b'26American Journal ofTransportation ajot.comLyndens unique mixed modal solutions answer the call of the wildLynden,whichoperatesinthewildsof Alaska, the Yukon Territory and Hawaii has a multi modal solution for all freight to all addresses no matter how remote. By Chris Barnett, AJOTLittle known outside theKallor: We believe in provid-freighttransportationworld,ing transportation options that Lyndenhasgrownfromaoffer the best balance of time small-town horse and wagonand modes as needed. We call deliverybusiness-haulingthissupplychainflexibility. goods from the railroad sta- WithourDynamicRouting tion to local merchants - intoprogram, you only pay for the alogistics powerhouse thatspeed you need.hasbuiltasolidreputationTheLyndenfamilyof for quietly and reliably caringcompanies is now 2,500 people for far-flung customers withstrong and diverse. Its capa-make-it-happen service. bilitiesincludemarine,air, Whileitdescribesitself(UNIQUEcontinued on inalow-keymannerasapage 30)family of companies, there wasnopatriarchalfounder named Lynden in its heritage. The horse and wagon assets ofthebusinesslaunchedin 1906pliedthedustystreets of tiny Lynden in Northwest WashingtonwhereLynden Transferdeliveredevery-thing from furniture to fruits andvegetablestopulling thehearseforlocalfuner-als.Lynden has never veered fromthisearlyphilosophy offindinginnovativetrans-portationsolutionstosolve problems for their customers.In1921,founderEd Austin put his horses out to pastureandboughtatwo-and-halftonMacktruckto haul eggs and milk to Seattle. In 1954 the company began regular truck service between Washington State and Alaska onthenewlyformed Alcan Highway.Therest,asthey say, is history.Alex McKallor, chief oper-atingofficerofLynden,has been there for 39 years, is an exampleofthemanylong-time Lynden employees dedi-catedtothecompanyand their customers. Today, he is theCOOofamulti-modal Alaska-basedcompanythat ownsfleetsofnearlyevery freight hauling transport vehi-cle imaginable plus an interna-tional freight forwardingand logistics solutions provider.YetLyndenhasntfor-gottenitssmall-townroots. Amongitskeymarkets,the companyvirtuallyblankets the freight delivery business inAlaskawhereitserves hundredsoftownsandvil-lagesstatewide.Noaddress in the rugged50 thstate is too remoteforLyndensreach withitsfleetsoftrucks, planes, barges, hovercraft and even snowcats. But Lyndens familyofcompaniescirca 2024ismorethanacollec-tion of transport assets.The companysphilosophyhas evolved to meet the demands ofsavvyshippers.SaysMc'