ABOVE: Distributed Power (DP) units shove on the rear of a loaded coal train at Girdwood, with the Chugach Mountains rising in the background. LEFT: A coal train crosses the Snow River and will soon be climbing the two per cent grade of Divide Hill. Coal is one of the primary commodities hauled by the Alaska Railroad. Roughly half is used for power gen- eration within the state, while the remainder is exported to Korea and Chile.
Following the Railroad
south of Anchorage at any time based on the needs of the railroad. An inter- esting side note is that the work trains are currently operating with a caboose and will have two or three Geeps for power. One train runs Monday through Friday with various call times but gen- erally is called in the morning between 7:00 and 9:00 a.m. The other will also
have approximately the same call times and operates Sunday through Thursday. These schedules also reflect recent changes as compared to infor- mation published previously. Lastly the railroad can and does run the occasional extra customer special to Whittier or Seward based on needs but these are infrequent at best.
South from Anchorage the photo- graphic opportunities are plentiful. A Delorme Atlas & Gazetteer is helpful for the city but once south of town and on the New Seward Highway instinct will take over as for the next 50 miles the railroad and highway are side by side. The railroad is located on a big fill between Rabbit and Potter and good shots are plentiful. The old section house and an retired rotary are on dis- play at Potter. There is plenty of park- ing here, however caution should be ex- ercised while on the Seward Highway as there is plenty of traffic and tourists during the summer months and can be extremely dangerous — be careful. Between Potter and Girdwood some of my favorite locations are McHugh Creek, Beluga Point, Rainbow, Indian,
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