Gene,
The main rr of my Arctic RR is the Alaska RR. They run a special on Christmas Eve, replacing the Aurora with the Polar Express. I bet you didn't know that Sodor was an island located off of the coast of Anchorage, where Thomas and Friends of the Sodor RR run. 
Any red dirt where you are or all gray?
Hi Carl,
Given the times I spent in the wetlands and tundra of Alaska, I would say it is more likely to be gray dirt, even peaty black soil. Though I have not ridden much on the Alaska Railroad, seeing what I've seen from the road and air I can safely say much of the original alignment & still is through the non-oxidized dark soil of the lowlands.
You'll have to set a video camera on your Arctic RR and give me a ride. 
Hopefully I don't have to wait until next Christmas season to see the Aurora and the Polar Express. As for the Alaska RR I wish I could authenticate your route. It has been 34 years now for me here in Alaska and I only have traveled 3 times on it. Less than 50 miles on any trip, beautiful miles though, there is a lot more to see between Seward and North Pole, the 470 miles of the Alaska Railroad. I am not planning to move back to the Lower 48, so there is still time to see a major portion of the route.
It would be good to pick a theme to model my personal RR at in the garage. Given the mix of cars & unloaders I have, it would likely be easier to chose a theme closer to my hometown in Pennsylvania. But you have be thinking. This past Christmas my one grandson received the Alaska starter set up of 2007 or 2008. Even my other grandson's 2012 NYC starter set with a helicopter is closer to modern Alaskan equipment, though pulled by a stream locomotive.
Is there an off-topic forum within OGR? Maybe the better place for this expanding conversation. We are getting off track. 
