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White Pass and Yukon Railway |
99840 Skagway, AK, United States of America (USA) (Alaska ) |
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| Address |
201 Second Ave.
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| Floor area | unfortunately not known yet |
Railway
- Bridges and Tunnels
- Historic Engineering Landmarks
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Opening times
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Season is mid-April to mid-October. see website for exact dates and schedule exceptions. |
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Status from 07/2023
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White Pass Summit Excursion - 40 mile round trip: Adult $142; Child (3-12) $71 | ||||
| Contact |
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| Homepage | wpyr.com | ||||
wpyr.com 
| Location / Directions |
The White Pass and Yukon Route is a Canadian and U.S. Class II 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge railroad linking the port of Skagway, Alaska, with Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon. An isolated system, it has no direct connection to any other railroad. Equipment, freight and passengers are ferried by ship through the Port of Skagway, and via road through a few of the stops along its route. EXCURSIONSSummit Excursion Bennett Scenic Journey Fraser Meadows Steam Chilkoot Hiker Service One-Way Train Trips & Overnight Camping Connections via Carcross & Bennett Connections via Fraser |
| Description | Built in 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush, the White Pass & Yukon Route is a marvel of engineering despite the harsh weather and challenging geography faced by thousands of railroad construction workers. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Tourism to Alaska began to increase, with many cruise ships stopping at Skagway. The scenery of the White Pass route sounded like a great tourist draw; and the rails of the White Pass & Yukon Route were laid right down to the docks, even along them, for the former freight and cruise ship traffic. Cruise operators, remembering the attraction of the little mountain climbing trains to their passengers, pushed for a re-opening of the line as a heritage railway. The White Pass was and is perfectly positioned to sell a railroad ride through the mountains to cruise ship tourists; they do not even have to walk far. The railway still uses vintage parlor cars, the oldest four built in 1881 and predating WP&YR by 17 years, and four new cars built in 2007 follow the same 19th century design. At least three cars have wheelchair lifts. Most trains are hauled by the line's diesel locomotives, painted in green (lower) and yellow (upper), but one of the line's steam locomotives is still in operation too, No. 73, a 2-8-2 Mikado-type locomotive. Former WP&Y 69, a 2-8-0, was re-acquired in 2001, rebuilt, and re-entered service in 2008. Also operational, a few times a year, is an original steam-powered rotary snowplow, an essential device in the line's commercial service days. (The rotaries were retired in 1964, along with the remaining steam engines that pushed them, and snow clearing was done by caterpillar tractor.) While it is not needed as the tourist season is only in the summer months, it is a spectacle in operation, and the White Pass runs the steam plow for railfan groups once or twice a winter, pushed by two diesel locomotives.
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