Our train held the mainline through
Hurricane to the
Hurricane Gulch bridge. The train was run onto the bridge and we
sat there for about 10 minutes. No one is allowed off the train
here due to the danger of being on a bridge 296 feet above the
ground. Some of the most famous Alaska
Railroad photographs are
from the building and completion of this major bridge.
Tha above and below photographs show
the Hurricane Gulch bridge as a flush deck bridge. Since no one
is allowed off the train, the only views one can get are of everything
but the bridge.
There is a peak in there somewhere. Denali Peak would be obscured
by the cloud on the left side. An ice and snow covered peak is
visible in the center of the lower right photograph. In the same
shot, some of another mountain is visible to the left of center.
This is likely one portion of the lower flank of Denali.
The shadow of the bridge is visible in
the lower right photograph.
The lower left photograph shows the
shadow of the bridge and the two RDC cars. Some of the metal
bridge is visible in the lower left corner of the shot. After
taking in the breathtaking views for 10 minutes, we returned to
Hurricane where passengers were allowed off the train.
One last view of the Hurricane Gulch
bridge.
In the lower left photograph, the
signal lights show red over lunar and the switch points are set to move
us onto the siding where we would have a 20 minute layover to allow the
southbound Denali Star train to pass.
