Town of Healy

Cidade de Healy

HEALY –

A cidade de Healy fica a 12 milhas ao norte do Denali National Park, na milha 249 da Parks Highway. Ela oferece vários hotéis, pousadas e bed and breakfast. Devido a sua proximidade ao Denali National Park, muitos turistas preferem fazer de Healy sua “base” para visitar os arredores. A cidade fica ao longo do rio Nenana na fronteira nordeste do Parque. Em Healy também se encontra a única mina comercial de carvão do estado.

Em 1914, um acampamento de trabalhadores da construção da ferrovia foi estabelecido próximo de Healy Forks, para a construção da linha férrea ate’ Fairbanks. Carvão foi descoberto e em pouco tempo dúzias de minas de carvão subterrâneas foram construídas ao longo do rio.  Elas forneciam carvão para a cidade que crescia e para outras comunidades do Alaska. A economia crescente atraiu outros empreendedores e, entre eles, Emil Usibelli,  um imigrante italiano que fundou a empresa Mina de Carvao Usibelli em 1943. Ela e’ atualmente a única mina de carvão ainda operacional no Alaska. Possui uma forca de trabalho de aproximadamente 130 funcionários e opera durante o ano todo. Atualmente uma media de 2 milhões de toneladas de carvão são produzidas anualmente, abastecendo seis usinas de eletricidade no Alaska.

Aqui visitamos o “ônibus” usado no filme “Into the Wild”, que conta a historia verdadeira de Chris McCandless, um aventureiro que abdicou de sua vida na cidade, família, amigos e principalmente bens materiais para viver na Natureza selvagem e do que ela lhe propiciasse. Chegou no Alaska em abril de 1992, e embrenhou-se numa trilha chamada Stampede Trail, próxima do Parque Denali, onde acabou encontrando um ônibus abandonado pela empresa detentora do projeto de construção de uma estrada de acesso ao local. O ônibus era esporadicamente usado por caçadores, e Chris fez do ônibus, sua “casa”... habitando nele pelos quase quatro meses finais de sua vida. Sem experiencia em sobrevivência na selva, Chris estava com dificuldade de conseguir comida, e acabou comendo raízes que resultaram venenosas, fazendo com que ele morresse de inanição, sozinho, na floresta selvagem.

Ele manteve um diário de todas as suas atividades, roteiros, lugares por que passou, pessoas que conheceu durante sua viagem, que foi recuperado e acabou se transformando no filme “Into the Wild”, dirigido por Sean Penn e estrelado por Emile Hirsch.

 

HEALY

It is 12 miles north of Denali National Park at mile 249 Parks Highway. It has numerous hotels, lodges and bed and breakfasts. Because of its proximity to Denali National park, many visitor prefer to base themselves in Healy. The town lies along the Nenana River on the northeast border of the Park. Healy is also home to the state’s only commercial coal mine.

In 1914, a railroad workers camp was built near the Healy Forks junction to build the rail line to Fairbanks. Coal was discovered and in a very short time, dozens of underground coal mines were opened along the river. They provided coal for the growing town site and other communities in Alaska. The growing economy lured other entrepreneurs and among them was Emil Usibelli, an Italian immigrant who founded Usibelli Coal Mine n 1943.

It is now the only operational coal mine in Alaska. It has a work force of about 130 employees and operates year-round. Usibelli coal is among the lowest sulfur coal produced in the world. UCM’s success in a harsh climate and remote location can be attributed to innovation and state-of-the-art equipment used to maximize efficiency. Currently, an average of 2 million tons of coal is produced annually, supplying six Alaska power plants.

Here in Healy we visited the “old bus” used in the movie “Into the Wild” – which tells the tru story of Chris McCandless, who gave up the comforts of city life, his family, friends, and above all material assets, to adventure into the wild, live among and from Nature. Chris arrived in Alaska in April of 1992 and followed the Stampede Trail – near the border of Denali National Park, where he came across an abandoned International harvester bus from the 1940’s, located some 25 miles west of Healy.  The “bus” was used by hunters and Chris made it his “home” for the few months of his adventure before being trapped in his own adventure and eventually dying.

Being a city boy and having no experience in living in the wild, he was having difficulty in finding something to feed from, ended up eating some roots, which proved to be poisonous, and made him starve to death. He kept a journal of his adventures, routes, itineraries, places he went through and people he came across. Since most of his belongings, including his writings were recovered, with his family consent, a book was written by John Krakauer bearing the name “Into the Wild”, and years later Sean Penn directed the movie, starred by Emile Hirsch as Chris McCandless.

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