For those narrow gauge, Last Frontier State, fans out there, here are some more from my trip to Alaska last month. I’ve got to say, the White Pass & Yukon is one of the most amazing rail operations I have ever spent time fanning. Took me nearly fifty years to get to see them the first time… MAN DO I HOPE I GET TO SEE THEM AGAIN.
First shot is of a Summit Excursion train sitting next to one of “those dam ships,” the loving nickname of Holland America cruise ships. This one is the Volendam.
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=333227&nseq=2
Second shot is from my ride up the mountain… where I was able to shoot pics of the Frasier train that was a good two miles ahead of us (how many RRs let you do that?).
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=333513&nseq=0
Third is taken in our great neighbor’s to the North’s home… the ALCOs run around my train at White Pass, British Columbia.
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=333496&nseq=1
Finally, a Frasier train returns to Shops along Pullen Creek, back in Alaska. (This is a very scenic shot that is just a five or ten minute walk from where the cruise ships dock… would look amazing on a sunny day.)
http://freericks.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2169017
Thanks for looking and corrections are welcome.
Charles Freericks
Great pictures of a spectacular railway! (you had much better weather than we did…)
Nice shots, well-composed and sharp, vibrant colors - you were lucky with the weather, alright. And the settings are very dramatic and/ or pretty. Are you sure you didn’t stumble into some giant’s scale model railroad by mistake ? [swg]
As someone else commented below one of the photos - I know it’s a 3 ft. narrow-gauge - but it looks narrower than that ! Do you know if the rail is still 85 or 90 lb. section ?
And as someone else pointed out - although the ship was built in 1999 and refurbished in 2005, the carbody-hood type diesels were built in 1969 and so are over 40 years old, and still running (even though they had about a decade of enforced rest along the way there . . . ).
Charles,
Great shots.
Looks like you had a lovely day, as I did. I don’t see why everyone keeps complaining about the weather up there [:)].
Glen Brewer
Gold Rush Narrow Gauge (not the book).
Charles,
The third shot of the run around has some awesome depth to it. The ALCo just pops! out of the frame. Nice!
Paul
I was talking with a conductor I knew on WPYR last year when my wife and I rode it south. I comented on the improved condition of the roadbedand track to what we both remembered from the early '70’s. They use ties treated ‘outside’ now ( previously ties were locally cut and treated in the Carcross tie plant) and the rail has been upgraded to 115lb I believe he said. IIRC I think I looked myself because the rail looked heavier than I remembered it.
Charlie
Chilliwack, BC
Thanks, Charlie -
Now that you mention it, yes I do remember seeing someplace that the WP&Y’s rail had been upgraded to 115 lb. RE - which distorts the usual rail height/ track gauge relationship that our eyes are accustomed to viewing, and explains why we ‘see’ it as even narrower-gauge. A similar effect happens with the old PRR 152 or 155 lb. sections in standard gauge track.
Thanks for filling in those track details. [bow] Other than curve wear - which is considerable, I’m sure - the rail in the tangent track under those comparatively light loads ought to last about forever . . . [:-^] For sure the strength-to-axle load ratio for that track ought to be about the highest of anyplace . . . [swg]
Charles; Those are beautiful shots! Thanks once more for sharing them.
And did you notice, that you and Glen Brewer shot almost the same shot, from approximately the same location? That scenery is stunning.
That is some trip and one I’d love to make some time.
First… thanks for all the comments to all…
Second… thanks to Charlie for answering Paul’s question… while I did not know, I was going to point out that the quality and weight of the rail both seemed fairly significant. I was surprised that the ties are quite long… clearly built for a standard gauge. Now I understand why.
Third… no Paul, I don’t know that book, but will look for it. I have to say the WP&Y is really amazing to watch. If you are there when there are four ships in, there are certain periods during the day at Skagway Junction when you would think you were at a junction of a major city’s commuter lines. Five trains come and go, but with the reverse moves and double stops (station and then docks), you will have at least ten, and maybe more, movements go through Skagway Jct in 60 minutes. It’s just wonderful.
Fourth… as to the weather, I did luck out yes, about the time my train hit where I photographed the Frasier train (at Tunnel Mountain) the sun broke out. It stayed out for the rest of that day, allowing me to get some nice shots at the Shops back in Skagway. Unfortunately, the engines that I really wanted to shoot were either deep in the yard (#114, the lone DL535E(W) and #52, the 19th Century Mogul), or were hidden by other locomotives (the CCER rebuilds). Not one to trespass, even when visiting a location I may never get back to, I didn’t get up the courage to wander down the railroad’s driveway for better views.
Great shots, Glen… Looks amazing up there in the snow!
I wish the 73 had come out in the sun when I was there… but it was away for my window of sunlight.
Beautiful photography of the scenic RR from both, Glen and Charles.
The shovel-noses are actually quite typical of GE export locomotives prior to the Universal line.
Argentina: http://www.locopage.net./efea7205.jpg
Chile: http://www.locopage.net./fcc16004.jpg
Uruguay: http://www.locopage.net./afe1519b.jpg
Indonesia: http://www.locopage.net./cc20015.jpg
Wow… you really do learn something new every day. I had no idea.
Thanks so much for the links.
Do you know if any of those are still running?