All Aboard the Empire Builder ~ September 18 - 20, 2016

These photos, taken from the Amtrak site, show the Empire Builder train (on the left), and the route we took from Seattle to Chicago.



A three day train journey requires two nights on the train.  We elected to get the "roomette" -- which, as you can see is a pretty small space.  It actually measures three feet six inches by six feet six inches - a cozy space.  By day it looks something like this (not my photo).  These two seats drop down and form the lower bed (graciously granted to me by JJ, who took the upper berth).  Having slept on the upper when we did the Coast Starlight trip over a decade ago, I can tell you that the lower is far more comfortable and much easier to get in and out of!  There is a shared bathroom, and showers are available as well (we did not sample the shower).

Meals are included in your fare if you elect the sleeping accommodations.  They were served in a dining car much like this one, and one of the interesting (and generally pleasant) factors is that you sit side by side, facing another couple.  On our trip we enjoyed meeting three British couples (fun to chat with them about their views of our upcoming presidential election and their stance on "Brexit"), an interesting lady who joined us after spending a week or more hiking and camping in Glacier National Park (and rapidly informed us that she was changing course in her life after her husband told her that he did not love her anymore ... another long story), a quirky rail fan (even quirkier than JJ), and a couple from Montana - the teachers I spoke of before.  The food is surprisingly good, although the last day proved a challenge because they were out of many things.  I got my veggie burger served on a croissant -- no more buns!  We enjoyed a delicious steak dinner with a bottle of surprisingly good Cabernet one evening.

The staff - from our car steward, John, to the dining car staff, were friendly, helpful, and funny!  One day for lunch Jeff wanted a hot dog (which was on the children's menu).  The waiter brought his meal and teased him about it all the next day.  

The first full day of the trip, Wednesday, took us through Glacier National Park.  While we did not get the "up close and personal" tour that our friends, Peter and Betty Lou, have had, we did catch a glimpse or two of the red bus that we heard so much about.
  This first part of the trip was rather spectacular - despite the rain we experienced - yet again.  It is interesting, though, that the rainy part of the trip occurred when were were mostly inside -- on the cruise ship and then on the train.

 It's fun to take pictures through the windows of the train, capturing the rain drops and the moodiness of the clouds.

The forested landscape was so very beautiful - even on a gray day.

I loved the clouds in these two shots with the mountains and forest in the foreground.

We spent much of our two days in this observation car, chatting with fellow passengers, reading, playing backgammon, and watching the landscape as we traveled through Washington (lots of trees), a bit of Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.  I must confess that once we left Glacier National Park and got down into the flatlands of Montana, there wasn't much to see beyond miles and miles of prairie country.  We talked about the emptiness of the land and chatted with some teachers from Montana who spoke of traveling a hundred miles or more to compete against a "neighboring school" in sports!  Life in that part of the country is so very different from our experience.

 Even the flatland was beautiful - especially when I managed to capture some sunshine and/or the drama of the clouds as in the shot above, just as the sun was sinking in the sky.

Another high point of the trip, visually speaking was traveling along the Mississippi River - another spot where we were able to see several pairs of eagles, which unfortunately I was not quick enough to capture.

I have truly come to enjoy the slow, leisurely pace of train travel.  It gives you a completely different view of the land through which you travel.  Meeting and talking with people from all walks of life and from all over the country and even the world can also be an enjoyable experience.  This is our third experience -- the Coast Starlight remains my favorite, but the Empire Builder was also delightful.  The third experience was last year's trip on the Southwest Chief, which was pleasant, but not very interesting -- two whole days through soybean and corn fields doesn't offer much variety!  I'm actually looking forward to more adventures in train travel.