A Few More Interesting Scenes from the Photo File

I’m still having fun rummaging through photos of past rail travels and was struck by how different they all are.  Here are a few photos that underscore that and also make the point that this is what’s so unique about train travel. For instance …

 As the Sunset Limited slows down a mile or so from the El Paso station, you run alongside a low chain link fence for almost a mile. That’s Mexico over there on the other side.

Then later, just before the sun sets, you’re relaxed and enjoying a very nice early dinner in the Sunset Limited’s dining car, when …

 … the train slows and the next thing you know, you’re rolling across a high railroad trestle. That’s the Pecos River down there, and now you can say you’ve been west of the Pecos. (And, yes, I’ve used that line before!)

In August of 2012, my wife and I arrived at Banff on the Rocky Mountaineer well after dark, checked into the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, had dinner and went to bed. The next morning, I went to the window, pulled back the drapes …

 … and was greeted with this view. Adding to the whole incredible experience was the hotel itself – originally built by the railroad, it’s a wonderful monument to another, much different time.

And, speaking of views, here’s one from the classic bullet-ended dome car of the Skeena, VIA Rail’s train that runs from Jasper, Alberta, to Prince Rupert, British Columbia.

It’s a locomotive, a baggage car, a coach and the dome car. That’s it … the entire consist. As you can see, you get quite a unique perspective from the dome. It’s almost as though you’re looking over the shoulder of the engineer.
So … let’s see United Airlines beat that!