If you happen to know someone that likes trains Skagway might be a good place to visit. I don’t know that this is the inspiration for Thomas the Tank Engine but we did meet the Conductor. That’s all I’m saying.
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 White Pass & Yukon Route railway was considered an impossible task but it was literally blasted through coastal mountains 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.”
We opted for highway travel over the rail route but followed a parallel path to see the Klondike. Even if you don’t ride the train they are definitely worth seeing and learning more about. The rotary snowplow is amazing and the evolution of this train’s use from the gold line to the tourist is fascinating as well.
