frostnip907
These roads were paved with the golden song
The Richardson Highway from Fairbanks to the deep water port of Valdez has some very dramatic vistas. (Yes, that road is what qualifies as one of the most major highways in Alaska.) It was established during the gold rush and played a major role in "opening" the interior of the state, and requires much maintenance every year to keep open and driveable.
The weird cylindrical things by the highway are heat sinks for the Trans-Alaska pipeline, which runs buried under the highway there. The oil that runs through it is kept at a high temperature, and without a way to safely release the heat, the permafrost would melt and the road would, like, sink down into hell or something.
The fact that such monumental pieces of human infrastructure are still dwarfed by the natural landscape is part of why I love living in Alaska. Even in 2016 we cling to the edge of the wilderness.
These roads were paved with the golden song
The Richardson Highway from Fairbanks to the deep water port of Valdez has some very dramatic vistas. (Yes, that road is what qualifies as one of the most major highways in Alaska.) It was established during the gold rush and played a major role in "opening" the interior of the state, and requires much maintenance every year to keep open and driveable.
The weird cylindrical things by the highway are heat sinks for the Trans-Alaska pipeline, which runs buried under the highway there. The oil that runs through it is kept at a high temperature, and without a way to safely release the heat, the permafrost would melt and the road would, like, sink down into hell or something.
The fact that such monumental pieces of human infrastructure are still dwarfed by the natural landscape is part of why I love living in Alaska. Even in 2016 we cling to the edge of the wilderness.