Alaska Forest

The terrain is nearly flat in this part of the state. We can see mountains in the distance. There is a lot of tundra, and the forests are stunted and sparse. We are told that the frigid winds stunt the trees. It seems that central Alaska is a sort of bowl. The standing water nearby might be a clue to why the foreground trees died.

Our Scenic Guides Serenade

These girls rode with us from Denali to Fairbanks. They are Fairbanks High and University of Alaska students. The Alaska Railroad employs high school and college students to give commentary about the points of interest along the way. At midway between Anchorage and Fairbanks, when the northbound and southbound trains meet, the student crews change trains, so they return to home base each day. A young man who was an Anchorage high school junior traveled with us for the first 350 miles of our journey from Anchorage. He did an excellent job of keeping us alerted so we could have attention and cameras ready when the sights appeared.

These are all the scenic photos from the Alaska Railroad trip, so we'll pick up in Denali National Park to continue our photo tour.