Western Railroad Discussion > My First (Rather Crappy) Alaska Railroad Pictures

I left Cincinnati yeaterday and took the overnight flight from Chicago last night arriving in Anchorage early this morning. I ended on the plane sitting behind little Screamerella so didn't get as good a quality sleep as I would have liiked, Luckily the hotel I am in let me check in early this morning but my one hour nap turned into three hours when I slept through an alarm quasing me to miss a flight to Bethel. After rebooking the flight and getting a few other things done it was time to ride the Anchorage People Mover, the transit system in Anchorage. Coming into the Diamond Transit Center at the Diamond Mall I was looking up at the right of way and a northbound coal train came past with maybe fifty cars and a locomotive on each end. From researching a bit befroe the trip it looks like coal is down. https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,4107325,4107325#msg-4107325  Of course I have no idea where this train originated. 

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Still interesting pics. They're your memories of your trip. You have to work with what you have. 

tq-07fan Wrote:
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> I left Cincinnati yeaterday and took the overnight
> flight from Chicago last night arriving in
> Anchorage early this morning. I ended on the plane
> sitting behind little Screamerella so didn't get
> as good a quality sleep as I would have liiked,
> Luckily the hotel I am in let me check in early
> this morning but my one hour nap turned into three
> hours when I slept through an alarm quasing me to
> miss a flight to Bethel. After rebooking the
> flight and getting a few other things done it was
> time to ride the Anchorage People Mover, the
> transit system in Anchorage. Coming into the
> Diamond Transit Center at the Diamond Mall I was
> looking up at the right of way and a northbound
> coal train came past with maybe fifty cars and a
> locomotive on each end. From researching a bit
> befroe the trip it looks like coal is
> down. https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read
> .php?1,4107325,4107325#msg-4107325  Of course I
> have no idea where this train originated. 

Only five minutes later I heard another train, this one being a Princess Cruises passenger extra heading south. Obviously I was not prepared for either one of these but was greatful to see them, especially the coal train. All this while trasferring between buses to see the city of Anchorage. Diamond Transit Center is next to the Seward Sub on the south side of Anchorage.

Jim

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brc600 Wrote:
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> Still interesting pics. 

I agree. I've never been to Alaska so these are "new views" for me also.  Still a major heatwave up there?

The temperature cooled down to the 60s yesterday and quite comfortable In most areas. A bit more humidity then I expected but I also ended up running for a couple buses which may have skewed results.

In planning out the trip I had already considered this location as a possible place to take pictures of the Alaska Railroad and hopefully get both the trains and the buses in the shot. It worked out quite well in being there at the right time to see how a train from each direction worked out. Unfortunately this location has the same problem so many places do, trees. I know trees produce oxygen and we'd all die without them but they get in the way of so many otherwise good photos. Really though I was just happy to actually see something.

Jim 

First train is a gravel train, not coal. The only coal train you will see there these days is on the north end between Healy and Fairbanks.

Thank you trainjunkie. I did not know where the gravel trais went and thought I was onto something good. I read a number of your posts and or replies before the trip to get an idea of what went on with the Alaska Railroad. So I guess the gravel terminal is somewhere south of the Dianond Mall then?

Jim 

There's two facilities in South Anchorage. QAP trains are unloaded just south of the C Street crossing here.

https://goo.gl/maps/o8FwSvMqKt1vGv666

AS&G trains are unloaded a little farther south. The facility is between O'Malley Road (underpass) and Klatt Road. You can see it pretty well in the parking lot behind Lowes off of Old Seward Hwy.

https://goo.gl/maps/o8FwSvMqKt1vGv666

I suspect that with the permafrost melting they're gonna need a lot more gravel for construction.
So while coal may be down there may actually be an increase in gravel traffic.