Following an elite crew of workers-- brakemen, engineers, construction crews, mechanics and train drivers – Railroad Alaska illustrates the battle against ferocious weather and treacherous terrain to keep the State of Alaska’s critical 500-mile long railroad rolling to deliver life sustaining supplies. From controlled avalanches to prevent catastrophe, to fascinating characters, like Jim James, the one-handed handy man, learn what it takes to keep this train on track.
The spring thaw puts the railroad into meltdown mode; and a freight train is stalled on the infamously high Hurricane Gulch.
A freight crew racing towards Anchorage encounter an icy challenge as they dodge intruders on the track. In the wilderness, homesteaders team up to search for an abandoned cabin washed down stream and trapped in ice.
Tempers flare as an extremely heavy train leads to brake problems and a derailment leaves maintenance teams stranded. Off grid, homesteaders narrowly avert a fire but are left without heat.
The freight train battles north to make a crucial delivery, heading to the highest point on the Alaska Railroad; and off-the-grid, things get steamy as old-timers JT and Marvin build a traditional bath.
A communications shutdown leaves a train hauling the biggest load ever moved on the Alaska Railroad hurtling towards a ‘dead zone’. Off-grid homesteaders tackle the challenge of living off the land in very different ways.
After an accident, veteran off-gridder Jim James attempts to reach the hospital by train, but obstacles may put him in jeopardy. Elsewhere, the freight crew fights to open up a port in lockdown.
In the woods Jim and Nancy James challenge a wannabe off grid couple, and Jennifer Hawks tries to find a missing settler. Meanwhile, the freight struggles to deliver a heavy load.
A quarter of a billion dollars' worth of military hardware is on board, but a rogue gunman threatens to derail the journey. Off grid, Nancy and Jim face challenges during an ambitious cabin build.
Following an elite crew of workers-- brakemen, engineers, construction crews, mechanics and train drivers – Railroad Alaska illustrates the battle against ferocious weather and treacherous terrain to keep the State of Alaska’s critical 500-mile long railroad rolling to deliver life sustaining supplies. From controlled avalanches to prevent catastrophe, to fascinating characters, like Jim James, the one-handed handy man, learn what it takes to keep this train on track.
