Anchorage today is a clean, modern, friendly city and is a good base to strike out and
visit the rest of the state.
The city is located on the upper shores of Cook Inlet along the east side of the Kenai
Peninsula. It's claimed to have the second largest tides in the world.
The city has a population of over 277,000. Outside your back door you can see up to six
mountain ranges, including the Alaska and Chugach ranges.
One of the major attractions worth a visit in Anchorage is the Alaska Native Heritage
Centre. Here you can stroll through its six authentic, life-sized native dwellings. The
best way to enjoy the centre is to take the two-hour guided walk, where you'll visit
examples of Indian living from each of the regional areas of Alaska.
Once again we set out from Anchorage by rail, this time heading for Seward where we will
board our cruise ship. Our journey begins by following turning an arm, part of the Cook
Inlet up into the Chugach Mountains. The line from Anchorage to Seward was built across
the Kenai Peninsula, linking Cook Inlet with Prince William Sound. On its journey the railway
passes a number of glaciers, including this one, the Grand View Glacier.
As we climbed higher into the mountains, and the temperature dropped, we bathed through
Plucker Gorge. Upon emerging from the gorge, the railroad
traversed a set of switchbacks as we rapidly climbed to the foot of the Bartlett Glacier.
When the railroad was being built in the early years of the century, Bartlett Glacier extended
out into the valley, blocking the only feasible route for the railroad to maintain an acceptable
gradient. To get past this obstacle, the tracks then had to be laid on a wooden trestle over
two kilometres long to cover the extra distance to maintain the grade.
The trestle was in use until the 1940s, but then the glacier receded far enough to allow
the trestle to be abandoned and then became possible for a new right of way to be built.
Moose Pass, located on the shoreline of Upper Trail Lake, is the highest point in our journey.
The entrance to the lake's district syndicates our journeys nearly over. Next stop, Seward.
And on to our cruise ship, the MS Sundarm.
And on to our cruise ship, the MS Sundarm.
And on to our cruise ship.
