Eastern MT and ND

Our first "long" stop was Shelby MT. The purpose of these longer stops is so that people can get off the train and smoke, as there is no smoking on the train.

My Vietnam vet friend got off in Shelby.

Somewhere along here another "rails to trails" tour guide got on and highlighted the history and scenery through the areas we rolled along. There is a lot of history tied to Lewis and Clark's expeditions. We also rolled past Theodore National Park on the north side. The man doing the tour guiding had a wonderful voice and it reminded me of a voice I've heard on North Dakota Public Radio. So I had to ask him about it. He was not a radio voice- he was a retired auto salesman or dealership owner or something- so we discussed what he thought of the car industry right now. And other topics. He was in his early 80's and still full of energy- I really admire that. The trails to rails program is his latest volunteer position.

I also visited with Mildred, an Amtrak employee, the train version of a flight attendant. Which is what she was for 15 years. She lives in Chicago. She worked for an airline until she got laid off. Four months ago she started at Amtrak- she says she really likes it, she has enjoyed seeing the country from the ground. This was her first trip west of Chicago, she has been working the easterly trains.

Around this point, it was getting to be supper time. I could have made reservations for the dining car, which I wanted to try, but that's one part of traveling alone that's less appealing- dining alone in a formal setting. I checked with my retired nurse friend from earlier but she wasn't going to the dining car for supper. I heard the dining car had really good food- steak, etc., though it is expensive. If you get a room, meals come with it.

So I opted for the snack bar. They had one cold chicken dinner left for $10. Which was okay considering the diet Pepsi that came with it was worth $2. The dinner was okay.

While I was eating, I visited with a man traveling part way across ND. It cost him $20 to take the train- he estimated to take his truck, the gas would cost him close to that. He worked on the oil fields in ND, so we discussed oil and directional boring and such topics. I also chatted with a MT high school girl who was headed to UND in Grand Forks (along with a bunch of other students on the train) for "summer institute." She was going to be part of a "Native Women in Medicine" session. She wants to go to college next fall for nursing.

I have yet one more post, but I want to get this one up. It has been hectic around here with the building project, gardening, animals and swimming lessons, so bear with me on my pokiness at getting theses posts written.