Transcript Friends on the Road Project Powerpoint

Friends on the Road
An Oral History of the Dalton
Highway and its Pioneering Truckers
Table of Contents
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Pictures of the road taken by Jessica Brooks
History of the Haul Road, now officially known as the
Dalton Highway
The Pipeline Controversy
The Road to Prudhoe Bay
My Background
Inspiration for Project
History of Weaver Brothers Inc.
Interviews with Weaver Bros. Truckers
Pard’s Pictures and Commentary
Bibliography
The Road…
Breakup at the Yukon River Bridge
Truck Crossing the Yukon River Bridge
Welcome Sign at Coldfoot Camp Inn
Atigun Pass in May
Fog on the Road
The Road North
Truck Headed North
Heading Home
Northern Brooks Range
Road through the Brooks Range
Following the Pipeline
The Lonely Road
The Dalton Highway
When oil was discovered in Prudhoe Bay in 1968, a transport system for the
hot oil had to be constructed. The trans-Alaska pipeline system was
determined to be the most feasible method for transporting the hot oil from the
oil fields in Prudhoe Bay to the ice-free port in Valdez. Before any pipeline
construction could begin, however, a road had to be built north of Fairbanks to
the northern coast of Alaska. Construction on the Haul Road began in August
of 1969 on the first section of the road from Livengood, just north of Fairbanks,
to the Yukon River crossing. This first section of the road was completed in
July of 1970 and stretched approximately 56 miles across the boreal forest of
Alaska’s interior. After the building of the first section of the road and after
hundreds of miles of pipe had been ordered and delivered from Japan, the
pipeline and road construction project was halted. Environmental issues and
land ownership issues, never before resolved, were now brought to the
forefront by the intense desire to develop land previously untouched by heavy
industry. (Borneman 447-450; 458-472)
Stopping at Coldfoot
A Controversial Pipeline
Environmental and land ownership issues were at the forefront of debates
surrounding the construction of the pipeline. Unlike in the continental United
States, issues of tribal sovereignty and land claims were still very much
unresolved. The result of negotiations was the Alaska Native Claims
Settlement Act, or ANCSA. The final bill provided for 40 million acres and
$962.4 million to be distributed among twelve regional corporations largely on
the basis of population. The vast Interior of Alaska and the treeless arctic
desert north of the Brooks Range posed environmental challenges new to
engineers. Discontinuous permafrost (patches of permanently frozen ground
interspersed with more active soil) is found in Alaska’s interior, south of the
Brooks Range. North of the Brooks Range, there is continuous permafrost
(permanently frozen ground). Constructing a hot oil pipeline across a vast
frozen landscape would be more challenging and involve more environmental
issues than developers had initially anticipated. The National Environmental
Policy Act, or NEPA, was passed in reaction to the proposed pipeline project.
The Act required an environmental impact statement before construction
could begin on the pipeline. (Borneman 458-472; 474-475)
The Trans-Alaska Pipeline
The Road to Prudhoe Bay
After environmental and land claims issues were adequately resolved,
development of the Haul Road, a 358 mile-long route between the Yukon River
and Prudhoe Bay was built between April 29 and September 29, 1974. Ten
temporary construction camps and several airfields were constructed to aid in
road and pipeline development. By the end of September, there were
approximately 35 million cubic yards of gravel along the Haul Road route.
Grading of the road was completed by November of 1974. The road from
Livengood to Prudhoe Bay was built in 154 days at he cost of about $500,000
per mile. The last section of the road to be constructed was the crossing at the
Yukon River. Initially, an ice bridge was used during the winter of 1974-75 as
personnel and building materials were hauled north. Hovercraft that could
carry several trucks across the river were used during the summer. In the fall
of 1975, the half-mile long Yukon River Bridge was built. With the Haul Road
in place, construction of the actual pipeline began in March of 1975. The
pipeline was completed in 1977 and cost well over the initial estimate of $900
million. The total cost of the trans-Alaska pipeline was approximately $8
billion. (Jensen 13-16)
Prudhoe Bay Oil Fields
My Background
My name is Jessica Brooks and I am a Master’s student in Northern
Studies at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. The Northern Studies
Program encompasses social and environmental issues in the
circumpolar north. My project focuses on Alaska, specifically the Haul
Road that runs from Livengood to Prudhoe Bay. My Master’s project
interfaces with a larger Dalton Highway Project with Project Jukebox
at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Project Jukebox is managed by
Dr. William Schneider. He served as my project advisor and committee
chair. My committee members are Dr. Judith Kleinfeld and Dr. Mary
Ehrlander, co-directors of the Northern Studies Program. I also worked
closely with Marie Mitchell in conducting the videotaped interviews
with truckers from Weaver Bros. Inc. Thank you all!
The Project
I worked as a tour guide on the Haul Road, officially known as the Dalton Highway,
during the summer of 2006 for Northern Alaska Tour Company. I spent many days on
the road and was surprised to find a distinct Haul Road ‘culture.’ The road felt like a
414-mile-long community. Communication on the CB radio between truckers was often
very familiar and friendly. Despite the challenges of driving the road and the solitary
nature of trucking as a profession, especially on the Haul Road, there was a distinct
sense of camaraderie. In my interviews with dispatch personnel and Haul Road truckers,
I explored the three themes I observed on the road: Challenges, camaraderie, and
community. I interviewed seven truckers from Weaver Bros. Inc. in Fairbanks and two
dispatch personnel with Sourdough, also in Fairbanks, Alaska. The three themes of the
Haul Road are evident in their narrative.
This online portion of my project serves as an introduction and user interface to a much
larger compilation of recorded interviews of Haul Road truckers and dispatchers.
Complete interviews can be found at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Rasmuson
Library.
So, let’s meet the truckers…
The Truckers
Butch Rohweder & Jim Groves
Dave Thompson & Mike Losee
Pard Richards & Johnny Johnson
Phil Tannehill
Butch Rohweder (L):
Introduction
Jim Groves (R):
Introduction
Butch Rohweder and Jim Groves:
Haul Road Challenges
Butch Rohweder and Jim Groves:
Camaraderie
Butch Rohweder and Jim Groves:
Haul Road Community
Dave Thompson:
Introduction
Mike Losee:
Introduction
Dave Thompson and Mike Losee:
Haul Road Challenges
Dave Thompson and Mike Losee:
Challenges and Camaraderie
Dave Thompson and Mike Losee
Haul Road Community
Dave Thompson and Mike Losee:
Haul Road Community
Johnny Johnson:
Introduction
Pard Richards:
Introduction
Pard Richards and Johnny Johnson:
Haul Road Challenges
Pard Richards and Johnny Johnson:
Why Drive the Haul Road?
Phil Tannehill:
Introduction
Phil Tannehill:
Introduction to Haul Road Trucking
Phil Tannehill:
Haul Road Challenges
Phil Tannehill:
Haul Road Camaraderie
Phil Tannehill:
Changes on the Haul Road
Phil Tannehill:
Haul Road Community
Pictures of the Early Road
Johnny Johnson captured the early days of
the Haul Road on his camera, and
contributed the following pictures to this
project. Johnny and his friend, Pard
Richards, shared photos and memories. I
was fortunate enough to document their
descriptions of each Haul Road image. Each
picture includes an audio clip of Johnny and
Pard telling the story behind the image…
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Pictures of the Early Road:
(Pard and Johnny’s commentary)
Thank you to all the
interviewees and
contributors to this project!
Be sure to check out the full interviews at the
University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Rasmuson
Library Oral History Archive!
www.uaf.edu.....
Sources:
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