Planes, Trains and Automobiles...

In our last post, we had some photos from our plane ride over Denali National Park in Alaska.  In this post, we thought we'd include some photos of our trip on the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad and our visit to the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum to balance things out...

The White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad (WP&YR) was built in 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush.  This narrow gauge railroad is an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, a designation shared with the Panama Canal, the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty.  The WP&YR railway was considered an impossible task but it was literally blasted through coastal mountains in only 26 months.  The $10 million project was the product of British financing, American engineering and Canadian contracting. Tens of thousands of men and 450 tons of explosives overcame harsh and challenging climate and geography to create “the railway built of gold.”  The WP&YR climbs almost 3000 feet in just 20 miles and features steep grades of up to 3.9%, cliff-hanging turns of 16 degrees, two tunnels and numerous bridges and trestles. The steel cantilever bridge was the tallest of its kind in the world when it was constructed in 1901.  The 110 mile WP&YR Railroad was completed with the driving of the golden spike on July 29, 1900 in Carcross Yukon connecting the deep water port of Skagway Alaska to Whitehorse Yukon and beyond to northwest Canada and interior Alaska.  White Pass & Yukon Route became a fully integrated transportation company operating docks, trains, stage coaches, sleighs, buses, paddlewheelers, trucks, ships, airplanes, hotels and pipelines. It provided the essential infrastructure servicing the freight and passenger requirements of Yukon’s population and mining industry. WP&YR proved to be a successful transportation innovator and pioneered the inter-modal (ship-train-truck) movement of containers.  The WP&YR suspended operations in 1982 when Yukon’s mining industry collapsed due to low mineral prices. The railway was reopened in 1988 as a seasonal tourism operation and served 37,000 passengers. Today, the WP&YR is Alaska’s most popular shore excursion carrying over 390,000 passengers during the 2012 May to September tourism season operating on the first 67.5 miles (Skagway, Alaska to Carcross, Yukon) of the original 110 mile line.

Our train had 2 locomotives for our ride from Fraser, British Columbia to Skagway, Alaska

Each passenger car had seat backs that flipped from one side to the other depending on which direction the train was going.

The trestle bridge just after "Tunnel Mountain"

The tunnel through "Tunnel Mountain"

The weather up high wasn't the clearest, but the route was still amazing



As we descended, the views got more impressive

 

A river, fed by glacial waters, flows through the canyon next to the route

 



The conductor not only collected tickets, but also hopped off the train at each stop while it was still moving.



Downtown Skagway, Alaska, (aka. Gateway to the Klondike) is a popular cruise ship port in Alaska

The Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum in Faibanks, Alaska collection features over 80 vehicles, including horseless carriages, steamers, electric cars, speedsters, cyclecars, midget racers and 30s classics.  The museum displays large format historic photos and videos to bring to life the emerging Alaska of the early 20th century with pictures of Alaskans customizing their cars to navigate through the snow, ride on rails or even cut firewood. You can also see examples of “alternative” vehicles from way back when, such as early steam, electric and hybrid cars, as well as the first American Midget racers and the first V16-powered engine.  The museum houses some amazing classics, too. Its rotating collection of more than 80 autos includes an 1898 Hay Hotchkiss, a tulip shape 1903 Cadillac, the last remaining 1920 Argonne and a 1917 Owen-Magnetic with an electric motor.  The museum also features a Vintage Clothing section, which explores the ways that fashions have changed over the course of eight decades, as well as how the rising popularity of automobiles had an impact on fashion. The collection includes more than 130 dresses, suits, shoes, coats and accessories spanning eight decades. Imagine yourself in a Titanic-era evening gown, an Edwardian walking suit or a beaded flapper chemise. Remarkably, all but a few of the automobiles are driven, making this a true "living museum." 



1906 Compound



1903 Cadillac



1907 Franklin

1906 Pope-Toledo



1917 Ford "Snow Flyer" - During the Ford Model T era, several "kits" were sold such as this one to customize your vehicle for various types of conditions or uses



1911 Ford



1905 Oldsmobile

1919 McFarlan



1920 Argonne

1921 Heine-Velox

1930 Packard Roadster



1932 Cadillac, a V-16 Imperial Limousine by Fleetwood



1934 Packard



1936 Packard

Our Alaska Route...

As the days that were filled with 20 hours of sunlight grow shorter and colder, we find ourselves saying goodbye to Alaska and heading back through the Yukon and British Columbia, Canada toward the lower 48 of the US.  While Alaska is more than twice the size of Texas, there are a limited number of roads and highways in the state.  We've traveled a good number of them, some of which were no more than a dirt and gravel road through the wilderness.  The scenery is immense with a scale that is tough to imagine.  Along the way, we've learned a lot about the native people of Alaska, the gold rush era and mining, glaciers and the environment and have seen amazing wildlife in the rivers, ocean, forest, mountains, and sky.  It's been everything we expected and more.



Alaska Roads and Highways in Red.  In addition to the Alaska Marine Highway system of ferries connecting cities along the coast, a large number of Alaskan residents have planes and pilot licenses to travel from one point to another.

 

Our Route included the Roads and Highways above in addition to Ferries from Skagway to Haines, Haines to Juneau and Valdez to Whittier.  We also took a plane flight over Denali National Park and a train from Whitehorse to Skagway.

 

A Dall Sheep near the top of Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska

A group of Dall Sheep near the top of Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska



A Dall Sheep mother with her 2 young lambs near the top of Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska



Todd standing above the Harding Ice Field in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska



A view of the mountains near Seward, Alaska



A Marmot among the rocks in Kenai Fjords National Park

A Marmot among the rocks in Kenai Fjords National Park



The lake and mountain view at Tern Lake, Alaska



A Trumpeter Swan flying above Tern Lake, Alaska



Shonah loves his butterflies

 

A view of the Homer, Alaska "Spit" (peninsula of land sticking out into the bay) with mountains in the background

Sandhill Cranes in the marsh in Homer, Alaska



A Stellar's Jay perched atop a log in Homer, Alaska



Float planes like this one are a common way for Alaskans to get from one place to another without roads



Moose along the road in Hope, Alaska



A Cow Moose (female moose) with 2 calves along the road in Hope, Alaska



A young moose calf in Hope, Alaska



A Cow Moose (Mother) and her calf in Hope, Alaska



A Great Horned Owl in Hope, Alaska

In collaboration with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC) in Girdwood, Alaska is working to reintroduce the wood bison back into the Alaska wild. In 2003, 13 wood bison were brought to AWCC from a disease-free herd in the Yukon Territory in Canada.  Currently, AWCC is home to the only wood bison herd in the United States. The first wood bison calves born in the state of Alaska in over 100 years were born at AWCC in 2005. In 2008, AWCC received 53 calves from Canada and placed them with the existing AWCC herd. Since 2006, AWCC has seen the birth of multiple calves every spring.  The AWCC Wood Bison herd will be released into the Alaska wild in 2015.



A Wood Bison at the AWCC



A Bull Moose (male moose) munching on branches at the AWCC



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska

 

Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska

Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska



Flowers in Anchorage, Alaska

Our free camping spot in downtown Anchorage, Alaska.  We spent a week in the same spot enjoying the park as our living room and participating in the free Yoga on Wednesdays, grilling steaks, sipping wine and watching locals play ultimate Frisbee, fly kites and jog.

Shonah in the park enjoying the sun and a glass of wine



Our 10 seat plane for the flight over Denali National Park



Todd and Shonah getting ready for the flight



Todd and Shonah's selfie on the plane

 

Mt. McKinley in the center of Denali National Park is North America's tallest mountain at 20,237 feet

Mt. Foraker, Mt. Hunter and Mt. McKinley in Denali National Park, Alaska

 

The dark line extending down the glacial iceflow is called "moraine".  As glaciers slide down the mountain, they push rocks and dirt to the side.  When two glacial flows meet, the rocks and dirt are pushed up between them creating the moraine.

The mountains of Denali National Park, Alaska

The mountains of Denali National Park, Alaska



The mountains of Denali National Park, Alaska



The mountains of Denali National Park, Alaska

A Bull Moose in Denali National Park, Alaska



Todd cycling down the Denali road in Denali National Park, Alaska.  After mile 15 of the road, only park busses, hikers and cyclists are allowed.



A Caribou in Denali National Park, Alaska 

A Caribou in Denali National Park, Alaska 



After watching on our bikes from the road for a while, these 2 Caribou literally chased us away.  Thankfully we were able to avoid confrontation by using a passing park bus to play hide and seek.



A Moose in the meadow near Fairbanks, Alaska



A Cow Moose with her calf in a meadow near Fairbanks, Alaska

A Cow Moose with her calf in a meadow near Fairbanks, Alaska