked on some files to send up to our website while Mike toured the Inn with Alex and noticed 2 greenhouses from the early 1930's that the management has plans to restore. In each of the 4 homes are photos from Alaska's rich history, including the Great Fire and native Alaskans. He said one of the homes had suites for larger families that visit the Inn.
The next morning, we met the other guests of the inn at the buffet breakfast in the main building. Breakfast was prepared by Ann Ritter. We started with coffee, tea and orange juice. Then, we helped ourselves to vegetarian fritata, bacon, blueberry coffee cake, cantaloupe, grapes and orange wedges. Also available were yogurt and a selection of cold cereals. After visiting a while, it was soon time for us to leave.
Be sure to visit the website for Fairbanks Exploration Inn, make your reservations and tell them Mike & Cindy said HI!
A Winding Road * (formerly Cruising America) * * 336-984-9648 * freedom04@awindingroad.net
