The Aurora Winter Train To Fairbanks ALASKA - 12 Hour Snowy Mountains Ride North / Hurricane Gulch
Aurora Winter Train Alaska
Transcript
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today's adventure begins from my hotel
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room in Anchorage Alaska as the
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recording of This is Saturday November
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9th 2024 it's 7:12 a.m. checking out now
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and I'm going to be walking the short
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commute down the hill to the train
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station where I will be taking a train a
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12-hour train ride from here to
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Fairbanks Alaska welcome everyone Adam
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the woo here
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so I've been in Alaska for a series of
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days now I'm going to be getting into
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much colder much colder temperatures as
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I go north into Fairbanks probably
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20° cooler colder than I have been here
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in the Anchorage s greater Anchorage
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area even though I've been driving
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around the perimeter went over to Whiter
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went down to sewed backup
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Etc can see my breath now but really
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going to be able to see my breath later
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this evening sun is not even up yet I
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can hear the train pulling into the
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station I'm going to go check in and
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take a train ride join me shall
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you and to be honest this will be the
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longest train ride fullest train ride
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distance-wise that I've ever taken in my
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entire life now I've done a lot of
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trains short trains theme park trains
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Etc been on trains admir trains
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but never have I
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taken a 12h hour train ride three
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posters some may be slightly damaged
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they say but still free posters that's
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cool I'm going to take this probably
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going to get bent to heck but you know
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what this is this kind of sums up today
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and yesterday train ride today it was
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dog sledding yesterday here we go so
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this is the one I'm doing the Aurora
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wind win tour those look pretty cozy
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there little pants right here need get a
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little conductor hat I also purchased
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for
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$8.99 a little magnet
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here I'm getting a lot of
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magnets the wine for coffee was pretty
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lengthy but it has dissipated a little
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bit so I'm going to get myself a piping
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hot caffinated beverage before boarding
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people are still arriving and it looks
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like the sun is slowly starting to come
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up should get some good views also shout
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out to the lady working at the coffee
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stand very very prompt and quick there
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was a lot of customers online she got
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through them very fast I think boarding
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is about to begin soon so this is the
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route I'm taking starting here in
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Anchorage going up to Palmer
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prilla T Etna hurricane
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Gulch Denai
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Healey Nana Fairbanks a lot of people
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are hacking up lungs in here before
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boarding quick temperature check here so
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it's pre-s Sunrise right now I guess
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because at 810 it's showing 29° here in
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Anchorage the sun will be rising in
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about that sun will be in the sky in
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about a half
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hour however check a look at Fairbanks
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15° right now and that's just the
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beginning because over the time frame
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that I am there these are going to be
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the temperatures it's going to get down
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at
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to0 and during the day highs of less
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than 10° those are the highs cuz I'm
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going to be in that area for a few days
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bring it
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on this for posterity
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automatic door
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wow hello
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here the winter okay there's an upstairs
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here what I think the quick service is
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the way to go what
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the yes what what what
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I'm loving
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this so
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cool I like that you could walk
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around a lot more Elbow Room than a
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plane getting hydrated finished my
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coffee now I'm getting a little Alaska
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glacier water this has been such an
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amazing
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trip I just am loving each day I've been
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here has just been just incredible
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really having such a great
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time GLA water now if you remember I
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mentioned the Nick arm where that water
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was uh out in that Bay Area it comes
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from right here this KCK river which
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flows from KCK Glacier you can say that
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all GL I landed on well
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connected we are on the other side of
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this River
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started to kick on and work now those
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are those uh very silver metallic things
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that are located under your seat and up
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against the windows uh be careful when
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doing anything around or on those they
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are extreme ly hot you can burn yourself
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very easily offers to purchase that
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Depot back they refuse to sell it back
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to us so that's why we have to build a
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newer Depot all around this
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area talky fishing
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um they don't land planes really on it
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as it is within a residential
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area every now and then you'll even see
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some crazy L out there
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joke just saw some moose out there
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missed it enough
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now on the right is one of our many
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Moving Mountains as we dictate them it's
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one of our very large very one of very
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high numerals of our rattle fit
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now if you remember I mentioned that ver
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Frost earlier and just how much of a h
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can be just imagine trying to build on a
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swamp area that floods often and water
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retains in the
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area anything you decide to build on
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there will just tip over and fall into
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the weight you buil upon it so the
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reason why gravel is so important is
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we'll scoop down through that 6 ft of
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top soil we'll scoop out as much of that
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ice as we can until the water can drain
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away able to get off the train right
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here you can see what I talking about as
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we get on the river all those trees drop
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out you can get an excellent view of
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that's that biggest Peak just just about
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at the 10:00
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position now as we come around these
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curves we're going to be able to have
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that straight off on the left hand side
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icy water right there look all that
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slush in there
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opportunity to get these beautiful
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pictures
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in if you want to get technical Den
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alley which stands at 20310 FT is
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actually larger than Mount Everest
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after wondering technically how that
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happens the mountain itself is larger
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than Everest because Everest sits on a
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PL which gives it the extra height that
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it needs
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toat a whirl pool down there look at
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that
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now if you feel like you want to hop off
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maybe walk around stretch your legs a
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little bit you can do
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so we are going to be stopped there
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roughly for about 10 to 15
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minutes the town itself is 10 to 15
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minutes away so if you try to walk there
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and then it takes 10 to 15 minutes to
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get back that means the train you may
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have guessed it all right we're getting
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off here little stop quick little
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10minute stop
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to I feel so good
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out Cool Chris
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wonderful everyone's play in the
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snow
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snowballs have to start a snowball fight
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like the sun is out
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that's how they get the luggage on and
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off I guess right
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there there are people getting on and
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off at this top also not everyone is
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doing the full Anchorage to Fairbanks
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track
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just just this this whole trip has been
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so good so
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far first time on a full train ride
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too perfect weather conditions for it
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and very
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bridge that water has got to be
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unbearably cold
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right down
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there River just flowing right through
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the coming around the peak though
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getting the mountain
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range person in front person below me
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where I'm sitting is have a little
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snooze Fest little snore in
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action definitely a peaceful train ride
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to take a little snooze a
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drum now if you haven't noticed there's
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still some beautiful sides to behold out
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the left hand side you can still see V
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alley they made an announcement a few
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miles back that a lot of people that
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live in this little stretch this 40 or
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50 m stretch we're on right now there's
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no roads out here so really the only way
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to get into and from towns is to get on
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this train so sometimes they will jump
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on this train going to and fro it's just
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people that want to just be kind of out
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in the wilderness and in the woods away
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from people sometimes when they got to
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go to town no the only aspect and the
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only way of getting there is via the
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train there's not a lot of Roads also
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they said might see some wolves out here
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and moose out here I'm still waiting to
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see
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moose they said there's like packs of
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wolves that run along this section of
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the
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railroad you kind of need to see some
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wolves from inside the train I don't
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want to be out there with the Wolves
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but I never get tired of looking at this
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honestly just so beautiful something
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about snow and
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ice like a little bit of magic involved
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in it when you're just looking at
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it perfect eye candy
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there's a couple people right there will
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bundle up with their
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dog they got a little camp set up over
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here Train's been moving very slow the
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last few miles kind of just kind a crawl
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for whatever reason
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I
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now coming up on the right you're going
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to start seeing some very small cabins
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up on the right hand side now the owner
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of this
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property he actually started building
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these small cabins in hopes of making
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gold Creek a gold Creek RNR area little
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cabins people can uh travel SP using the
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train to get to an off the beaten path
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to experience the riness of a m
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B having some very nice amidi such as a
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warm place to sleep that's inside
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there's a nice Clear View
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there fun thing about this is I haven't
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really been in my seat too much I just
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kind of been bouncing around all couple
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few different cars into a little quick
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service car got to refill the coffee
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ride this just a local author
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who lives out here and we're going to
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stop and she's going to get on the train
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for a 10-minute stop off for anyone that
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wants to get her
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book and I was talking to the lady at
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the snack
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bar in this car I'm in right now when I
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was getting a coffee refill she was
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saying she doesn't take the train she
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just gets on the
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local resident out here been living out
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here many many
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years it's just really quite the
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experience oh there's another good view
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look at that that's the back end of the
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train I got a view from the front of the
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train looking back the Caboose back
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there
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now this River isn't GL which means it
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is clear this one does have a greenish
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tint to the river and you're wondering
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why there's large copper deposits in the
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nearby Hill that oxidizes and changes
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the water
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color pink now would be your pinky
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finger next is the silver salmon because
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States if you get married put a silver
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ring on that finger silver salmon now
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the next one be careful that folks the
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largest of the fingers that is the king
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salmon king
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salmon the next one your pointer finger
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pointer finger if you uh were to poke
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somebody in the eye or curl your head up
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into a fish and sock
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somebody that would be the first digit
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to make contact so that is the sock eye
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salmon sock eyed salmon now the last
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figure is the chum salmon because Chum
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rhes with th chum salmon there's the
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five
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salmon
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books for just about 10 minutes sh back
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seat you want to come back and check out
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any of her books or her prince or meet
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her or her dog Ella
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I think I'm going to get this
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one animals of
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Alaska she's on here with her dog local
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resident little
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souvenir
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she have a treat sorry just a
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minute okay there you go so let me give
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you a treat ask her to how okay ask her
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to howl ask her to how how Okay howl how
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how here you go good girl enough thank
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youy on
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able to
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see the mountain for quite a bit more
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especially when we go over the hurricane
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Bridge
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Corners were going around they known as
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the Kodak and
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fji going be a great opportunity to get
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pictures of the train from the train and
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if you feel like it you have a chance to
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see uh forg pictures of Denali on the
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left now you're wondering why Kodak and
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huji well about 20 years or so ago we
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had a gift shop on the train around that
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time we had kodc and Fuji film on board
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and the moment people would hit these
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corners or they' see alley they burn
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through all of the film they had in
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their cameras so they'd rush to the gift
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shop and buy up all of the Kodak and
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Fuji
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film our Train's going over bridge now
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back in the C card at this long turn
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Angle now our engines are just now
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making their way onto the hurricane G
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Bridge hurricane Gul
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huran look at that you look down on your
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right side you're going to be a to
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straight down with guard rails to see up
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S of the hurricane and if you go out
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stopping oh my
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gosh wow
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again I go to all the board meeting in
25:53
here oh my gosh pretty good too thank
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you
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gosh
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what
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unbelievable what is happening right now
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this is just absolutely
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good God
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day everything seeis
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and if there' just be a moose standing
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right there picture wish it' be
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great what kind of wildli do you usually
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see in this area I can't hear you what
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what kind of wildlife do you uh moose
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Eagles bear you're not going to see bear
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this time of year though they're techn
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they're all sleeping
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all right he's going to close up the
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windows now but got a good opportunity
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ready need to
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seem to have picked up the pace just a
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little bit
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now conductor was saying I'm going to
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get it up to about
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50 we're going to be approaching the
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summit of our journey we to at 38
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above going
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over3 we've been climbing elevation
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since we left anage
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and once we go over that Summit Point
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we're going to be going all the way back
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down to 440 ft above level once we get
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into the second
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building I should say they're green roof
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but the second
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building uh is the old cwell Roadhouse
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where many people used to stay grab
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pipes of food to eat and to relax after
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a hard day of
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work now has since been closed down M
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north of Fairbank and as I know of is
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not operational at this
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time now the ever large looming Mountain
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that is to the left of it that we're
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coming is pan Mountain which is a pretty
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good name considering we're going to be
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getting a panoramic view as we go along
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the entire outs about
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M about 20 years ago there were
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scientists in the area they were
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categorizing all of these plant lights
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where St upon these giant Boulders are
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going to be seing for the next 5 to 10
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minutes and by giant I mean some as
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large as building some as
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small sun is about to
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sink that is so
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you know what though as cold as it is
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the wind's not blowing in this section
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it's not unbearable
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made
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snow is like super powdery I didn't
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think you can even make a snowball out
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of that snow it's like so refined that's
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sides on the left with mountains across
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the way
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on the right as well
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he said you cannot
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see we're right along parallel to this
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Gorge it's just the tracks are right
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hours yeah it
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is
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8:17 we boarded at 8:00 8:00 a.m. left
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about 1130 or
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8:30 so was just shy of 12 hours
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exactly oh it's warm in here they got
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the heat
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on that was pretty dang awesome I really
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enjoyed that the last 3 hours were a
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little rough because it was dark you
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couldn't see anything out the
40:02
window but the
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first would that be first S 8
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hours gosh more than that first 9 hours
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let's say 8 hours first8 hours when it
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was
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light was really great there the animals
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riding the train
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cold order an Uber this is probably H
40:53
right here
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my bask my salt down that maybe
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him that's probably him actually this is
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him right here all right all checked in
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my hotel that's going to do it for today
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thanks for watching I'll see you in the
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next video the
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Vlog is
41:12
over I made
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it to Fairbanks