After having walked all day in Juneau and still not seeing everything we wanted to, we moved on to Dinner at the “American Icon Grill”. All week, Evans and Kamal have spoiled us by keeping our drinks full, surprising us with a personalized appetizer charcuterie board having cheese, crackers, grapes, and other varieties.
They are very professional and excellent at what they do. However, I stopped them just short of putting my napkin in my lap. I’m a big boy and old enough that I don’t need that level of assistance just yet.
We had another great nights sleep in our state rooms and those beds were like sleeping on a cloud. You would think the boat rocking and turning would prevent sleeping well, but everything was perfect, stable and quiet.
On Day 4 we looked forward to just checking out and getting on the train, BUT, hold on !!!! There was a tremendous land slide just where our ship would have docked at the port where it normally would. The Port Authority required the ship to park way away from the normal port location. This required using several tender boats to get us to the walk ramp from the small boat docks. It was a bit of a hike from sea level up to the land level where the train was waiting.
Once we got to the train, it was filling up fast because several other cruise ships unloading guests into Skagway. The train hosts guided us to one of the cars toward the front of the train, and assisted on and allowed to sit wherever we wanted. The seats were arranged like a dining room car with booth style seating. 2 face the front, and 2 face the rear with a table between each bench.
During the train ride, they came to collect our tickets, and offer us souvenirs.
White Pass & Yukon Train Excursion details.
Tens of thousands of men and 450 tons of explosives overcame harsh climate and challenging geography to create the “railway built of gold”. Today, 116 years later, you can re-live the adventure and the “triumph over challenge” in comfort and safety!
The White Pass & Yukon Route Railway is “The Scenic Railway of the World”. Built in 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush, this narrow gauge railroad is an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, a designation shared with the Panama Canal, the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty.
The WP&YR railway was considered an impossible task. However, blasting through the coastal mountain allowed completion in only 26 months.
The $10 million project was the product of British financing, American engineering and Canadian contracting. Tens of thousands of men and 450 tons of explosives overcame harsh and challenging climate and geography to create “the railway built of gold.”
The WP&YR climbs almost 3000 feet in just 20 miles and features steep grades of up to 3.9%, cliff-hanging turns of 16 degrees, two tunnels and numerous bridges and trestles. The steel cantilever bridge was the tallest of its kind in the world when it was constructed in 1901.
Enjoy these 190 photos from our day in Skagway AK.
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