A day in Whittier, Alaska in winter | Remote Alaska
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- Опубликовано: 21 авг 2024
- Whittier is a small town of about 200 residents that sits in a beautiful bay just a couple hours south of Anchorage. But it feels so out of place and time, remote, isolated, with all residents living in one building for logistical reasons and energy efficiency. In summertime Whittier is a tourist magnet, a port of call for cruises and an Alaska Railroad terminus, a hub to explore glaciers and more. In winter, however, not many people witness what it looks like since pretty much all the businesses close for the season, the road becomes more difficult to drive and the town doesn't offer enough to be there for long.
I wanted to take an opportunity to look at Whittier in winter to see what it is like. For summertime views look here: • A day trip to Whittier...
Thanks for watching and enjoy!
I lived in Whittier from 1979 to 1981. I worked for the Alaska railroad rebuilding the Crowley Mara time barge docks which were just makeshift put back together after the 64 earthquake. One thing I noticed is we had considerably more snow. The snow, as you drove the road going to the begich towers was deeper than your pickup was tall. Perhaps not late enough in the season yet. I owned a 17’ Boston whaler and a 17’ two person Klemperer kayak. When I found out we would be working on the docks for the next 3 years, I brought my wife and daughter down from anchorage and rented an apartment from Skeeter and Ruth Wilson. Skeeter worked at the tank farm which I see is no longer in existence. Great memories.
What a wonderful story, Tim, thanks for sharing! It must have been great years to reside in Whittier. I appreciate your comment :)
I enjoyed this very much; you captured a feel and a mood. Thank you.
Great to see you liked it, Sherri! Thank you.
This video pulled you in. The ending with the wind and the howling crying winds whaling, felt like a void but yet, sadness. Sergey did a wonderful job.
Alaska is so wonderful and so mysterious. And winter is really cold over there. Thank you for sharing Sergey!👍
Glad you liked it. Indeed, Alaskan winters are very cold. Thanks for watching.
Beautiful.
Thank you!
I love this video as it captured exactly what I needed it to see during winter👍
Great to hear! Yeah, not too many pictures or video from Whittier in winter and we all understand why haha
This is a beautiful video❤
Thank you so much!
I'm amazed Dollar General doesn't have a store there.
Not enough audience for Dollar General in Whittier!
@ We have dollar Generals in the middle of nowhere with the same amount of residents and not on or near main roads. Dollar General is known for going to out of the way areas. Our town and county is so small of a population the only store we have are Dollar Generals. We don't even have cruise ship employees visiting or people coming much to "vacation". Nothing.
I need to live here
It is not terribly hard to do :)
@ let's say two brothers, 25 and 18, with no particular skills wanted to check this place out and possibly move to the towers. How feasible is that and how could we best serve the community?
We're young and happy to do what we're told, and looking for our escape from the big city nonsense. Thanks in advance for any feedback and thanks for sharing this beautiful town with us!
Beautiful work! I would love to live someplace like that, but, people are too close there. I don't mind isolation (grew up on the woods in the boonies of Kentucky), but I couldn't stand having a neighbor so close. Otherwise, gorgeous scenery. Love the snow
Thank you, glad to hear you liked it!
This was well done.. The end was sort of sullen and felt very strange, alien and lonely with the howling wind. I have a question. at time stamp 13:30 was there something in that triangle shaped shed next to the street light? I swear I see something appear and then disappear. Did you notice it? A dog? Do you see it?
Hi Sally! That is a deer (or elk?) living right next to the residential house in a fenced hut. Given the proximity, it looks like a community pet, maybe an animal rehab. Kids come by to play with him, feed him grass and pet. I was watching him from my apartment worrying since it was a pretty bad snowstorm but no one else was worrying so I thought it's ok.
@ Thank you for your fast response. I knew I saw something in there. It was difficult to tell what it was since it was dark outside. I know there is a women who has pet Riendeer in Whittier. The end of your video made me feel so lonely, and desolate. Take that as a compliment because it stirred emotions which means your film reached out to the viewer. I like your style of filming. How long did you stay during this visit?
@@sallyrickerson9139 I appreciate your feedback, very glad to hear the video conveys emotions. Thank you for the compliment! This time I stayed in Whittier for 2 days, the town hibernates for the winter and there's almost nothing to do. The way the life functions over there is very impressive, for example, medical emergency, two churches, USPS, a grocery and more are located right within the only residential building. You don't need to go outside to live life since everything is consolidated within. To go see a neighbor folks take a ride in the elevator, that's all it takes, and even in cold winter people walk in their slippers. I know Whittier was studied academically for how public services are organized and functioning. Thanks for the tip about the reindeer, I just looked up, indeed, a woman does have a pet reindeer.
@ Hi Sergey. Thank you for writing back. Whittier has always intrigued me. I love to surf You Tube for the most desolate places to live, thus Whittier came my way and your videos! If one can be comfortable in one's own skin, and content to be isolated, Whittier is the place.I had a friend who was in the Military and he worked on the Tunnel. He stayed there for almost a year(This was several years ago) He told me that "Happenings" (Paranormal) were occurring in his room. He told me too that at night, he would hear screams. He told me about the trains that come in, and the shady dealings. ~ I was more unsettled what he told me about strange things happening in His room. ~ I think the Spirits of the Native People's may linger there. ~ This video you did, you really captured the raw essence of Whittier. I doubt I will ever make it there, but this place, so cut off, is amazing. ~ Blessings too you. ~
@ The reason, as I am sure you know, why Whittier exists is because of WW2. The US Military put a base there specifically because of the Glaciers and Mountains it was hard to detect on radar. The People there are mostly descendants from the Military that was there.
How cold does it get there?
Usually not terribly cold, around 20s F or -5C, but can drop down to -20 to -30 at times.
Looks like very depressing town, perfect location for some horror movies, pure nightmare. 🥶💨😰