Trip Report

Alaska Trip

August 7-17, 2004
Section 2 of 5

This whole part of the route is just one view after another as we work our way up the pass. At the 14 mile mark we pass Glacier Station, once the site of a water tank, a section crew was also stationed here. At the 16 mile mark we cross a high trestle and enter the first of two tunnels on the route.

At 17.5 we pass Dead Horse Gulch where 3000 pack animals were killed by overloading and neglect in the stampede of '98.

At the 18.6 mark we pass the end of the Steel Bridge. Constructed in 1901 this was the highest Cantilever bridge in the world. It was used until 1969 when a new bridge and tunnel changed the route. The old bridge was left in place as a historic landmark. This tunnel is 675 feet long. As we leave the tunnel we can see the remains of the original trail.

At the 20.4 mile marker and at 2865 feet we pass White Pass Summit and enter Canada. The boarder is marked wit the U.S. and Canadian flags. The Customs station has been moved 7 miles ahead to Frazier where the railroad and highway are beside each other.

At Frazier we will change places with a tour group going the other way. They will take the train back to Skagway and we will continue out tour north by bus. We will clear customs a short distance up the highway after we board the bus. While we are making the exchange the engines are uncoupled and run around a loop to couple onto the other end of the train for the trip back to Skagway. About half of the passengers make some sort of exchange at this point. The others are riding round trip and will return to Skagway on the train.

This concludes the WP&Y portion of our trip. If you want to see more about this railroad they have an excellent web site.

We depart by bus and make one more stop at Carcross (Caribou Crossing) for lunch. The station is still in place here and this site is marked by the Golden Spike memorial for the WP&Y.

If you ever have a chance to visit Alaska this is one trip not to be missed.