Q: Is there a train from Seattle to Alaska? 

A: Not yet, but there may be one coming in the future! It’s been talked about ever since 1923, when the Alaska Railroad was completed. A feasibility study was done in 2007, which showed that there would be definite economic benefits to making the link, in the commercial and industrial sectors alone.

The Alaska Railroad is currently building an extension from Fairbanks, southeast to Delta junction; the proposed Alaska-Canada railway would travel southeast from Delta Junction, and cross the border into the Yukon. From there it would travel through Carmacks, Yukon and connect to the existing White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad In Skagway.

It would then continue to Watson Lake, Yukon, and pass into British Columbia. From then, it would connect to Dease Lake, BC, and finally Hazleton, BC where it would meet up with British Columbia’s existing rail infrastructure, completing the link between the Lower 48, Canda, and Alaska.

Construction costs are estimated to be over 11 Billion dollars; and the route would mostly serve the needs of industry, however; I am positive that specialty tourism and travel trains would emerge, and that there would be a definite market for them. It’s an exciting project, and one that I hope actually happens! Until then, consider taking a train from Seattle to Vancouver, and hopping on this 7 Day Northbound Glacier Discovery Cruise from Vancouver to Seward.