Rockies, Plains backdrop for railway journey

The club car had plush seats and panoramic views of our all-day crossing of Montana, past landmarks like Whitefish, Glacier National Park, Marias Pass, elevation 5,280 feet, and Cut Bank. In 1806, Lewis and Clark passed near where Fort Peck Dam now spans the Missouri River on the Great Plains.

Even in the jet age, this former route of the Great Northern Railway remains a vital transportation link for a sparsely populated region of sagebrush and lonely vistas. Passengers get on and off at whistle stops, some for a quick cigarette because the train is smoke-free.

Conductor Mary Reams, 41, worked the 450-mile run between Minot, N.D., and St. Cloud, Minn., one of Amtrak's 19,000 employees. Crossing North Dakota overnight, the train reached St. Paul-Minneapolis around 7:30 a.m. Then we followed the Mississippi River to La Crosse, Wis., before traversing the rolling countryside to Milwaukee.

Skirting the gray waters of Lake Michigan, the Empire Builder pulled into the Windy City at 3:55 p.m., 45 hours and 2,257 miles from Portland. I grew up in Chicagoland and enjoyed my four-hour layover with relatives who met me at Union Station. Then I boarded the Lake Shore Limited for the 7:55 p.m. departure to New York.

Trouble struck near Elkhart, Ind. An electrical outage in one of the two diesel locomotives left us stranded without lights or heat for more than two hours, and very little information from Amtrak.

Around 12:30 a.m., the train roared to life after the defective locomotive was uncoupled. With horn blaring, the Lake Shore Limited headed east on the old New York Central line, toward Cleveland and Buffalo on Lake Erie.

Lunch the next day was disappointing. The dining car was sold out of everything I ordered. The waitress wouldn't let me substitute breakfast items, so I settled for a bowl of fruit. I didn't leave my customary tip.

In Albany, N.Y., at mid-afternoon, the train split into sections for Boston and New York City. Then it was down the picturesque Hudson River valley to Penn Station, for a 5:30 p.m. arrival, two hours late.

Despite the annoyances on the Chicago to New York leg, I enjoyed my transcontinental journey. Easy boarding, comfortable accommodations, gourmet food on the Empire Builder and mesmerizing scenery made my 66 1/2-hour rail trip a small vacation in itself. I'm planning to do it again.

On the Net:

www.amtrak.com

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Associated Press writer David Minthorn in New York contributed to this report.