Re: First train ride

The first one that I can remember was around 1954 when I was 8. My folks took me on a trip up to
Oregon to see Crater Lake. After that, my dad decided to take another road home and we happened
upon an SP Cab-Forward on a work train stopped right next to the 2 lane highway.

My dad pulled off the road and he & I got out and walked over to it. He knew enough about these
to tell me just what they were called. One of the crew asked where we were headed and then followed
that up by saying that I was welcome to ride with them a few miles down the road and they'd stop again to let me off.

Those steps were a long way up for me, but I got up there ok. They had me stand right at the window so I could see
the track ahead. We didn't go real fast, maybe 30 or so, but it was a real treat.

My dad took a few feet of 8mm movies with his Bell & Howell turret camera and showed them to me a few times in
later years. The engine was 4200, one of the big 4-8-8-2 AC types. The camera has survived, but the film got lost.