NDR - Nome, Alaska stuff

Ray

Ray

Well-known member
Yes, my job has some intangible benefits. The travel is one.



One of two nearly complete bucket dredges in Nome. This one is huge and has "modern" buckets without hardend cutting edges.





The business end.



The remains of a steam powered rail line that brought supplies into and out of the Soloman River mining district. This engines were from the old NYC elevated rain lines.
Read about their history here: http://www.visitnomealaska.com/PDF's/Trains of the Seward Peninsula.pdf



Nome sunrise. To the left is a modern suction dredge. Each tube is 10 to 12 feet in diameter and that is a full sized trommel and screen system going on its deck. This system is the modern version of the bucket dredge above. It is not going to suffer the weather much like all those Bering Sea Gold idiots on their over loaded party barges.
 


The remains of a dredge up the Solomon River. Nearly all wood and its falling in on itself. I really wanted to climb up into the dredge ladder and see in side but I like coming home to my kid and my dog even more.


The business end of the old dredge. This unit is about 6 miles up from the coast and might be 250 feet above sea level. In this valley there are five dredge remains and two of them are still just more than piles of stuff in the alders. This one is right off the road to Council.



An old IH TD40 dozer. Love the art of that metal.





Great old beast of an IH truck.



Just the inside of a tar paper shack, with a really nice scrap wood hutch.
 
Absolutely fantastic, Ray. It was 44 years ago that I flew into Nome to ref a high school basketball game. What I remember the most was the "throne" at the coaches house. The honey bucket man was considered one of the richest guys in town by the way. I'll bet they (Nome) have a sewer system there now.

You are a lucky man to be able to travel there, especially this time of the year.
Al
 
Ray,

Very nice photo of the steam engines. I also enjoyed the link to the railroad article.

Thanks for taking the time to post.
 
Absolutely fantastic, Ray. It was 44 years ago that I flew into Nome to ref a high school basketball game. What I remember the most was the "throne" at the coaches house. The honey bucket man was considered one of the richest guys in town by the way. I'll bet they (Nome) have a sewer system there now.

You are a lucky man to be able to travel there, especially this time of the year.
Al
Click to expand...


They are on their third or fourth utlility system now. The USDA is currently installing a new water and sewer system in "newer" parts of town that includes fire hydrants. The hydrants stick up about six feet above grade through a deep, insulated utilidoor. Looks very out of place. The entire system is constantly flowing so that it does not freeze.
 




One of the wooden framed, steam powered "keystone driller" systems near the bigger dredge. These I gathered were used with small drilling derrecks to advance the thaw pipes to free up the permafrost so that the dredges could work in the winter. Early on the miners learned that cold water worked as well as hot water, which made dredge mining profitable around 1905. These rigs were modified with wide rims/wheels to help them move agross the tundra/snow.





Miles of water/steam piping stacked and waiting for the next gold rush.
 
Great pictures Ray! Thank you for sharing this great history each of a point in time in history where people had hopes and dreams. With such wonderful scenery, I admire your ability to get some work done...

Thanks again for sharing glimpses of one of the last of the great American resources...
 
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