Snow Trains

On July 29, just before we left the Fairbanks area, we stopped to see the remains of the famous R. G. Letourneau Snow Trains, two enormous overland trains.

We finally had a few minutes to go through the pictures and write up some information about them.

Below is a short excerpt from an article in Wikipedia.

In the 1950s the LeTourneau company developed several overland trains, essentially oversized semi-trailer trucks that could travel over almost any terrain. Their intention was to be able to handle logistics needs without being dependent on local road or rail systems, allowing them to operate in back-country areas. The US Army had three experimental units built, the largest reaching almost 600 feet long, which holds the record for the longest offroad vehicle. Road trains are used in certain roles today, but the US Army examples and a few derivatives appear to be the only offroad examples built.

The first photo shows the VC-12 Tournatrain, which, according to Wikipedia, "consisted of a power truck with a 500 hp Cummins VT-12 engine, and three 20 ton trailers. Each wheel was powered by a separate electric motor, four to each vehicle, including the locomotive." This machine is currently in Fairbanks, Alaska. The people at the junkyard said that it has been purchased and will be moved to Alberta, presumably to a transportation museum.

The second photo shows the remains of the VC-22 Sno-Freighter, which was built for the U.S. Army. Wikipedia says, "The contract called for a single locomotive and six cars able to haul 150 tons, cross rivers up to 4 feet deep, cut through snow drifts and operate at temperatures as low as -68 degrees F. The locomotive provided AC power from 400 hp Cummins NVH-12 engines, powering its own four wheels and the five four-wheeled trailers, forming a 274 foot long train." This machine, which is Fox, Alaska, has been virtually gutted. The motors are gone and all the valuable metals have been stripped, and it is just a shell.

(The complete article can be viewed at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overland_train)