Photograph of a bus driver and 3 boys washing the side of the bus the Wests traveled on during a trip through Alaska. A dirt road stretches through the foreground on a slight angle. On the far side of the road, the bus stands at center in the near distance. It is viewed from the side and faces right. In front of the side of the bus, 4 people stand facing away from the camera as they wash the bus. A man, who appears to be the bus driver, stands second-from-left and raises a broom to a bus window. A boy at left holds a cleaning implement and faces towards the right. Rightmost, a young man holds a hose and sprays water onto the bus. The boy second-from-right stands back slightly and watches. Painted along the top of the bus it reads, "OHARRA BUS LINES," and on the door it reads, "O-D-T 9489." A dilapidated building stands behind the bus at left. In the distance, a mound-like hill rises at center.
Photograph of the Santa Claus Lodge in Gulkana, as viewed from a distance. A dirt road passes through the foreground. On the far side of the road, the Santa Claus Lodge stands in the distance at center. It is viewed at a slight angle from the front. The lodge is constructed of logs and stands 3 stories tall. The front door sits left-of-center. Identical windows stand on either side of it. The second floor is lined by 6 equally spaced windows and 4 equally spaced dormers stand along the roof. An extension of the first floor juts out from the left side of the building. Scaffolding up to the second and third floors stands behind the extension at left. Single-story log buildings stand to the right of the lodge. The building to the immediate right is the store. A sign over its door reads, "GULKANA." The building at far right extends out-of-frame. A hill is visible rising in the far distance at left.
Photograph of the store in Gulkana, Alaska as viewed from the front. A dirt road stretches horizontally through the foreground. The store stands on the far side of the road at center. A wood plank walkway stretches in front of it, functioning as a sidewalk. The store is constructed of logs. The door stands at center and is flanked by a window on either side. Above the door, a sign hangs and reads, "GULKANA," and above it, antlers hang. To the left of the building, an alleyway passes between the store and a larger log building standing in partial view at left. A wood walkway extends from the third floor on the right side of the building. A ladder spans the vertical space between the walkway and the ground. To the right of the store, another building stands in partial view along the right frame.
An out-of-focus photograph of Mertie West and 3 others standing in front of their bus while stopped in Gulkana. The group stands in the near distance at center. Three persons stand in a small group and Mertie West stands just to the right of them. She faces left, towards the group. Behind the group, a bus is parked. It is viewed at an angle from the front, facing to the left of the camera. The passenger door of the bus stands open. Over the windshield windows, it reads, "ANCHORAGE." Beyond and to the left of the bus, the fur store stands. It is viewed at an angle from the front and the side, facing left. Another vehicle is parked behind and to the right of the bus. It extends out-of-frame at right. Behind and between the bus and other vehicle, a building stands in partial view. Trees line the background at left.
Photograph of Mertie West standing along the roadside and in front of 2 caches in a Native American village near Gulkana, Alaska. A gravel road stretches from the bottom edge on an upward angle from right to left. It exits frame at left and reenters frame, curving towards center before disappearing into the distance. Mertie West stands along the edge of the road, left-of-center. She faces towards the camera, but gazes towards the left. Behind her, the roadside slopes downward towards a small meadow of tall grasses at right. In the distance, 2 caches stand behind and to the right of Mertie. They stand side-by-side. Both structures are of log construction and stand atop stilts; they face towards the right. A low mesa stretches across the background at right.
Photograph of the restrooms at Paxson Lodge standing in a field in Paxson, Alaska. Tall grasses sprawl across the foreground and into the distance. In the near distance, at center, stands the restroom facility for Paxson Lodge. The facilities are of log construction. It is viewed at an angle from the front. Two doors stand at center. Above the doors, from left to right, signs read, "MEN," and "WOMEN." A trailer stands directly behind the restrooms and further back to the right, a log cabin is visible. Snow-covered mountains rise in the far distance.
Photograph of H. H. West posing next to signs advertising Santa Claus Lodge and Coca-Cola that are posted along the roadside in Gulkana. H. H. West stands in the near distance at center, along the right edge of the road. He faces towards the right and points an arm out towards signs at right. The signs are posted to a telephone pole that stands off to the right side of a road. The signs are viewed from the front and sit low on the pole. They read, "SANTA CLAUS LODGE," and "PAUSE...DRINK Coca-Cola." Tall grasses and utility poles stretch into the distance along the right side. The road enters frame along the bottom edge and from the left. The junction merges to the left of H. H. West. The road stretches into the distance behind H. H. on angle to the right.
An out-of-focus photograph of Mertie West sitting and posing in an old stagecoach in Gulkana. The stagecoach sits in the near distance at center. It is viewed at an angle from the side and faces left. Mertie West sits atop the coach driver's seat, left-of-center, and looks down towards the camera. Beneath her, on the side of the coach, it reads, "[...] FAIRBANKS CHITINA [...]." Trees line the background.
Photograph of a Native American village near Gulkana, viewed at a distance. Tall grasses and brush pass across the foreground. In the distance, several structures stand. A couple of log cabins stand nearest to camera at center. Tents and caches stand in the distance on the left side of the village. Behind the village, a tree-covered mesa rises in the background.
Photograph of Mertie West walking in front of a bus during a stop at Paxson Lodge in Paxson, Alaska. A dirt road stretches across the foreground. In the near distance, Paxson Lodge stands at center. It is viewed from the front. Signs on the building read, "PAXSON LODGE. GOOD FISHING. [BI]G GAME HUNTING.," and, "PAXSON LIQUOR STORE." Mertie West is at center and walks towards the camera. Behind and to the left of her, a bus is parked. It enters frame at left and is viewed at angle from the side, facing right. The passenger door to the bus stands open. Over the windows of the bus, it reads, "[...]RA BUS LINES." Two men walk towards the store behind and to the right of Mertie. The man wearing flannel turns his head towards the camera. A brush-covered hillside rises across the background.
