Winter wonders in Alaska’s interior

Conductor Warren Redfearn uses a radio to talk to the engineer as the Aurora Winter Train heads north through the Alaska wilderness.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )

A sign outside the main lodge at Chena Hot Springs Resort lists the variety of activities that await winter visitors. Rooms at the resort start at $210 a night.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )

Drew Heskin of Mush Alaska drives a sled carrying two visitors as his team of dogs travels a trail near Fairbanks.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )

Sled dogs pull a sled as they romp through the snow in Alaska’s interior. The dogs can easily pull their own weight.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )

Even when temperatures dip below zero, visitors to Chena Hot Springs Resort still enjoy a dip in an outdoor pool filled with water heated geothermally.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )

Visitors to the Ice Museum at Chena Hot Springs Resort sip cocktails served in glasses carved from blocks of ice. The bar itself is also made of ice.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )

In a workshop inside the Ice Museum, artist Heather Brice gets coated with shavings as she sculpts blocks of ice into a snowman.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )

Through deep snow, the Alaska Railroad’s Aurora Winter Train makes its slow journey north from Anchorage to Fairbanks in March.   (Jay Jones/for the Chicago Tribune )