PART TWO: ANCHORAGE TO SEWARD AND WHITTIER A LAS K A BY FRANK KELLER/PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
IN PART ONE we looked at the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage north to Fair- banks (R&R June 2013). While certain- ly beautiful, as well as offering a pho- tographer many options, following a train on that section can be difficult at best. Those wishing to have better ac- cess to the railroad will find the route between Anchorage and Seward/Whit- tier much more to their liking. From Anchorage to Whittier the tracks and roads are in relative proxim- ity to each other, especially between Potter and Portage where the tracks and road are parallel to each other.
With the exception of the section of track between MP 62 and Moose Pass the situation is very similar the rest of the way to Seward.
Rail Barge Traffic
Operations on the south end of the system, while having some of the same trains as the north end, differ signifi- cantly because of rail barge operations. All rail cars interchanged to the Alaska Railroad do so through two separate barge operations. Weekly barge service is operated from Whittier to Seattle, Wash., for interchange to Union Pacific
and BNSF Railway. Additional service is provided from Prince Rupert, British Columbia, for interchange with Cana- dian National approximately every ten days. The CN operates one barge, con- taining rail cars only, from Prince Ru- pert that is usually a five-day trip in each direction. The barge from Seattle, operated by Alaska Marine Lines, in- cludes both rail cars and containers, and operates on a weekly cycle. As the trip from Seattle to Whittier is a seven- day trip three barges are necessary to provide this service. One barge is usu- ally on the water with the other two ei-
OPPOSITE: A lengthy Alaska Railroad train with freight off the Whittier barge rolls a few miles north of Portage in the Peterson Block. In the background are the impressive Chugach Mountains. ABOVE: Alaska Railroad 4320 leads the southbound cruise train over Upper Trail Lake at Moose Pass en route to Seward. Small planes are a common method of transport to some of Alaska’s more remote regions.
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