An Alaska Airlines 737 arrives behind a Cessna Skywagon. Fairbanks is one of the very few major airports where you’ll find a water runway immediately adjacent to a paved one. Sharp-eyed enthusiasts may have also noticed the nose of a DC-6 below the 737 – it’s mounted atop Pike’s Aviator Greenhouse & Sweets, and is one of several you’ll encounter exploring the area.

When you chat about Alaska with aviation enthusiasts, there’s no shortage of things to talk about; perhaps the mind-boggling volume of east-west cargo flowing through ANC, or the the world’s largest floatplane base next door at Lake Hood. Military buffs will know about the goodies at Eielson and Elmendorf, and civil aviation folks will lament the recent demise of Alaska Airline’s combis on the fabled milk run.

An Everts Air Fuel DC-6A getting loaded at Fairbanks. N7780B was built in 1957 and spent its early career hauling oil drilling components for the Hughes (yes, that Hughes) Tool Company. 63 years later, it spends its days hauling fuels, mostly diesel, to rural communities in Alaska.

What if you’d like to get a little farther off the beaten path? What if you’d like to see dozens of DC-6s in America’s northernmost boneyard? What if you’d like to spot seaplanes operating alongside commercial airliners? Well, you’d need to visit Fairbanks, of course! If you can’t make it up yourself, follow along as I share my recent journey.