Alaska Railroad Mileposts

Get detailed information on any Alaskan Community

0.0	Seward - The "Railhead" of the Alaska Railroad . A year-round-deep-water port, Seward is the "gateway" to interior Alaska and is situated on Resurrection Bay's fertile, salmon and halibut-filled waters. The town is named in honor of William H. Seward who orchestrated the purchase of Alaska from the Russians in 1867. Construction was first begun in 1904 by the Alaska Central Railway.
3.0	Resurrection River - Harding Icefield is the source for this river. Due to the heavy silt in the river, not many salmon are present.
7.0	Woodrow
12.0	Divide - A small "Continental Divide". All waters from here to MP 312 flow into Cook Inlet.
14.3	Snow River flows from Blackstone Glacier through the Paradise Valley. The railroad closely follows the "Historic Iditarod Trail" to the Gold Fields for the next 15 miles.
18.4	Primrose - Primrose campground and hiking trail. The trail leads to Lost Lake in alpine tundra. Primrose was first listed as a flag stop on the Alaska Railroad in 1919.
19.0	Kenai Lake
20.0	Lakeview - The Alaska Central Railroad construction ended here in 1904.
25.7	Lower Trail Lake - The last in a trio, the lower lake drains into Kenai Lake.
29.5	Moose Pass - This small settlement along Upper Trail Creek was once a railroad section station. It gained its name from a 1900's mail carrier.
32.0	Trail Lakes Fish Hatchery
44.3	Trail Glacier - Breathtaking views of Trail Glacier, Trail Creek and Trail Canyon. The rock and dirt in the middle of Trail Glacier is a medial moraine.
44.9	Grandview - Grandview is the staging area for special winter "ski-trains" for cross-country skiing.
48.2	Bartlett Glacier - Named in 1907 for Frank Bartlett, Alaska Central Railroad civil engineer, the glacier is visible just 800 feet away from the tracks. Deadman's Glacier rises above.
51.0	Tunnel - A section station today, this was once headquarters for the "Loop" an engineering marvel which allowed the tracks to cross over themselves on a wooden trestle as the trains wound through the canyon. The loop bridge was replaced in 1953.
52.0	Five tunnels overhanging the "Placier River"
53.0	Spencer Flats - A natural wetland; watch for moose, bear and birds
53.7	Spencer Glacier - This magnificent wall of ice is less than a mile from the tracks. In 1914, Spencer, a railroad employee fell into a crevasse on the glacier and died. (see artciles 1 and 2)
64.0	Portage - Devastated by the1964 earthquake the old town of Portage is all but gone. Dead trees stand in silent testimony the power the quake (the second largest in the world) , which flooded the town and dropped the surrounding land 10 to 12 feet. Today, Portage serves as the staging area for the Alaska Railroad's connection to the ice-free port of Whittier , a major Alaska shipping and recreation site on Prince William Sound.
F.0	Whittier - An Indian fishing camp until World War II. Whittier became a second "ice free" port for military supplies. Known only as secret destination "X-12" the U.S. Army engineers constructed two tunnels and twelve miles of railroad in one year's time. The railroad is connected to the "lower 48" and Canada by barges operated year round.
72.0	This is where the Alaska Northern Railroad ended. The federal government bought the railroad in 1915 for $16,000 a mile.
74.5	Girdwood - Alaska's finest ski resort, condominiums, chalets, a hotel and restaurants are located at the base of Mount Alyeska.
81.0	Bird Point
88.7	Indian - Home of local craftsmen and artisans, Indian offers a panoramic view of Turnagain Arm and the Kenai and Chugach mountains.
93.0	Rainbow - Close by are Hope and Sunrise (photo circa 1904) gold mining districts which were founded in 1895. There was a lot of prospecting in the area and folks would come over the Resurrection trail from Seward and Kenai to Hope and then use boats across Turnagain Arm to Rainbow. Today there are only several dozen residents most of which still maintain active mines.
100.6	Potter - The historic Potter section house and Potter Marsh Wildlife Viewing Area mark the junction of Cook Inlet and Turnagain Arm, so named when Captain Cook's search up the arm for the Northwest Passage ended when he had to "turn again." Watch for the bore tide, a huge wall of water rushing into or out of the arm during tide changes. The wave sometimes reaches 30 feet, the second highest tide in the world.
110.0	Spenard - Nearby Lakes Spenard and Hood are one of the largest float plane bases in the world.
114.3	Anchorage - Perched on the Knik Arm of the Cook Inlet and framed by the Chugach Mountain Range, Anchorage began as a railroad construction base and saw boom times through both World War I and II as a military staging city. Anchorage has grown into Alaska's center for finance and industry. It is the state's largest city, with more than 250,000 people. Readers Digest recently named Anchorage one of "The Best Places to Raise a Family" in the U.S.
117.0	Elmendorf Air Force Base - Initially Elmendorf Air Force Base was an Army Air Corps field. After World War II, the Army moved its operations to the new Fort Richardson and the Air Force assumed control of the original Fort Richardson and renamed it. It is the largest Air Force installation in Alaska and home of the Headquarters, Alaskan Command (ALCOM), Alaskan NORAD Region (ANR), Eleventh Air Force (11th AF) and the 3rd Wing.
119.1	Whitney - The rail line passes through Elmendorf Air Force Base where fighter jets can frequently be seen taking off or landing. In 1996 an AWACS airplane crashed a mile north of here, just barely making it across the tracks.
126.0	Eagle River Station - Station for the town of Eagle River, a suburban community about 10 miles from Anchorage.
127.6	Eagle River Bridge
128.0	Reves Siding - Dedicated to the Conductor who was killed in the 9/20/94 accident where the caboose was hit by a tractor trailer. The siding was formerly known as Eagle River siding.
136.3	Birchwood - A wood frame railroad station house was built here in 1916. This was later moved to Willow and sold in 1963. It has been the Ideas Shop since 1976.
141.8	Eklunta - Location of one of the state's few hydroelectric projects and the source of fresh water for Anchorage, Eklunta is named for the Eklunta Indians and is the site of their village and cemetery and a Russian Orthodox Church.
150.7	Matanuska - Home of the world-record vegetables and the center of agriculture for South-central Alaska, the valley includes Palmer and surrounding communities. Matanuska was settled by "colonists" from the Lower 48 in the early 1930s. The Matanuska coal mines provide fuel for the Alaska Railroad.
159.8	Wasilla - Wasilla is the he headquarters of the famed Iditarod Sled Dog Race.
163.7	Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry - The Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry is to the west. The collections include trains, boats, planes and trucks that were part of Alaska's transportation history.
166.3	Pittman - A railroad station built in 1918 and named after Senator Key Pittman of Nevada. It was a water station in 1920.
175.3	Houston - A former railroad station, named after Congressman Houston of Tennessee, was constructed here in 1917. A spur was constructed from here to the Athans and Jandos coal mines in 1918.
180.7	Nancy - Nancy Lakes recreational area, a chain of lakes and streams, lies to the west.
185.7	Willow - The Dena'ina Indians have occupied this area historically, living in semi-permanent villages. The community got its start when gold was discovered on Willow Creek in 1897. During construction of the Alaska Railroad, surveyors, construction crews, homesteaders and other settlers came to Willow. A Railroad station house was constructed in 1920.
190.5	Johnson's Homestead - These historic Alaska Railroad buildings are the oldest continuously used buildings along the entire route. The log shed was built in 1914 to house horses and mules used during the railroad's construction.
224.3	Scenic Viewpoint - Mount McKinley, 20,320 feet; Mount Hunter, 14,960 feet; Mount Foraker, 17,000 feet; Mount Russell, 11,600 feet; and Mount Dall, 9,000 feet are all visible from this panoramic vantage point. This is the confluence of three major rivers, the Talkeetna, Chulitna and Susitna.
226.7	Talkeetna - Base station for assaults on Mount McKinley, Talkeetna began as a trapping and mining outpost. In July, the Moose Dropping Festival gives contestants a chance to see how far they can throw a moose "chip".
248.5	Curry - Today a ghost town, Curry recalls a bygone era when a rail trip from Anchorage to Fairbanks involved two days of travel and an overnight stay in the hotel. It burned to the ground in 1957
279.0	Scenic Viewpoint - Otherwise known as Mount McKinley, "The Great One" is only 46 miles from this point.
284.2	Hurricane Gulch - One of the line's best photo vantage points, the bridge spans 918 feet, some 296 feet above the creek.
288.7	Honolulu - Halfway point between Anchorage and Fairbanks, the area has a very active beaver population and dams can be seen along the tracks.
297.1	Colorado - Access route to once dormant gold mines that are becoming active again.
304.3	Broad Pass - Southern end of the broad, treeless pass that is the lowest traveled pass in the Rocky Mountain chain from Mexico to Alaska .
312.5	Summit - The summit of the Continental Divide is at 2,363 feet and is the lowest rail pass in the Rocky Mountain chain. Summit Lake eventually drains both into the Pacific and the Bering Sea.
319.5	Cantwell - A small settlement and starting point of the Valdez Creek gold mining district. Cantwell was named for Lt. John C. Cantwell, an early explorer.
322.0	Denali National Park -The Alaska Railroad enters Denali National Park and parallels the Nenana River.
342.7	Oliver - In summer, this is the spot where opposing express passenger trains pass. The site was named for former Railroad Roadmaster Thomas Oliver.
347.7	Denali Park - Entrance to Denali National Park and Preserve Riley Creek Bridge is the railroad's second highest.
349.0	Nenana River Canyon - The railroad hangs onto a small ledge above the Nenana River. Watch for Dall Sheep on far side of canyon and rafters in the river below.
358.1	Healy - Start of a 4-mile branch line serving nearby coal mines. Watch for dark coal seams in the exposed rocks to the east. The coal fuels electric power plants in the Interior and is exported to Korea. One fifth of the railroad's freight revenue comes from hauling this coal. In May 1952, several locomotives were destroyed when the Healy roundhouse burned.
362.3	Usibelli Tipple - The Usibelli tipple is a special loading facility with a railroad track running through the center for coal loading. The coal is mined across the river and transported to the tipple by conveyor.
371.2	Ferry - This route across the Nenana River accesses historic gold fields to the east.
392.9	Clear Site - A BMEWS radar site which is one of three in the world. Built in 1959, Clear Site was used to detect enemy missile attack. It is now used to track satellites and space debris. Air Force personnel stationed there receive overseas pay and their families are not permitted on the base due to its top secret security status.
411.7	Nenana - Originally an Indian village, Nenana is located on the south bank of the Tanana River at the confluence of the Nenana River. It was a railroad construction camp in the early 1900s and today serves as a hub for barge operations, serving communities up and down the Yukon River and connecting waterways for hundreds of miles. It is here where the Nenana Ice Classic takes place. Bets are made on the exact day and time the river ice will break up. The winnings exceed $200,000 and is usually split between multiple contestants.
413.7	Mears Memorial Bridge - The 700-foot steel structure, one of the world's largest single-span bridges, marks the completion of the Alaska Railroad and the Golden Spike was driven by President Warren Harding in 1923. Watch below for Indian fish wheels in the Tanana River.
431.6	Dunbar - At one time the narrow gauge trains of the Tanana Valley Railroad traveled this route. The Alaska Railroad bought the Tanana Valley Railroad, which provided the connection to Fairbanks, and upgraded it to standard gauge.
463.0	Happy - Once the beginning of a narrow-gauge railroad serving remote mining districts to the north, the line was abandoned as roads were built.
466.0	University Farm - A working farm and experimental station on the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus, the facility produces dairy, meat and vegetable products.
467.1	College - Essentially a "subdivision" of the greater Fairbanks area. Location of the world's northernmost institution of higher education - the University of Alaska Fairbanks. College was so named because it is the location of the University of Alaska at Fairbanks, established in 1915.
470.3	Fairbanks - The "Capital of the Interior" and Alaska's second largest city, Fairbanks began as a trading post and mining town in 1901. It is the northern terminus of the Alaska Railroad and southern terminus of the infamous Haul Road to the North Slope oil fields.
G 28	Eielson - A 28-mile branch line serves Fort WainWright and Eielson Air Force Base. Trains are loaded daily at a refinery at North Pole with petroleum products refined from North Slope crude oil taken from the nearby trans-Alaska pipeline.

Mile Post Zero by Pat Durand

The Alaska Railroad Mile Post 0 was established as the base of the Railroad Dock in Seward Alaska. That is the farthest South extension of the Alaska Railroad and its precedents, The Alaska Northern Railroad and the Alaska Central Railway.

The Seward Depot building plaque shows its dates of use from 1917-1964. The building was constructed in 1917 at the base of Adams street in 1917.

Ref: THE ALASKA RAILROAD by Birnadine Prince Volume 1 page 115. "Seward Division Report 1917 An attractive passenger and freight depot 24'X90' was erected at the foot of Adams Street."

A photo on page 116 shows the Station end profile from a long distance. On page 209 there is an undated photo of the station in the same location at Adams Street.

The written records that I have access to, do not report when the Seward Station building was moved to 501 Railway Avenue. 1928 is a good guess until verified.

This placed the station right at dock side so travelers arriving by ship could directly board trains waiting at the station.

In any event the station location has no relevance to the Alaska Railroad mile post markers. Over the years track relocations and alignments have made changes that shortened distances between some points. The railroad did not change the mile post markers to reflect these changes. Locations are still given based on the original surveys.

BACK