Shonah and Todd's Travels: 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