It seems so long ago now, nine years later, but one of the earliest memories in my past is of the Yolo Shortline Railroad, a now defunct shortline that was merged with another shortline railroad in 2003.
The details a little fuzzy, but somehow I ended up working alongside my mom, my neighbor (who subsequently was my moms best friend in those days) and my two younger brothers. From what I remember, our duties were to clean out the train and hang around in the concession car handing out souvenirs.
I do remember waking up early enough, most likely 8 am, and running up to Woodland from Davis. We'd enter the train parked on the siding alongside Main Street, do a quick run through (making sure there was plenty of supplies, etc.) before the engineer signaled to everybody that we were going to head to the "depot".
Depot is too much of a word, as it was really a booth in a parking lot, and recent observance indicates that this is still true!
The passengers would board the train, and we'd pace along Main Street east at a good clip, crossing the 8000 foot trestle over the Yolo Bypass. The train would proceed to arch southeast towards Sacramento, and a little over half an hour after we passed underneath Interstate 5 at Fremont, we'd arrive to the siding with the name of Lovdal.
There, the locomotive would uncouple from the train, run around the train, and couple up again to return to Woodland. On our return trip, we'd stop at Fremont and watch a staged "Train Robbery" unfold.
Once that was over with, we'd continue back to Woodland, have the locomotive head into the "depot" hood-first, and wait for the passengers to disembark. While the passengers were deboarding, we'd clean up the train.
The engineer, likely tired and wanting to go home, would reverse the train a few hundred feet, run around the train again, and park us there. "The key to budget travel is to prepare in front. When it occurs to family trips, globetrotting, well-deserved trips and/or going to see new locations we have never been before, the fact of cost and budgeting is generally in the back of our mind. Planning and consuming our travel budget correctly is a consideration for most families. Curbing consuming and charges, while still experiencing your vacation to its fullest, is the key to confirmed accomplishment and fiscal liability. Your pocketbook and family will thank you! The thinking behind economizing money while touring is simple: Even if your personal budget is incredibly small, you can still take a break and enjoy life! Simply put, life is just too short to never step out of the door or departing the homestead! Also thinking about that while traveling, no matter whether on a funds or not, even the smallest of things can all add op to a big vacation or travel charge!..". Afterward, we'd remove the trash from any receptacles, and then walk down the line to the dumpster.
One thing I remember learning from this, and believe me when I say I was quite naive back in 2003 (after all, I was 12 years old!): an employee of Yolo Shortline once told me "You don't drive a train! You drive a car, you run a train." I will keep that to heart, if I ever get the chance. Oh, those memories.
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www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP9Bd2eVkgI1233 (fmr SP 1233) @ Hansen Wy Xing in Woodland & along Old River Rd near Beatrice. 5May96
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