Into The Wild Gold Yonder
The 2017 summer passenger season is just about at its end as the late stragglers still touring the Last Frontier are treated to its shortest and most spectacular season. The second to last northbound Denali Star (230N) trails away into the see of golding after meeting their southbound counterpart at Broad Pass, MP 350.1 on the Alaska Railroad mainline. This shot was taken from the new Parks Highway overpass which opened in 2016 replacing a dangerous grade crossing and creating a wonderful new vantage point for photographers!
The train is about to cross the Middle Fork of the Chulitna River on a low concrete deck girder bridge and then in just about 7 miles at aptly named Summit they will crest the highest point on the entire Alaska Railroad at the Northern Continental Divide (the watershed between the Arctic and Pacific Oceans). Considering that this wide valley (hence the name) is where the railroad crosses the Alaska Range, home of 20,310 feet Denali only 60 miles distant, it is utterly remarkable that the crest is only 2363 feet above sea level!
Broad Pass, Alaska
Friday September 15, 2017
