Train Ride

As Andrew already blogged about here, the boys and I were able to ride the train from Girdwood to home. In commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the local school, the trip was organized in remembrance of the days when our little town used to be a whistle stop along the line. The local parents group graciously paid for any kids who wanted to go, and my adult ticket was at a discount. Thank you, Lord, for an affordable and memorable experience for the boys!





















Since we had to meet at the school at 5:45 a.m., I opted to NOT bring Anna along. I was grateful Rebecca was willing to come down the night before to spend the night to be with Anna that morning. (Of course, the one morning I'm gone, Anna actually slept till past 9 a.m. Go figure)!

The boys were beyond excited, though honestly-they might have been more excited about a ride on the school bus. Hmm.
We could not have asked for a more glorious day! I think riding the train in May would be the best time to ride...before it's swamped with tourists and your chances of a sunny day are greater and the snow makes for even more spectacular scenery. I know I'm only basing that on one experience, but it was a great one!




















Usually you're only able to sit up in the cars with a view for short time frames, to allow everyone on board an opportunity. But if there's not many on board, you can sit up at the tables and see out the nice high windows the whole trip. Jacob LOVED the tunnels we went through (see the collage just above for a tunnel-induced grin). And the school kids with no parents along for the ride apparently had to stay together up in another car, so the boys spent a great deal of time ducking in and out on the back deck until they got too cold!






















I know it's slightly ridiculous to cram a bunch a beautiful scenery shots into one collage, but I have a hard enough time getting to blogging without taking the time to load a bunch of pictures. So feel free to click on the collage to see it bigger...it was a beautiful ride! I did post below my favorite shot of the day (notwithstanding pictures of two adorable boys having the time of their lives)...