Riding the train

Hi neighbors. I hope all is well in Vernon County. This past week I have been in Des Moines to visit my daughter and her family.

One of the items on my bucket list has been to ride a passenger train. Although I've never mentioned it to my family, I've also had a secret desire to ride in a boxcar on a train.

Being aware of my desire to ride on a train, my daughter bought tickets for me and her family to ride on an actual passenger train!

I was so excited. We drove to Boone, Iowa, where the train depot and museum were located. The museum was great, but I could hardly wait to board the train. There were four passenger cars, a caboose (now called FREDs for some reason) and the steam engine! Yes, a real steam engine -- made in China of course. There was the accompanying coal car.

We watched the steam spray as the boiler was filled again with water from its last excursion. With tickets in hand we waited for the conductor to yell "All aboard!" which unfortunately he never actually did. But we did get our tickets punched and boarded the train!

The seats were passably comfortable and off we went. The train blew its whistle, the conductor started his speech about the train and the route we would be taking and what we would see. He told us that when we started back to the station halfway through our trip we would all switch sides of our car and see sights from the other perspective.

We went through gullies, over creeks and also over the Des Moines River! It was a very nice trip.

According to plan, when we reached half-way, the train stopped, the engine and coal car took a side track and came around the train to hook up to the caboose to pull us backwards back to the station.

We all changed seats, which involved more than just moving to the other side of the train car. The backs of the seats slide back and the seat then faced the opposite direction! No one had to sit backwards in their seats.

There was time between for everyone to get something to drink or snack on from the concession machines in another car of the train.

We were soon hooked back onto our steam engine and with whistle tooting we headed back home to the station in Boone.

Some points of interest: the train's top speed was about 15 miles per hour and usually slower. The car attached to ours made noises like it was metal scraping its fingers on a blackboard most of the trip. There was daylight between our car and that one. Younger passengers would run from one car to the other, jumping through the gap.

There is always one thing that occurs on every public transportation device, be it cab, plane, bus or train. That one annoyance is a child, who cries, screams, yells at her parents and who wants to go home. Most of the passengers thought her going home was a great idea as well.

This little hurricane, who could not have been more than 4 years old, was named Olivia. We all knew her name because her mother screamed it aloud the last three fourths of the trip. "Olivia! Come back here!" was the most common summons.

"Olivia, please use your quiet voice," screamed across the car.

When Olivia started bouncing from seat to seat across the car's aisle, a young conductor asked her mother to make certain she was safe.

Being a cranky old woman trying to enjoy part of her bucket list, I wanted to tell Olivia's mother I would help open all the extra large scenic windows and perhaps little Olivia would bounce right out of the train and into the Des Moines River.

Once confined to three seats for her bouncing, Olivia decided to imitate the train whistle. Repeatedly. Loudly enough that the actual train whistle could not be heard. Ah, Olivia. I will remember her. I hope Santa does as well. I should have picked up a couple of pieces of coal and gave her mother as my Christmas gift to Olivia.

I was quite happy to arrive back at the station and cough the coal-flavored air from my lungs, bid good-bye to Olivia and managed to disembark without falling down.

I enjoyed the train ride and gained a greater appreciation for those hardy settlers who rode trains across the hills and prairies of America; and for Olivia's mother.