Re: [at-l] Re: Amtrak

[Doreen McLeod <mcleod-keith.doreen@worldnet.att.net>]

The Amtrak played a role in our section hike on our last section. We had driven
or rode the bus to other start points but the train for me was the greatest. We
boarded in Kissimee Fl and rode 24 hours to Penn Station N.Y. - no sleeping car
but did get a fair amount of sleep in the seat on arrival relatives gave us a
shuttle to the Mass/Vermont border. As a child I rode the train from Sask to
British Columbia through the Canadian Rockies and being a girl from the prairies
the mountains left a lasting impression and may even have fueled my desire to
hike the Trail. I also remember laying in bed as a child and listening to the
old steam engines make their way trough town. A great way to travel.
                                                                    Triathlon
Grandma

skyline wrote:

> It had to happen sooner or later.  Two of the great passions in my life, the
> A.T. and passenger train travel, have merged onto one list.
>
> Not long after the molding remnants of the passenger rail business were
> merged into a quasi-public agency in the early '70s, I discovered the joys
> of train travel--especially long distance train travel.  It was, for me, a
> relaxing, adventurous way to see the country--and really take it all in--as
> well as a terrific social experience most times I got on board.
>
> Soon, I became obsessed, and took every opportunity to buy what was then
> called the USA Railpass and devised elaborate rail itineraries to allow me
> to get the most out of each pass (unlimited riding for 14 days or more).
> Next, it became a mission to travel every mile of passenger train trackage
> in the U.S. and Canada (through Amtrak's equal in Canada, VIA Rail).  By
> 1990, I'd done it, though there's no equivalent to the ATC to award a patch
> for completion:-).
>
> Of course, there have been some route additions/deletions/relos since '90,
> so I guess I need to get back to the rails sometime and get updated.  But
> there's this footpath running between Georgia and Maine that keeps getting
> in the way.  For instance, I leave Sunday to hike DWG to NY17A.  No Amtrak
> this fall, but who's complaining?  As I section hike toward Maine, perhaps
> my next hike will take me to that infamous Amtrak stop right on the Trail.
>
> Train travel requires one to be flexible, open-minded, willing to go with
> the flow at any moment.  Sound familiar?  One trip can be
> flawless--perfectly on-time, exquisite scenery, great travel companions,
> gourmet food, helpful personnel, equipment that performs without
> disappointment.  The next trip can be eight hours late due to a freight
> derailment blocking the tracks, heating or air conditioning may fail, staff
> might be unknowledgeable or surly, and the dining car fare may make Mickey
> D's look good.  One never knows what one is in for upon buying that ticket;
> in my experience the good times far outweigh the bad.  Don't take Amtrak
> schedules or brochures any more literally than you would an A.T. map profile
> in, say, Tennessee.  That's the adventure in train travel.  It took a
> generation for Amtrak to finally get its act together, and on some days it
> seems like it may not yet have done so, but today the system is more modern
> and efficient than it's ever been.  (So why do I yearn for the bad old
> days?)
>
> As for books, may I heartily recommend "All Aboard With E.M. Frimbo" by the
> late Rogers E.M. Whitaker (many would insist he WAS Frimbo) and Tony Hiss.
> It's a "tingling compendium of great train rides" by the "world's greatest
> railroad buff."   Frimbo claims to have travelled nearly three million
> rail-miles throughout the world during his life.   Many of the chapters
> first appeared in the "Talk of the Town" column in "New Yorker" magazine.
> This book covers train travel by a convivial, worldly character from the
> great heyday of passenger rail, through the Streamliner era, through the
> creation of Amtrak.  The reissued 1997 paperback  version (432 pgs.) from
> Kodansha International includes some recent additions.  If you do a search
> on amazon.com you can find it.
>
> This post may be slightly off-topic, but I think there are some striking
> similarities between the many railfans I've met and the many long-distance
> hikers I've met.  Both groups contain some bold, extraordinary, audacious,
> committed people.
>
> Skyline
>
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