A Visit To Galveston

Last Saturday, we took a drive down to Galveston, Texas. It was only an hour's drive (about 50 miles) from Houston. 

One of the first things we noticed upon entering the city was that many homes were built on stilts so that they don't get flooded from the Gulf of America (or Gulf of Mexico). 

We drove by the cruise line terminals and the cruise lines we saw were Carnival and Royal Caribbean.

While in Galveston, we found a bagel shop and we treated ourselves to some coffee and bagels. My bagel was with lox (smoked salmon) and cream cheese. Both halves were loaded with salmon.

Afterwards, we stopped at a cigar store and made some purchases. 

Before heading out, we saw what looked to be a graveyard of railroad engines of Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad.

Some photos of our visit:

RV Travel Poll: Do You Enjoy Riding Scenic Railroads?

Above, the Durango train at High Line with the Animas River below. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Do you enjoy riding scenic railroads?

I have a confession,  I do!

Since I moved to New Mexico five years ago, I have ridden the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad in southern Colorado twice. The first was in 2020 to Cascade Canyon and then again last year to Silverton. But I have ridden the train several times since 1982. The train departs from Durango, which is only three hours away from home.

In Durango, I found a nice RV park, Alpen Rose RV Park, that the trains pass by.

Above, Alpen Rose RV Park in Durango. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I have ridden others over the years. The next train I plan to ride is the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad. It runs between Antonito, Colorado and Chama, New Mexico. It is 240 miles from home.

What prompted this blog post was a poll by RV Travel (posted yesterday) on riding scenic trains.

They wrote:

Even if you’re not really into trains, riding a scenic railroad is a lot of fun, especially if it really is, well, scenic.

Here are the 10 Best Scenic Train Rides, as voted by readers of USA Today (in 2021). Once you see the photos and read the descriptions, you’ll want to ride these. And if you really love trains, this book on tourist trains is for you.

After you vote in the poll below, leave us a comment and tell us about your favorite tourist train or scenic railroad that you’ve ever been on. We’re looking forward to reading your comments. Thanks!

To take part in the RV Travel poll, go here. 

Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad

Above, the Durango train at High Line. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

In 1981, I was browsing the various vacation-oriented vendor booths at the H. Werner Buck Enterprises Sports, Vacation and Travel Show when I came upon the booth of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad of Colorado. Looking over their displays and gathering literature, I became interested in riding the train. I was planning a vacation trip to the Four Corners region, so this fit in perfectly.

Above, the Durango Station. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The first time I rode the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad was in 1982. The round-trip price was around $50 (give or take). That was during the days when Florida citrus grower Charles Bradshaw Jr. owned the railroad. It was formerly a line of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. I have taken more rides on the train over the years since.

Today, the D&SNG is owned by American Heritage Railways.

Above, the museum at the Durango Station roundhouse. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I last rode the train in September 2020 on their Cascade Canyon excursion trip. Part of tracks were washed out and there were no train trips to Silverton during the time it took to repair the tracks. I will be taking a trip to Silverton next month with my former roommate on the train. It is an easy 2 1/2 hour drive from my home in New Mexico.

The current round-trip Standard Class fare from Durango to Silverton, Colorado is $105. Although $105 is a lot of money, the ride is still worth the expense (it's about 90 miles round-trip). There is a concession car on the train for food and drinks (the last car on the train). 

Above, a view of the Animas River below High Line. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

There are two free museums, one each in Durango and Silverton, on the D&SNG. I have been to the one at the Durango station (it is at the roundhouse). It is well worth a visit.

The steam locomotives have been converted from coal-burning to oil-burning. Although oil is more environmentally friendlier, I missed the smell of burning coal.

Above, the Durango train traverses in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The official website to the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad can be reached by going here.

"Land of Enchantment" Has A Long History

Above, Church Rock near Gallup. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The state of New Mexico is called "The Land of Enchantment". Some of us in the state sometimes refer to it instead as "The Land of Potholes" due to the many potholes that permeate the state's highways. But that's a topic for another time.

How did New Mexico become known as "The Land of Enchantment"?

The Albuquerque Journal has a brief history of how that moniker came to be.

They start it out with:

Enchant: to influence by or as if by charms and incantation, bewitch; to attract and move deeply; rouse to ecstatic admiration

These are definitions according to Merriam-Webster but the word has deeper meaning for New Mexicans.

For decades, the country’s 47th state has been known as the Land of Enchantment. It’s sometimes hard to explain the allure of New Mexico to new arrivals and those who have never been here, but alluring it is, despite often finding itself on the bottom of one list or another.

Its laid-back approach to life, its infinite vistas, stunning sunsets, multi-cultural communities who, daily, breathe life into their traditions, and its underlying rebellious spirit have been known to cast a spell on visitors and residents alike. To understand how New Mexico earned this title, we have to travel back more than 100 years to the height of the railroad because it’s the railroad that most likely first coined the phrase.

To read more, go here. 

Golden Spike National Historic Site

Above, the 1869 "Golden Spike" ceremony gathering.

After leaving the Brigham City/Perry South KOA to go on the final leg to Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, I seriously considered taking a bit of a detour west (about 32 miles) from I-15 to visit the Golden Spike National Historic Site in Promontory Point, Utah.

I decided not to go there as I didn't feel a 32 mile detour was justified and I wanted to get to Lava Hot Springs. Besides, there will be other times I will be in the area, I thought.

After reading a new article by Do It Yourself RV (aren't they timely?), I now regret not taking that little detour.

What's the Golden Spike National Historic Site?

Here's what the article says:

At 2:47 PM on May 10, 1869 a single word was transmitted by telegraph from Promontory, Utah to Chicago:  “Done.”  This solitary word signified the achievement of one of the most important milestones of the building of the United States, the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad.  A monumental feat, six years in the making, was finally at an end.

Today, there is a visitor center (with replica steam engines) and tours of the area put on by the National Park Service. There are also reenactments of the "Golden Spike" ceremony and other things to see. To see the NPS website for the Golden Spike National Historic Site, go here.

To read the article, go here.