Listen Intently

This is the way to start the day.  Way back when I was training to be a cabin counselor, our training director got us up at dawn one morning, and read us a story about how to start the day.  No, being on a train isn’t anything like being on a canoe on the middle of the lake at dawn, but…let me back up a bit…

I hopped on board Amtrak’s Capitol Limited in Toledo at about 12:20 AM for my first adventure in an Amtrak sleeping car.  I have to admit that I didn’t get much sleep.  Just a bit too excited about starting off my vacation.  I stayed awake as the train progressed east over Sandusky Bay, finally got a bit of sleep before Cleveland, but woke up to the bright lights of the station, parked right next to Brown’s Stadium.

Dawn woke me up around 5 AM as we approached Pittsburgh.  Jaded as I am by my previous Amtrak experience, I was quite surprised to be arriving fifteen minutes early.  Alas, our earliness was a good thing, as a medical emergency on board used up all of our layover time and then some.  The ride aboard the Capitol has been very pleasant, since losing time in Pittsburgh, we’ve been fifteen to fifty minutes behind schedule, but the padding will, as of now, allow us to arrive into Washington, DC, on time.

Since Pittsburgh, we’ve followed the Youghiogheny River all the way up the mountains, a winding railroad journey through quiet, green and beautiful countryside.  On the way down the other side, we picked up the Potomac River and, basically, are following it all the way into DC.

My first sleeper experience has been aboard Superliner #32109, the “South Dakota.”  Special thanks to Nathan, our car attendant, who’s helped to make this a comfortable ride.  It’s now time to explore DC for a few hours, then hop on the Crescent for the overnight journey into New Orleans.

All Aboard!

Tags: Amtrak, train, Travel