Winter Carnival ignites delight, friendship, fun
By Aaron Thomas and Tane Timling
At the 2026 Winter Carnival, students and staff played in the snow and ice, reveled in sporty and extreme experiences with friends, and got crafty while fresh tunes were spun by a live DJ. There was lots of hot cocoa, s’mores, and smiles over the three-day event.
Photo by Aaron Thomas
Katrina Handler runs her dog team with lead dogs Maui and Wookie.
The event has been put on at University of Alaska Fairbanks with the help of the Traditions Board since 1927.
The Winter Carnival featured sled dog rides by Trail Breaker Kennel, which has been a staple of the Carnival for several years. Trail Breaker Kennel was founded by four-time Iditarod winner Susan Butcher in 1976. Butcher’s sled dog, Granite, is considered one of the most legendary lead dogs in Iditarod history. The business is locally owned and operated by Butcher's daughter, Tekla.
Mckenzie Trotter, a dog handler for the kennel, said they participate in a variety of activities ranging from mushing to community outreach such as the kennel’s relief effort during the 2025 Typhoon Halong that impacted much of Western Alaska. The kennel also runs the T-Dog, which is an event hosted at the kennels headquarters that includes skijoring - skiing with one or more dogs attached to you via a leash, bikejoring - biking with one or more dogs attached to your bike via a leash, and mushing for the Fairbanks community.
“The entire thing is giving people a little bit of a taste of what a mushing lifestyle looks like,” said Trotter.
Katrina Handler, one of the mushers at the event, recently raced in the Yukon Quest 80 mile fun run where she finished in 3rd place. Trail Breaker Kennel also runs in the Iditarod depending on the year.
“We take a lot of pride in what we do, we love our dogs,” said Trotter.
Photo by Aaron Thomas
Students design masques for the Polar Lights Promenade at Craft Corner.
Ray Alda, the Student Activities Coordinator, said that the Students Traditions Board was particularly active this year. This is Alda’s second year directing the Winter Carnival and she said there was an uptick in both volunteers and attendees compared to last year. According to Alda, this year the traditions board has 11 members and numerous residence life volunteers.
Alda has been at the University since 2017 where she has seen student life dramatically change during and after COVID. Alda said that traditions board events such as the winter carnival have been particularly successful this year. “Especially after the pandemic, a lot of students really just want to get involved,” said Alda. She attributed this success to their efforts in community building and connecting students with similar interests.
“Students are way more willing to help out and wanting to put on really fun events for their peers,” said Alda.
The Traditions Board organizes a variety of student events this year such as Starvation Gulch, the Howdy Hat Social, and the Hoedown Throwdown.
Photo by Tane Timling
Brody Green prepares to dunk during the Polar Plunge at the 2026 UAF Winter Carnival.
UAF students took on a polar plunge challenge diving into a cold pool outside the Student Recreation Center. Brody Green was the first to take a plunge for the 2026 event. “I’m actually from Mississippi, and I've always wanted to do something like this,” Green explained as he prepared.
Christine McComb, the assistant director of wellness has been operating the attraction for the last three years during the UAF tradition. Inspired by students taking pictures at minus 30 fahrenheit by the UAF sign, McComb said “they obviously like to take pictures doing extreme things, so let’s give them another extreme thing to do.” Each group is given a three minute limit in the pool and towels to dry off after. Since one person can bring up to five friends with them, Grace White took the plunge with Samantha Manley and Lael Barch. White took the plunge because she “loves cold water” and Barch said “I’m Alaskan, so why not?” Twenty students took the challenge during the three hours it was open.
At Arctic Java, students participated in a craft fair where they designed Valentine’s cards, masquerade masks and took pictures at a photobooth. The Photography Club volunteers ran a photobooth for students while the UAF Music Collective played a Jazz setlist.
Photo by Aaron Thomas
Students don masques and formal attire for the Polar Lights Promenade.
The Polar Lights Promenade was a masquerade ball hosted in the Wood Center Ballroom. Students donned formal attire and masques to dance the night away. The event was the first masquerade ball hosted by the Traditions Board since 2019.
Adrienne Ahmad, KSUA’s station manager, was the event’s DJ. She described her setlist as “early 2000s club hits”, “Little Bridgerton covers of pop songs”, “a couple hip-hop songs”, and “one classical cover of Weezer.” Ahmad was also the DJ at a silent disco event that KSUA put on earlier this year in January. According to Ahmad, KSUA sends out a poll to their radio show hosts to select DJs based on their favorite genre.
The event was a collaborative effort between KSUA and the Student Traditions Board. According to Ahmad, about half the staff at KSUA is a part of the concert board which works to organize music events for the student body.
“KSUA tries to be really involved with anything with music,” said Ahmad.
A previous version of this story said Butcher’s daughter’s name was Tecca, it is actually Tekla.