Wait Patiently and You'll Ride

Am here in Skagway for the summer, though I did not come strictly for the railroad. Having lived here and worked on the White Pass in the 70's, and knowing about all the changes since then, I was really not looking forward to coming back. Having the opportunity to come spend the summer for personal reasons, I made the trip.

You can get up here fairly cheaply if you watch the fares online and choose the right time. Came up on June 7th via Alaska Airlines . . .$125 Seattle to Juneau, and another $125 on a Cessna to Skagway. The airfares have risen some, but saw $164 the other day Juneau to Seattle.

Right now they run steam on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, one roundtrip to Frazer. The town resembles Disneyland these days, unfortunately, so do not expect to see real Alaska here . . . though the Park Service has done a great job restoring many historic buildings. Take the ferry to Petersburg or Wrangell to see real Alaska

You can check the cruise ship schedule and plan around them Tuesdays are busiest, with more than 10,000 tourists blocking the boardwalks and taking up all the space in bars, restaurants and stores. Weekends are quietest, with few ships or tourists, but fewer trains.

Skip Luke
Switchman (ret): Grand Canyon Railway;
Engineer (ret): Georgetown Loop RR Inc., Sumpter Valley Ry., Monticello & Sangamon Valley;
Dispatcher(ret): Illinois Central, White Pass & Yukon, Burlington Northern Ry.
Mariner, Musician, Miner