Wonderful Watery Fiftieth Anniversary Trip

May 2011 For as long as I could remember, I’d dreamed of crossing the United States by train. Now here we actually were, my husband Jerry and I, relaxing in our cozy Roomette, in May 2011, on the last leg of our journey. It had been the perfect 50th Wedding Anniversary gift to ourselves. We’d cheated a little, by flying to Calgary to begin our trip in the beautiful Rocky Mountain scenery in western Canada. In Vancouver, BC, we met our comfortable bus for Seattle, as arranged by Amtrak. After visits with friends, we continued to Olympia, WA, and Portland, OR, stopping again in Richland, WA (one of the special features of Amtrak trip that we loved, to be able to stop and visit or sightsee.) Three days later we climbed aboard again on the Empire Builder which traveled across the USA on the northern route, heading to Chicago, our transfer point. What a dream come true! Awaking from a short nap after the delicious lunch in the dining car, I wondered why the train was going so slowly. The slow but steady clickity clack must have awakened me. I looked out my roomette window, expecting to see the flat farmland of North Dakota and was startled. All I saw was water! Thinking maybe I was still dreaming, I shook my head to clear my mind and gazed out again. More water everywhere all the way to the horizon. Slightly disoriented, I at first felt as though I was still on the cruise that we’d recently finished, but no, it wasn’t a dream. I was on Amtrak. I was traveling from Seattle, WA, back to Paoli, PA, the nearest station to our home in Honey Brook, PA. But…water, water everywhere I looked!! The beautiful flat rich farmland that we saw in this morning was nowhere to be seen! With no TV to supply regular weather updates, I had no idea that there was any serious weather problems. It surely looked like the train was Noah’s ark!! Moving to the open space between the carriages, I leaned out as far as I could manage, trying to see the tracks. Below me, water was almost lapping at the tracks. Far out in front, the tracks wound just a few inches above the surface of the water. Just enough for the engineer to be able to see. Not what I expected on this trip! Although the scene was scary, the train continued steadily and slowly onward to the city of Minot, ND, and from there to Chicago. We were seven hours late but most importantly we navigated the flood safely with no sense of alarm. In Chicago, we were so well-cared for, with onward reservations for the next day on the Capital Limited, a lovely hotel for the night, food vouchers for the day, with the plus of a day in Chicago. And it only added excitement to our long-dreamed of Amtrak trip from “sea to shining sea” across America. Submitted by: Roxanna Nichol PO Box 516 Mirror Lake, NH 03853 603-569-5693