Last week, U.S. Forest Service personnel cut down a 74-ft. tall Lutz Spruce tree in Alaska’s Chugach National Forest to serve as the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree and prepped it for a 4,000 mile journey to Washington, D.C., for its official lighting ceremony on Dec. 2. This is the first time an Alaskan tree has been selected as the Capitol Christmas Tree and is also the first time part of the journey – 1,560 miles to be exact – will be traversed by water, with the rest over land via truck.