The Port of Anchorage

The Port of Anchorage is offering free tours each Sunday so David, Ellie, and I all decided to take them up on their offer. The busses are running every half hour, and the tour lasts one hour in length. We met down at the Railroad offices, on Ship Creek Avenue, at 2:30 - which of course meant that we missed that first bus and had to wait another 30 minutes for the next bus.

That gave us time to wonder over to the Ulu factory and browse their wares. Way back when, I used to work for an architect who was designing a new factory for these people, but I guess it never got built because they’re still using the old, much smaller, one. I must say, the newer one would have given them much more space for making their ulus, and would have offered much better viewing space as well.

But, finally it was time for the bus to arrive, so we headed back over to the pick-up spot to wait. The bus was one of those fancy touring busses, with really comfortable seats and even screens that could fold down for viewing movies. Our bus was not particularly full that time, and the tour guide said that all his other busses that day had been full up, with a waiting list even. I guess we chose the right time for our tour! (I don’t like crowds)

There was an initial hold-up on my account – they required I.D. but I had left mine in the car. I offered to run and go get it, but the bus driver said, “oh, you look trustworthy. I’ll let it slide this time.”

I have a feeling that if you asked Ellie, she would say that the tour really wasn’t all that exciting. We just drove out to the end of the point and then turned around again. The tour guide pointed out where things are going to be once the expansion project is completed – but currently it’s all just a bunch of dirt.

What made it of particular interest to me is that the company I work for has a term contract with the Port of Anchorage, and all this work they are planning to do could potentially wind up on my job plate and in my paycheck!

We got to see the tank farms, which was rather cool. The Port handles all of the jet fuel that comes in for the military bases, as well as about 80% of the jet fuel used at the International Airport – so you can imagine the size of the holding tanks. I was not aware of this, but the fuel is transported from the port to the airport(s) via a system of underground pipelines!

We also got to see the two loading docks, each with a ship at port being either off-loaded or on-loaded. One was set up so the trucks actually drive up into the ship itself before depositing it’s container inside. The trucks & their containers have to be small enough to turn around inside, so it is slightly limiting. The other dock had an aerial crane that picked the containers up off the trucks that were lined up beside the ship, and then placed in a very orderly fashion to maximize the loading capability.

We got to get out of the bus at this point, and were led up to the third level roof of one of the office buildings to have a free hot dog (not exactly exciting snack for a vegetarian, but Ellie and David each had their share) and to watch the loading docks from on high.

After that, it was back to the railroad offices and off the bus. It was a nice afternoon – I’m glad that David suggested it.