Photo courtesy of Aric Baldwin.
The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park closed the Chilkoot Trail earlier this month. The park says it is now safe to walk the trail again.
The popular Chilkoot Trail in Skagway’s Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is open again after construction.
The trail was closed north of mile 2.4 so the park could move a bridge. The bridge supports were threatened by river erosion.
Chief of Maintenance Aric Baldwin says it took eight people to move the 11,500 pound bridge. They used a rigging system of ropes and pulleys to get half the bridge onto new abutments. Two of the team were in charge of safety.
“Some of the ropes had over 17,000 pounds of force on em. So if things change slightly it can really impact the stress on the anchors, which in this case are just trees,” said Baldwin.
The other six rangers used 3-inch rollers to roll the rest of the bridge into place.
“So we just rolled it,” Baldwin said. “Like the Egyptians with stones.”
The bridge is installed in its new location and safe to cross. Trail work will continue around the bridge area through the summer.
“What we have left to do is we still have a little bit of work left to do to secure the bridge on the new abutments and then we have the approaches to finish up as well. There will be construction along that section throughout the summer as we get in and out of that area,” Baldwin said.
The park expects 3,000 people to hike the Chilkoot Trail this year. It is open year round, but permits are needed for summer hikes from June through early September.
