The train also included a cafe car with hot pretzels, coffee and other snacks. Our coach car included free Coca-Cola products such as Sprite and Dr. Pepper too, bonus! You have to be careful, though... water is precious at 7,000 feet of altitude (a full mile off the canyon floor), in order to stave off dehydration. A couple of dudes in authentic western get-up wander the aisles stirring up friendly conversation or playing the fiddle. Someone called it "Lou's Party Car," filled with "yee-hahs!" from the entire group and a barrel of laughs... an unbelievable experience to a couple of yokels expecting a couple of quiet hours.
Even the terrain was more interesting than what we'd gotten used to. Most of the land is comprised of thousand-acre cattle ranches (it takes 120 acres to support one cow). These ranches are unenclosed -- that's the law. So we saw small herds running parallel to the tracks along the way. Plus the vegetation picks up, with tall pines blanketing the rolling hills. All in all, this wasn't so much a train trip as a neighborhood on wheels.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Grand Canyon Day 3, Part 1: Grand Canyon Railway
7:00 a.m. Up and at 'em with an alarm clock; tagged baggage is due to the lobby by 9:00, with train departure to the canyon at 10:00. Free buffet breakfast is right there at Max & Thelma's restaurant after our leisurely morning shower and baggage drop-off. We dressed "contingently," because cautions abound regarding temperature fluctuations at the south rim. With the forecast sunny and capped at sixty degrees, we wore sweatshirts, and tied a jacket around the waist -- eventually the jackets did have to come on.
10:00 What a cool experience on the Grand Canyon Railway! Our coach car seating resembled a school bus, but it included an attendant/tour guide named Lou, and old-timer from Tennessee who tops any bus driver you've ever seen. The 65 mile ride averages about 30 mph and takes a couple of hours, but it passes quickly. Awaiting us on the seats were a nespaper describing the history of the canyon's railway, settlement, and tourist attractions. A complimentary travel guide book spells out tours, food options, and other conveniences. Lou's a downright crack-up, but he also gave some valuable information about our upcoming "Freedom Tour" bus ride, including the best times to sneak away to the restroom and to eat our box lunch (which for us will be 4:00).
Note: Due to scarcity of water, there are relatively few restrooms available there!
10:00 What a cool experience on the Grand Canyon Railway! Our coach car seating resembled a school bus, but it included an attendant/tour guide named Lou, and old-timer from Tennessee who tops any bus driver you've ever seen. The 65 mile ride averages about 30 mph and takes a couple of hours, but it passes quickly. Awaiting us on the seats were a nespaper describing the history of the canyon's railway, settlement, and tourist attractions. A complimentary travel guide book spells out tours, food options, and other conveniences. Lou's a downright crack-up, but he also gave some valuable information about our upcoming "Freedom Tour" bus ride, including the best times to sneak away to the restroom and to eat our box lunch (which for us will be 4:00).
Note: Due to scarcity of water, there are relatively few restrooms available there!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Grand Canyon Day 2, Part 7: Home Sweet Motel
9:00 p.m. Flagstaff, Arizona - so there is life in the desert! An electric garden of lights reminiscent of home, stretching out nearly as far as the eye can see. The stop lasts about ten minutes. If you wander too far from the train for a smoking break, you change from passenger to hitchhiker. I know this because Attendant says exactly that, one of the all-time customer service phrases.
9:45 Williams Junction, Arizona. The Amtrak employee described it perfectly: "A light pole, a parking lot, and a shuttle." Thank God for the latter, this place is a scene right out of a horror flick. The 7 mile trip to Williams starts out rough - unpaved dirt roads and rocks litter the unlit landscape.
But soon we pulled into the Grand Canyon Railway Motel, complete with ESPN and most importantly SHOWERS! I'm talking high pressure and plenty of hot water, an ideal combination for blasting a day's worth of grime and settling into a real bed for a comfy night's sleep.
The desk clerk tells us all we need to know, including tomorrow's train departure time, a map of the area including the retaurant, and instructions for tagging and dropping off our luggage tomorrow so that it gets transported to the Maswick Lodge tomorrow.
9:45 Williams Junction, Arizona. The Amtrak employee described it perfectly: "A light pole, a parking lot, and a shuttle." Thank God for the latter, this place is a scene right out of a horror flick. The 7 mile trip to Williams starts out rough - unpaved dirt roads and rocks litter the unlit landscape.
But soon we pulled into the Grand Canyon Railway Motel, complete with ESPN and most importantly SHOWERS! I'm talking high pressure and plenty of hot water, an ideal combination for blasting a day's worth of grime and settling into a real bed for a comfy night's sleep.
The desk clerk tells us all we need to know, including tomorrow's train departure time, a map of the area including the retaurant, and instructions for tagging and dropping off our luggage tomorrow so that it gets transported to the Maswick Lodge tomorrow.
Grand Canyon Day 2, Part 6: The Observation Car
8:00 p.m. This lounge is all about staring out the windows - some curved skyward, all of them tinted to prevent overheating. Down below there's a cafe that serves sandwiches and snacks while the dining car isn't open. Considering the $1.00 pretzels, it was a smart move for us to pack a grocery bag full of crackers, pretzels and apples for ourselves.
Sitting here as we whisk through the desert blackness, the deck has the somber feel of a bar about to close down, with just a few souls lost in thought, an iPod, or a book. All we're missing is some mellow jazz to complete the scene.
One thing that's a non-issue is hunger. The dinner car menu is more than adequate, featuring a selection of appetizers, breakfast/lunch/dinner options and daily specials. Turkey or tuna sandwich, salad, build your own burger, roast hen, or flat iron steak, to name a few. Served timely by servers who must be acrobatically trained for their ever-jiggling aisle.
Sitting here as we whisk through the desert blackness, the deck has the somber feel of a bar about to close down, with just a few souls lost in thought, an iPod, or a book. All we're missing is some mellow jazz to complete the scene.
One thing that's a non-issue is hunger. The dinner car menu is more than adequate, featuring a selection of appetizers, breakfast/lunch/dinner options and daily specials. Turkey or tuna sandwich, salad, build your own burger, roast hen, or flat iron steak, to name a few. Served timely by servers who must be acrobatically trained for their ever-jiggling aisle.
Grand Canyon Day 2, Part 5: A Nice Place to Visit, But... No, Actually It's Not Even a Nice Place to Visit
3:00 p.m. New Mexico - almost feels like being on another planet. "God's sandbox" is another term that comes to mind... lots of random brush and spaced-out buttes that look like ten-story mud pies. "Wide open, barren ranches" is the best term to describe what little habitation there is. Isolated houses sit with a lonely windmill or solar panel amidst dozens of dry acres, with no other trace of civilization nearby.
Where do they get their supplies? With whom do they socialize other than the stray horse or two running freely about the property bounded by slipshod stick-and-wire fences?
The most impressive landmarks are the telephone poles that seem to rappel down the craggy, wooded hillside - another feat of engineering - hard to imagine the whole crew surviving such a treacherous installation project.
Where communities do exist they resemble trailer parks, with rusted appliances and compost scattered about what passes for a lawn.
If this is New Mexico, I wonder what old Mexico looks like?
3:55 Albequerque - a half-hour stop at a relatively modern city, where the station is dotted with vendors of handmade arts and crafts. The 85 degree, late afternoon heat would feel even better if it had been less than 33 hours since I'd last showered.
Where do they get their supplies? With whom do they socialize other than the stray horse or two running freely about the property bounded by slipshod stick-and-wire fences?
The most impressive landmarks are the telephone poles that seem to rappel down the craggy, wooded hillside - another feat of engineering - hard to imagine the whole crew surviving such a treacherous installation project.
Where communities do exist they resemble trailer parks, with rusted appliances and compost scattered about what passes for a lawn.
If this is New Mexico, I wonder what old Mexico looks like?
3:55 Albequerque - a half-hour stop at a relatively modern city, where the station is dotted with vendors of handmade arts and crafts. The 85 degree, late afternoon heat would feel even better if it had been less than 33 hours since I'd last showered.
Grand Canyon Day 2, Part 4: P.A. Story
11:35 (random P.A. voice): "Dining car, if you can hear this, please respond."
11:36: "Dining car, if you can hear this, would you please respond?"
11:37: "Chuck, would you please respond?"
What's next? My guess:
"Chuck, I didn't want to cause a panic, but there's a fire in here, we're all trapped and I know you and I are going through a rough patch but these people really need you. Fine, I need you. There, I finally said it. Oh, Chuck, please!"
Grand Canyon Day 2, Part 3: Random Thoughts
What's the deal with these telephone poles that are three feet tall? At that point you might as well just string the wires through the bushes and save everyone a lot of hassle.
Gotta admire the honesty of the illustrations for climbing into the top bunk. No sense in trying to hide the fact that it's pretty much your butt flailing in space until you summon the arm strangth to haul yourself up in there like Indiana Jones recovering from a fall over the edge of a cliff.
When's the last time you saw a railroad car with a fresh coat of paint? Do they have a chain of guys on the assembly line whose job it is to weatherbeat the hell out of these things before they leave the factory? "Sorry Maury, she's gonna need one more coat of rust yellow before we can ship her."
11:30 a.m. Ooh, free-range cattle! Ugh, carrion.
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