With winter almost behind us, I find myself thinking about taking a vacation somewhere.
Although I have flown by airplane to great destinations many times, I am a “freaked out” flyer. My favorite columnist, the late Mike Royko of the Chicago Sun Times and Chicago Tribune fame, was not fond of flying, either. He famously said once that with enough alcohol, he would be willing to fly the plane himself. Keeping that in mind, I usually inform the flight attendant of my fears, and little bottles of liquor suddenly appear.
That said, my favorite mode of travel is by train. Riding the rails allows you to see so much of this beautiful United States.
The last time I traveled a long distance by train was from Chicago to San Francisco. My travel companion and I were going to a family member’s home in Oregon. It involved a 2.5-day train ride to San Francisco, followed by driving a rental car to Oregon. We traveled on Amtrak’s “California Zephyr” through many states and enjoyed some breathtaking scenes.
We purchased coach seats, which were roomy enough to stretch out and sleep. It also allowed us to visit with other passengers and gaze through massive windows. The food on the train was wonderful. One could get great meals in the dining car or enjoy cocktails and snacks in the club car.
Things got very interesting the further west we traveled. We laughed when riding through the desert when passengers plastered their noses on the window hoping to catch a glimpse of the jackalopes mentioned in the Amtrak brochure. A jackalope is a cross between a jackrabbit and antelope. Spoiler alert: they are mythical creatures, not real. Very funny, Amtrak!
Going through Colorado took an entire day of the trip as the train crawled through 29 tunnels and made several stops along the way. In Colorado, skiers actually disembarked right at the Winter Park resort.
In Nevada, the train made a stop in Sparks. Passengers were allowed to get off for a short time to try their luck with a little gambling action.
In Eastern California, the train fell silent when the conductor pointed out Donner Pass and its somber history. In 1846, members of the Donner Party (nearly 90 emigrant settlers) were on their way west when a blizzard trapped their wagon train in the Sierra Nevada mountains. They resorted to cannibalism to survive, and only 47 did.
Next time, I’ll be a little smarter. Unless paying for deluxe accommodations, two or more days without a shower is not good. We did clean ourselves up in the bathroom; but being about the same small size as those on an aircraft, it wasn’t easy. I’ll go back to my short haircut. We also were not aware that Amtrak allows passengers to bring their own food, snacks and beverages, with some restrictions.
Yes, you can fly the friendly skies, if you like. As for me, I’ll stick to riding the rails
