It’s difficult for me to imagine a time when most work was done by hand or by horse. Then came the advent of steam. Then came the railroads. The quest to build a railroad across the vast American frontier must have been like the 19th century version of the space race. The driving of the “Golden Spike” at Promontory Summit in Utah in 1869 was that century’s Apollo 11 landing on the Sea of Tranquillity one hundred years later in 1969.
My wife and I have always driven or flown on our travels. On a recent trip to Glacier National Park, however, we decided to take Amtrak. We rode the Empire Builder, which originates in Chicago, goes north to Milwaukee, and angles northwest into Minnesota. It then heads west across the great plains to Spokane where it splits into two trains, one terminating in Seattle and the other in Portland. Our portion of that route began in Columbus, WI, and ended in West Glacier MT.
The first thing to notice about the train is that you don’t have to arrive 2 hours early and wait in long lines to ride. Just bring the ticket you printed out at home, get there 30 minutes or so ahead of time if you want to check baggage (we arrived much earlier), and, when the train rolls into the station, climb aboard. Amtrak staff will direct you to your car. If you didn’t check baggage you can store extra bags on racks in the cars.
Instead of riding coach, we decided to pay extra to get a Roomette. This is a small room (a very small room) with two seats that face each other. At night the two seats fold down into a bed and a second bed folds down from the ceiling. The Amtrak person in charge of the car provides “turn down” service. At that point the roomette becomes a bunk bed with walls around it. You can close the door and curtains for privacy and let the train rock you to sleep (or rock you while you lie awake).
Our train ride lasted 27 hours, so we had the opportunity to enjoy 4 meals in the dining car. Dinner requires reservations but breakfast and lunch are first-come first-served. If you have a roomette your meals are included, so order as much as you want, including drinks, sides and dessert. We had steak for dinner. It was cooked the way we wanted and tasted very good. Remember when airlines used to serve food? The food on the train is much better and you have a bigger selection from which to choose.
If you get tired of sitting in coach or your roomette, there’s plenty of room to roam. Just stroll through the rocking cars to the observation car or go down to the club car. Someone from the National Park Service got on the train and presented a program in the observation car. Also, at several stops the train stayed in the station for refueling and other tasks. Passengers were allowed to get off the train to walk around or feed their nicotine habit (smoking is not allowed on the train). And, of course, you can always look out your window and take pictures of the world passing by.
The train ride didn’t save time or money; in fact, it cost more and took longer. So, why would anyone recommend the train? If you just want to get from point A to a distant point B, air travel is probably a better choice. However, if you have the time and consider the train ride itself to be a part of your vacation, not just a way to get there, then I would recommend it. The food’s better, you get to meet new people in a relaxed and not too crowded atmosphere, and you get to see the countryside. If it had Wi-Fi I’d give it 5 stars!
By the way, the two photos of me were taken by my wife. I’ve tried selfies but it’s easier to let her take them.