What's the weather like in Alaska during the summer?

This question was answered by Kelly McCorkle, our library intern!

A patron considering a trip to Alaska wanted to know what the weather is like and the time difference from Ohio. To answer the weather question, AccuWeather.com provides a month-by-month view of the historical average temperature for each day. Looking at June, we learn that the average high temperature ranges from 62-67 degrees with an average low of 46-52. July has an average of 68 for the high and average lows in the 50s. In August, the temperatures at the beginning of the month start out in the high 60s, but steadily decline towards the end of the month. Similarly, Alaska.org states that daytime temperatures range from 60-80, depending on the area with nighttime lows in the 40s and 50s. Alaska.org also notes that Alaska experiences exceptionally rainy summers. That being said, it explains that the best time to visit Alaska weather-wise is June 15th to July 15th. One of the biggest perks of visiting Alaska during this time is the extra daylight hours. June 21st is the longest day of the year everywhere in the Northern Hemisphere, but because Alaska is so far north, it receives more sunlight than most places. So from late May to late July, Alaskan tourists can experience what AlaskaCenters.gov explains is called the “midnight sun” because it stays light so late into the night.

To answer the question about Alaska’s time difference, we head to WorldTimeServer.com. This website states that Alaska is four hours behind Ohio.

More information about Alaska can be found in the following books: Alaska by Janie Freeburg and The Alaska Bush Pilot Chronicles: More Adventures and Misadventures from the Big Empty by Mort D. Mason.

Do my dogs need special paperwork to travel?

“I’m going camping in Canada and I want to bring my dogs with me. Do they need any special paperwork?”

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency, which regulates the import of food, plants, and animals, has a section on their website for people who are considering bringing their pets to Canada. A healthy pet dog that is over eight months old and accompanied by its owner requires a rabies vaccination certificate, but no other paperwork that we can find. The certificate must state that the dog has been vaccinated. It needs to include the dog’s sex, breed, color, and weight (for identification purposes), the date of the vaccination, the vaccine’s serial number and trade name (also known as a brand name – for example, Tylenol is a trade name for acetaminophen), and it must indicate how long the vaccine will be effective. (If there is uncertainty, the vaccine will be considered effective for one year after it was administered.) This certificate must be issued and signed by a licensed veterinarian.

According to the Center for Disease Control website, dogs must also have a rabies certificate to cross the border back into the United States. They require a little more information, including the owner’s name and address and the veterinarian’s name, address, and license number. Otherwise, the requirements are about the same.

The website GoPetFriendly.com gives a few more tips. They recommend that, if our patron thinks their dog’s health might be called into question, it’s a good idea for them to get a health certificate from their vet as well, just to prove that their dog is not carrying anything contagious.

GoPetFriendly also calls attention to a law against pit bulls or “a dog that has an appearance and physical characteristics substantially similar to any of those dogs” in Ontario. The full law can be read on the Ministry of the Attorney General’s website and states that “It is against the law to bring pit bulls into Ontario, even for a short visit” and that no exceptions are made for tourists.

As our patron prepares for their trip, they can also bring up to around 44 pounds of pet food, so long as both the food and the pets it will feed are with them when they enter Canada, and so long as the food is of United States origin, and commercially packaged. (Sources vary as to whether or not the packaging can be opened.)

If our patron would like more information on camping and Canada specifically, they are welcome to check out the Lonely Planet Guide to Canada and Vin T. Sparano’s Complete Guide to Camping and Wilderness Survival, both of which are available here at the library.

Where Can I Exchange Foreign Money?

“Is there anywhere local that I can exchange foreign money for American money?”

If you’ve been out of the country and ended up with foreign currency that you want to convert back to money you can use every day, there are a few different ways to go about it. Sometimes it’s possible as soon as you get off the plane. Most international airports, such as Cleveland-Hopkins, house a company that will sell foreign currency to travelers and buy it back again after they return. However, they often charge steep fees for this convenience.

Many banks, including Bank of America, Fifth Third Bank, and TD Bank provide a similar service. However, it’s always best to call ahead and see what, if any, fees they charge and if they deal in the currency you have. Iraqi dinar are particularly difficult to exchange; Wells Fargo and Bank of America both make it clear on their websites that they don’t work with dinar.

For more advice on traveling, Lonely Planet’s Best Ever Travel Tips is available through CLEVNET.

How Do I Find Out Tolls Beforehand?

“I’m planning a trip. Is there a way to find out beforehand how much the tolls will cost?”

If you’re planning a trip in this last stretch of summer and you want to plan ahead and find out how much cash you’ll need to pay the tolls, you’re in luck. Every state we've checked has a website with a fare calculator. Ohio’s, for example, is at http://www.ohioturnpike.org/travelers/fare-calculator/. While the sites are all set up a little differently, they all give you the option to choose your vehicle class as well as the points that you’ll be getting on and getting off the toll road. If applicable, the sites also provide the fares for toll bridges.

We have another patron who’s planning to walk around the entirety of Lake Erie next spring. He wanted to know if he could walk across the bridges in Detroit and Niagara Falls that cross from the United States into Canada. Again, we were able to go to the websites of the bridges in question and find the tolls listed there. While the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls lists a fifty-cent charge for pedestrians and bicyclists, the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit only gives charges for motorcycles and automobiles. However, when our patron looked at the street-level pictures of the bridge available on Google Maps, he noticed a sidewalk. It would probably be best to be prepared to arrange a ride across, just in case.

For avid travelers, we have an assortment of travel guides available for borrowing, including The Rough Guide to the USA, Lonely Planet USA, Lonely Planet Canada, and Off the Beaten Path: Ohio. Though it’s in our reference collection and not available for checkout, we also have the most recent Rand McNally Road Atlas here for anyone to page through.

I'm Taking a Trip

“I’m taking a trip to Spain this summer, and I want to be able to say a few words and read easy signs.  Do you have anything here that can help me?”  The Newton Falls Public Library staff has heard other questions similar to this one which have included Korean, Chinese, Polish, French and Italian. There are some great resources available both in the library and online.

Some of the audiobooks available for borrowing from the library include Arabic, Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, and English for New Americans. There are also others which may be borrowed through our shared library catalog.

mángo languages is a wonderful online resource. By going to the library’s website, www.newtonfalls.org, and selecting Ohio Web Library, library users have the option to click on mángo languages. The user will create a profile, and then will be able to select from 38 foreign languages for English speakers. There are basic and complete 2.0 level courses. “Mango Basic teaches simple, practical skills for common, polite conversation situations in only a few short hours. Mango Complete 2.0 teaches in-depth and comprehensive language and grammar skills.” There are also 15 English courses for foreign language speakers. In both cases, real-life situations and actual conversations are used to teach the language. “By listening to and repeating after material designed from native conversations,” the user will learn the words and phrases and how they are used in practical situations and conversations. The learner can replay the courses as often as needed. The website also remembers where the learner stopped so they can begin again where left off.

Which Bridge is Closing over Duck Creek in Newton Township?

“I saw in the newspaper that a bridge over Duck Creek in Newton Township is being replaced. Can you find out which bridge it is and when the work will be done, so I know if it will affect how I go to work?” The Newton Falls Public Library understands the need to be aware of road construction and anticipating when it may be a cause of inconvenience.

We began our search online. Finding the January 11, 2011 minutes of the Trumbull Board of County Commissioners, we learned that a motion was made and approved for the “replacement of structure Newton Falls-Bailey Road over Duck Creek--reconstruction of approach including ditches, storm sewers, driveway and traffic control, lying within Trumbull County . . .”  A side note was included in the motion stating: “This project is being funded by a federal grant. The local share is currently estimated at $174,240.00, which is to be funded by an OPWC grant. Estimated amount will be adjusted when actual costs are determined--absolutely no County General Revenue Funds will be utilized.”

Our patron now knew where the construction was to take place, but we still needed to know when.  The Ohio Department of Transportation has available online a pamphlet titled Proposed Highway Improvements forContract Letting dated February 23, 2012. It was “issued solely for the purpose of circulating advance information pertaining to proposed Highway improvements.”  Pages 137-140 details what work is to be done and what materials are needed for the Duck Creek Bridge project. While no starting date is listed in the pamphlet, the date set for completion is September 30, 2012. At this time we were unable to find a starting date. 

What Does Brake HP Mean?

“You know how you see signs on the highway, and don’t really pay close attention to them? We were going onto route 11 and I saw a sign that said ‘no vehicles smaller than 5 brake HP.’ What does 5 brake HP mean?” The first place the Newton Falls Public Library staff looked for the answer was at the Digest of Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws on the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles’ website, http://www.bmv.ohio.gov/. Section 4511.01H of the Ohio Revised Code about motorized bicycles specifies that “the helper motor must . . . Produce no more than one-brake horsepower [pg. 25].” No description of brake horsepower is given.

Neither the glossaries of How to Prepare for the CDL Commercial Driver’s License Truck Driver’s Test by Mike Byrnes and Associates, Inc. nor Proficient Motorcycling: the ultimate guide to riding well by David L. Hough had the information we needed. Auto Mechanics Fundamentals: how and why of the design, construction, and operation of automotive units by Martin W. Stockel and Martin T. Stockel defines brake horsepower or bhp as “measurement of actual usable horsepower delivered at crankshaft [p. 579].” From the information found, our patron assumed that the sign’s restriction informed driver’s that only vehicles with enough horsepower to maintain safe highway speeds are permitted onto the roadway.