Featured Member: Train Ride of a Lifetime – Twice!
Little did I know that a travel dream would come true, not once, but twice! When I was ten – in 1956! – my mother and I crossed the U.S. on the train from Ohio to California (the same trip she made in 1928). My most vivid visual memory of that trip was crossing the Las Vegas Strip at midnight, watching the old waving neon cowboy.
After working twenty-one years in civil service, I retired at the end of 2009. A friend and I decided to take that long train trip from west to east, from California to Wisconsin. She was a whiz at planning all the details. We chose to have a private compartment with bath and took all of our meals in the dining car, sitting with different people every time. From Sacramento we rode north up the California coastline, then east across the northern tier of states.
After visiting my family, we drove around Lake Michigan to the southern tip of Lake Superior to visit a long-time friend, then reversed our direction and drove west to Iowa – in forty mph winds – to visit yet another long-time friend. Truly a whirlwind tour!
The last leg of our trip was returning by train to Sacramento from Iowa.
We were continually astounded by the varied landscapes in every part of this beautiful country of ours. And we can highly recommend the service and atmosphere on the train.
Finally, back at the train terminal in Sacramento, I was presented with a dozen red roses by a person who missed me very much!
