2009 I.A.C.T. CONFERENCE
Anchorage, Alaska

"North to Alaska"(YouTube) – the IACT Rush Is On! (with apologies to Johnny Horton)

    Do ye' hear it? It's up there, yonder – it's the call o' the wild. It's callin' to ye – go north, go north, go find the big life. The wild life. The big, wild life life in Anchorage, Alaska, site of the 22nd Annual IACT conference. 

    The conference dates are: Sunday, May 3, 2009 through Thursday, May 7, 2009. This is the conference you have been waiting for – a conference with hair-raising chills and close encounters with untamed spirits – and that is just the scene inside the conference site; just wait until you go outside!

    We are tweaking the schedule a little bit for this conference to accommodate some anticipated IACT touring opportunities, to be confirmed a slightly later date. Registration will start on Sunday morning, May 3. Committee meetings will be in the afternoon on Sunday, May 3rd.  The conference opening will start on Monday morning, May 4th and we will break at noon for Monday's excursion. Tuesday and Wednesday's schedules will not change from previous years, but we plan on extending the program until mid-afternoon on Thursday, May 7, instead of ending the conference at noon.

    Anchorage is a medium-sized, modern city. As residents like to say, "Oh, Anchorage is great! It's only twenty minutes away from Alaska!"  For a quick run-down of what is available in Anchorage, log on to: http://www.anchorage.net/.

    And if possible, do take some time to explore Alaska after the conference (for the hardy souls, before the conference!) Anchorage is situated on a peninsula that extends into Cook Inlet, a body of water open to the Gulf of Alaska to the south. The conference site, the Hotel Captain Cook, is located on the point of the peninsula closest to the water. This is a world-class hotel, a destination hotel. There are a number of excellent restaurants and bars close by, some inside the hotel and others within easy walking distance outside the hotel, along with shops, art galleries and coffee stands. Additionally, there are wonderful walking and biking trails that begin very close to the hotel and extend through an extensive greenbelt that criss-cross the city. Ravens, eagles, moose and other Alaskan fauna can be occasionally encountered along the greenbelt paths.

    The temperatures are going to be….brisk. Early May is a beautiful time in Anchorage, the trees go from bare branches to fully leafed in a couple of days, but it is still a sub-arctic region, so prepare for temperatures in the 40s and 50s (Fahrenheit). Anchorage is not as rainy as other parts of Alaska, but some rain is very likely – we hope not to surprise you with snow. With the conference this close to summer solstice, expect no real darkness – there is a deep twilight for a couple of hours and then another day begins. Remember, while here you will be on Alaska Standard Time, running one hour later than Pacific Standard Time. So you folks from the east coast – you will be four hours behind Eastern Standard Time.

Hotel and Conference Center Information

Hotel Captain Cook - http://www.captaincook.com/

The hotel is located approximately ten miles and twenty minutes from Ted Stevens International Airport.  The Captain Cook Hotel features three separate restaurants, shopping, an English pub actually imported from England - separate Men's and Women's athletic clubs, but a shared swimming pool – yes, an INDOOR swimming pool, guaranteed to be ice-free. There is no airport shuttle service to the hotel.  Room rates for single/double occupancy will be $170 per night. The room night occupancy tax is 12%, but there is no sales tax on anything in Anchorage.

Conference Registration and Early-Bird Information

Vendors
    We hope to see all of our favorite stalwart vendors there with us and sincerely hope we do not have to invite some of the local trappers in to fill their booth space.

Program
    Our goal is a mix of topics – scientific presentations, legal issues, law enforcement topics, highway safety and manufacturing information. This is a shout-out to the IACT membership to present that topic you have been working away at for all these years.

    As the conference planning progresses, we will keep you updated with regular posts to the IACT website.

Going to Alaska
    It's a really long drive from the 48 contiguous states and an even longer drive from Hawaii, with or without the submarine fitting for your automobile. It is strongly suggested that everyone take a commercial airline transport to Anchorage. Many, many airlines have connections to Anchorage, including: United Airlines, Delta Airlines, US Airways, Northwest Airlines, Continental Airlines and, of course, Alaska Airlines. For a full listing of airlines that travel to the 49th state, log on to: http://www.dot.state.ak.us/anc/index.shtml

    With all that said, we are eagerly anticipating many, many IACT visitors in May, 2009, for the 22nd annual IACT conference. 

Any questions? Contact:

Jeanne Swartz
State of Alaska – DPS/SCDL
5500 E. Tudor Road
Anchorage, AK 99507
WORK TELE (907) 269-5592
WORK MOBILE (907) 382-9363
WORK FAX (907) 338-6614
Email Jeanne

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