Now that we are on our way back from our most recent great adventure, I suppose that it is time to update my documented thoughts. We decided to take a long weekend before it got too cold and try to see a little more of this beautiful country. Our plan was to head south to Durango Colorado so that we could ride on the old narrow gauge steam railroad that goes from there to Silverton Colorado. We thought that perhaps the leaves would still be in full color which would add to the majestic mountain scenery. I have wanted to go on the train for over 40 years but it took me until now to be able to make it happen. I had been on the highway that connects the two towns but never the train, I had also visited Mesa Verde when our oldest kids were still quite young and wanted to go back ever since. Anything else that we were able to do would just be a bonus.
Unfortunately the weekend we picked decided to bring in a storm that cooled things down quite a bit and even snowed in the higher elevations. We were determined though and headed out on Friday morning. We arrived in Durango about 5:30 that evening just as the passengers were getting off of the train from their return trip. You could ride the train both ways or ride the train one way and the bus the other. We chose to ride the train in both directions to get the maximum benefit. You keep the same seat on both trips but the train turns around in Silverton so that you can see both sides of the scenery by the time you arrive back where you came from. Brenda dropped me off at the station and went around the block while I went in and got our tickets. Then we headed through town to find our motel. It certainly wasn’t the Taj Mahal but it served the purpose and met our needs for two nights. When you reserve online and are dealing with an unknown entity then you have to settle for the luck of the draw. I suppose that is especially the case when you use price of the room as one of your more important criteria.
The desk clerk was helpful and told us that the city trolley line ran right in front of the motel so we could ride it down to the train station and leave our truck parked at the motel. What he forgot to tell us was that on Saturday it didn’t come to our stop until 10:30 in the morning. Not knowing that ahead of time we arose at 5:30 and after getting ready for the day headed out to the bus stop. It was a nice little enclosure with a bench to sit on and so we took up our position and waited for the 7:13 bus to arrive. We watched the street lights go off one by one and saw the clouds turn pink from the rising sun. When 7:15 came and still no bus we decided to check the sign just to make sure our time was right. That was when we discovered our wait was in vain. Since we were supposed to catch the train no later than 7:45 we decided to hurry and head back to the Motel and pick up the truck for the ride down. Arriving there we found that the parking lot charged $7.00 to park and so we got nicked again but at least the truck wasn’t going to be towed. It was pretty crisp, about 45-50 degrees so we walked quickly to the station. When getting dressed that morning we weren’t sure how warm to dress and I settled on a tee shirt with a flannel shirt to help keep the chill off of my arms. Brenda opted to wear a shirt and slacks with a sweatshirt jacket to keep her warm.
We arrived at the station in time and soon found the car that we would be riding on. I had specifically opted for our type of car because it offered what I saw as some definite advantages. The seats were like sitting on a couch or in an overstuffed loveseat and faced the side of the train car so that you had an unobstructed view of the scenery and the ability to easily take pictures with no obstacles in the way. The car had a roof but no windows on the sides which would be great on a warm day but presented a drawback on a day when the temperature was not supposed to get above 47 degrees. It was not the cheapest spot on the train but it was not the most expensive either. Our seats did come with one special perk though, they gave us each an insulated mug which was infinitely refillable at the concession car with your beverage of choice. They offered hot coffee which we don’t drink, hot cider and hot chocolate along with a spiced tea. We opted for the hot chocolate which tasted great but by the time we wanted a change they had run out of hot cider. As we sat waiting for the train to take off, people were snuggling down into their seats. One couple were wrapping up in a burgundy blanket with a Durango / Silverton logo and once she saw that Brenda suggested that perhaps we should invest in one also. Since we still had a few minutes I hopped off the train and found the gift shop where they were selling the blankets. Then Brenda decided that she was going to get a warmer coat in addition to the blanket. She visited the gift shop and came back with a nice warm coat that had a hood on it. I felt confident that as the day progressed it would warm up a little and so I wasn’t too worried about one for me. By this time the train blew it’s whistle and we were finally off on our journey for the day.
In order to hopefully avoid reader fatigue I will continue in future episodes. Hope that all is well with those of you who may choose to read my ramblings and you are all in our thoughts and prayers. Life is good, life is great, so choose the right before it is too late.
No comments:
Post a Comment