PHOTO 1: Margie and I had planned to ride the Aurora Winter Train to Fairbanks today and back tomorrow, but bad weather convinced us to wait a week. Even if the weather is bad then, daylight will be notably longer. This morning, I decided to stop at the pickup and drop off site to get a preview of what Margie and I might experience next week.

PHOTO 2: After the train stopped, I had Sancho take a peek over the top in the hope we might see the conductor welcome new passengers aboard. Instead, a passenger dashed out of the train and exchanged hugs with one of the three people I had photographed waiting.

I then zipped up the highway to Pittman Road to see if I could catch it again. I have tried this several times but have succeeded only once. If just one of the five red lights along the way stops me I cannot catch the train in time. The first red light stopped me, but I decided to continue on anyway.

PHOTO 3:  To my surprise, I reached Pittman ahead of the train. I expected it to arrive within minutes so I hurried Sancho into position to snap a picture when the Aurora passed between two signal lights. Yet, the tiny dot of light way down the tracks was so far away I wasn’t certain it was the Aurora. I could detect no motion in it. I drained ten minutes of battery power hovering in place and then flew Sancho to this point to confirm the train was coming. It was - at turtle speed.

PHOTO 4: I  flew Sancho back to the signal lights to take the planned photograph. I then realized the slowly moving train was not even on the main track. It had pulled on to a sideline. It stopped!

PHOTO 5: The Aurora’s headlights went out. I flew Sancho a few minutes more until my battery drained into the warning zone, then brought him back to the car. I was less than 100 yards from the gas station and low on fuel. I drove over, filled the tank and thought about switching batteries. The train had not moved. I drove home. “Did you feel the earthquake?” Margie asked. “It was a shaker!  

“No.” It had struck as I drove to Pittman: 5.3 . Is this why the Aurora stopped here? I have searched online but have found no answer. Someone who sees this will know.