My 63rd birthday started at midnight watching the Aurora Borealis!

While photographing the lights, a fellow traveler took a picture of me taking photos and sent it to me.  🙂

At breakfast, I finished my delicious omelet and my server brought me a slice of cheesecake!  It was sent over by a lovely couple I had met the day before at the hot springs pool.  They were here celebrating their 40th anniversary, and I mentioned that my birthday was the following day.  Seeing me at breakfast, they surprised me with cake!

Following breakfast, I wandered around the resort, snapping pics of whatever caught my attention.

Next up was dog sledding! Although it was a short ride – about 10 minutes on a 1.5 mile trail – it was fun sitting in the sled and having the musher guide the eight dogs on the trail.  No photos of the actual sledding since my camera was tucked away!

After the sled ride, I enjoyed meeting and petting some of the resort’s 80 dogs.

To top off the day, three friends (whom I met at the yurt on the previous night’s Aurora Tour) and I had a few drinks and long conversations about a variety of topics including travel, languages, and spirituality.  What a nice way to end a terrific day!