Frozen rails, friendly staff

GLADYS SHAY / For the Hungry Horse News

Recent stories concerning Amtrak problems with freezing weather reminded me of a holiday trip to West Virginia with Millie Wolfe. We went to visit her son, Phil, his wife, Mary, and their daughter, Jennifer, in Harper's Ferry.

Tone of the trip was set when a young girl walked up to us just out of West Glacier. She said we reminded her of the Golden Girls on TV. Trains were late all across the United States due to blizzards.

Travel through North Dakota was in 30-below-zero weather. It did not improve as we traveled east. Problems included frozen water. Train crew members went through the train carrying gallon jugs of water to the diner. They remained friendly and outwardly cheerful.

We spent most of our time in the club car playing pinochle and seeing the country through large windows. The little attendant, also named Mildred, was a bit younger than we were. She enjoyed her job and the repetitious trips. Another attendant told us about his Chinese parents saving money to return to China to die. He was born in Seattle.

I had been apprehensive when going through Chicago's O'Hare Airport several years previously. It was simple compared to finding our train in Chicago's railroad depot. I approached security officers who were busy attempting to secure an inebriated female. They told me to go north and I explained I was from Montana and did not even know directions there. We finally found our train.

Train schedules remained late. We had a sleeper from Chicago to Harper's Ferry and fare included meals in the diner. There was a fruit-wine-and-cheese basket in our compartment. Millie ate the food; I drank wine.

Weather continued stormy. We watched a crew member shoveling out a switch at one point. Fried-egg sandwiches were substituted for lunch as there were more diners than planned due to train delays. A crew member had purchased all eggs in a small town during a special stop.

It was fun visiting Civil War sites around Harper's Ferry. We enjoyed seeing the Christmas tree from Libby and visiting Washington, D.C., again. We also shopped in several Virginia towns.

Amtrak return trip was uneventful. We detrained at Williston and had a rental car for 150-mile trip to Baker to visit Janet and Jerry Townsend. I became lost, as usual. I learned later the road eventually went to Wibaux. It started pavement, then gravel, then cow pies and grass trail. It was midnight and Millie kept pointing out the North Star. I finally turned around.

We left Baker in another snowstorm, but interstate was good. I was to return the rental car to the Williston train depot, which seemed simple. Problem was not knowing where the depot was located. Millie suggested following the railroad tracks. This worked and we found the depot.

Our next Amtrak trip together was to Lowell, Ind. It was summertime.

Gladys Shay is a longtime resident of Columbia Falls and a Hungry Horse News columnist.