Thursday, June 12, 2014
I've been told the most photographed cemetery in Alaska is Eklutna Historical Park. My guess it is due to the brightly colored spirit houses scattered throughout the property. I've wanted to visit this unique area since seeing it from the air via Jim Somerville's plane back in 2008. Today Terry and I began our journey to Fairbanksand this would be our first stop.
We arrived just before they opened at 10:00 AM and were pleased to find the location tourist free. We opted for a short guided tour ($5.00) which included a visit inside the Russian Orthodox Church. Our guide informed us services are held every Thursday and Saturday evening as well as Sunday morning. She then let us roam the grounds freely to visit and photograph the spirit houses. Spirit houses were built by the family after the person's death as part of a unique mix of native tradition and Orthodox Christianity.
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Although there weren't any geocaches at the historical park there was one at nearby Thunderbird Falls trailhead. One of the cardinal rules of geocaching is not to let the general public see you retrieve the container as they might take it once you leave the area. We had to wait a good 15 minutes before the coast was clear and then Terry made a lightning fast find. On the way to Wasilla we munched on yesterday's pizza and made brief stops at the scenic Palmer River and a local thrift store.
"While in Alaska, and taking a stop in Wasilla, it's only right to take a look at the one place that delivers Alaska's heritage on a miniature scale, the Alaska Live Steamers." --Trip review found at Tripadvisor.com
Although it wasn't a regularly scheduled run date, Alaska Live Steamers (ALS) patriarch Jack Klingbeil was kind enough to let us stop by for a visit. Over the years Jack has put his heart and soul into this 7 1/2 inch gauge railroad and with the help of many dedicated volunteers have created a unique empire. Several years ago ALS took a huge spear to the chest when the Wasilla airport terminated their land lease. In the true spirit of Frank Sanatra they picked themselves up, dusted themselves off and started all over again. The new 20-acre space off W. Riley Avenue would not only enable them to restart operations, but to grow and add exciting new capabilities. In the future, visiting live steamers will not only be able to operate their equipment on the track, but take sidings to a series of private overnight cabins. There will also be a playground and picnic area for ALS members.
Jack began by giving each of us a tour via Gator of the track, facilities and current expansions. He explained chain saws, mini-excavators and Gators were used to clear the right-of-way. Fill material was added, geo fabric inserted, steel rails, plastic ties and ballast installed.
Jack fired up his GP39 and a half BNSF locomotive (in "Smurf" paint scheme) and called for Terry and I to get on board. They say money can't buy happiness, but I can't image anybody frowning while taking a train trip here at ALS. True to form, Terry and I were all smiles. We gently glided through birch and pine while passing miniature versions of the Eklunta cemetery (complete with spirit houses), Orthodox church, water tank, farms and cabins.
On our second time around, Jack put me on the lead locomotive and let me be the engineer! I loved running the train and am happy to report there were no derailments or collisions. We both told Jack we would definitely stop by on our next Alaska trip and eventually would become ALS members.
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| Anyone visiting the Wasilla area should make sure to take a train ride at the Alaska Live Steamers! | Jack Klingbeil gave us private Gator tours of the exisiting track as well as the new lines | Volunteer labor is used to carve out and construct new rail lines through the property |
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I think it is just about every little boy's dream to get a train set for Christmas (or Hanukkah, etc.). Can you image how exciting it would be to get the real thing? Our final Wasilla stop was at the old Kenai Supply building which is now home to the Engine 557 Restoration Company. Established in 2012 the company's mission is to overhaul and restore #557, a vintage 1943 2-8-0 steam locomotive. President and project manager Pat Durand was there to give us a tour of the facilities, #557 and the tender.
Number 557 originally served the United States Army as #3523. It served the Alaska Railroad until 1963 and was eventually snapped up by Moses Lake, Washington scrap dealer Monte Holm. After Monte passed away the locomotive was purchased by the Jansen family, owners of the Lynden company. The Jansen's agreed to donate it back providing the locomotive could be made operational in eight years. The Engine 557 Restoration Company was formed to bring #557 back to life and once again run the Alaskan rails. Additionally, the Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry in Wasilla donated U.S. Army Transportation Corp tender 0039M.
Restoration efforts are accomplished through a group of volunteers who have donated thousands of hours of labor plus a number of businesses who provide equipment and services. Financial donations come in from a wide variety of sources and are matched through a generous $350,000 Rasmuson Foundation grant. Work is accomplished year round and things can get a little bit chilly in the unheated building in the winter.
During the tour Pat shared with us stories of grease and grime, parts tracking, equipment donations and dedicated personnel. A far away train whistle brought the entire crew out the back door to wave at a passing southbound Alaska Railroad freight train. Every tour given by Pat is punctuated by an appeal for assistance. Therefore, right now would be a good time for the reader to make their donation to this incredible effort. I have no doubt that once #557 is up and running it will become a much sought after highlight of many a tourist's trip to Alaska.
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| Passing freight train | Logo on a nearby truck | Pat Durand and #557 shared the same birth year |
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| No. 557 is at the halfway point for restoration | And she has a crack in her frame that we will need to repair | The beauty of her meticulously restored cab |
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| Tender 0039M is part of the restoration effort |
It had been almost 30 years since Terry and I visited Hatcher Pass and we were eagerly looking forward to returning. Located in the southwest part of the Talkeetna Mountains, it features a wonderfully scenic drive full of mountains, rivers, wildlife and famous Independence Mine Historical State Park. Through prearrangement we picked up a friend who would serve as a guide for our adventure. After a 45 minute drive we arrived in paradise. I'll let the pictures below do the talking.
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| Christmas card 2014 shot | Everything was saturated with greens and blues | I wish I could model my train layout like this! |
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| Hatcher Pass in the distance | I just couldn't stop taking mountain photos | Looking good in our Alaska Railroad sweaters |
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| We saw a young moose on the drive out | Goose Creek Tower aka Dr. Seuss House |
Due to deep lingering snow the road to Independence Mine Historical State Park was closed. This was a major league bummer, but there was not thing one we could do about it. On the drive out we spied a parasailer gliding through the sky and followed him all the way to his landing point adjacent to the road. Soon after we left the region we spotted a young moose about 300 feet off the roadway. You just gotta love Alaska!
We did not pick up our tour guide based on just his charm and good looks. This intelligent individual held the secret on how to locate the legendary Dr. Seuss House (Goose Creek Tower). This Alaskan oddity had become my obsession over the past decade. I had scoured the Internet in search of information and contacted numerous individuals to gleem every scrap of pertainant information. At last the time was at hand to bring my quest to an end. Our guide knew all the correct turns, but unfortunately we came to a locked gate with a huge "No Trespassing" sign. What a disappointment! My tour guide beckoned that a five or ten minute walk would put us at the base of this 12-story monstrousity, but we instead to chose to note the owner's information so as to gain permission for some later date. We were able to see most of the stories of the house from the main roadway and based on our view with binoculars determined this structure is nowhere near completion. For a little bit of urban legend and some nice photos of the structure click here or here or some nice video here and here.
With our heads hung low, but a song in our hearts we continued on to Talkeetna. Once we hit town we dropped our guide off at his destination and then headed to our five star hotel the Talkeetna Motel aka "Tee Pee Oasis." Altough the exterior of this establishment caused us to panic slightly the rooms turned out to be neat and clean. They were also less than half the price of the Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge and infinitely superior to sleeping on the ground at the nearby camping facilities. We asked the gruff proprietor for his dinner recommendation and he suggested Twister Creek. This proved to be a good sugestion as the service was good, I loved my hamburger and Terry said the Alaskan cod was great.
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| Talkeetna city sign | Talkeetna Motel aka "Tee Pee Oasis." | Twister Creek |
On the way back to the motel we stopped to hunt for a geocache in front of the Roadhouse. It was hard to be stealthy here and not give up the container's location, but Terry had her groove on and was able to make fast work of it. Back at the motel we fell into our now familar routine of dumping down our photos to the laptop, charging batteries, writing in our journals and logging our found geocaches.