Alaska Railroad

In most of the places I’ve lived railroads were like the frosting on a cake—nice but not essential. If one needed to get from point A to point B, there were several different ways to make the trip. In Alaska the railroad is still crucial. It was begun early in the twentieth century with excess funds left over from the construction of the Panama Canal. They started with some $7 million. Even today only 30% of the towns in Alaska are connected by highways, and of all the roads in Alaska only about 25% are paved. Some towns do not even have roads and can be reached only by airplane or by the railroad. Here the railway is absolutely necessary. Cold weather erodes highways so fast that trucking is not a major industry. Heavy loads must be transported by rail. Today we had the wonderful privilege of boarding a train in Anchorage and traveling down the scenic railroad path to Seward. The natural beauty here is literally breathtaking. On this clear day we saw snowcapped mountains, glaciers, a moose running through the woods, bald eagles and glorious, braided rivers streaming down from melting glaciers. While on the train, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast which included eggs, reindeer sausage, a delicious biscuit and locally roasted coffee. When we arrived in Seward Glenda and I felt as though we were coming home again. It has been only a few months since we were here, and we are ready to explore this place more deeply in the two days until we board the Celebrity Summit.Baca lagi