Kennecott

It’s approximately a 6 mile walk out to the old Kennecott Mine buildings from the McCarthy footbridge which lies across the Kennicott River. Note: The mine was named after the glacier & river, but it was misspelled. I should have taken a picture of the bridge, but I didn’t think of it at the time. When I first moved to Alaska, there was a tram across the river, and you would wait your turn to climb into the basket and cross via the cable tram. The remains of the tram are still there, and it is a shame that it was replaced by the bridge. It was quite the controversy at the time. In all fairness, I doubt many people moved out to McCarthy, Alaska with the idea of dealing with tourists… still, the Bridge People won out, and progress once again derailed something truly unique.

I had passed a few people in the little community of Kennecott, but it was a ghost town out at the old mine. There wasn’t anyone else out there, and I enjoyed climbing all over the place with absolutely no interference. It was a blast. Not once did I have to wait to take a photo in order to get some tourist out of the shot.