NorthCoastHiawatha
OBS Chief
So I headed up to Victoria for a little weekend getaway before my college classes start again. So I decided that since I had not ridden the "Malahat"...... excuse me now just the Victoria-Courtney train. I boarded the Friday afternoon Victoria Clipper in Seattle for the roughly 2 hour voyage between Seattle and Victoria. I arrived in Victoria shortly after 6:00 pm and proceeded to my accommodations for the weekend. I then caught a bite to eat at a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown (pretty good I might add). I returned to my hotel and went to sleep in preparation for my early morning.
I awoke about at about 6 on Saturday morning and left my room at around 6:45 or so. I headed out hoping to find a coffee shop that was open, however Victoria seemed to be still mostly asleep at 7. So I strolled along the waterfront and found a place that was just opening and popped in for cup of coffee and a danish. I then proceeded to the small station located just across the Johnson Street Bridge. I checked in at the station and received my tickets. There was a good number of people waiting to board many using it as basic transportation and some like myself just a Saturday excursion. Shortly the single RDC slowly crossed over the drawbridge pulled into the depot. I boarded and found myself a window seat. I settled in and watched the backyards of Victoria go by as we trundled along the grass covered jointed rail. The "conductor" came by and collected tickets. He wore no uniform and was dressed in jeans and polo and took his time to chat with the passengers. We soon left civilization and proceeded into the forest and through a mountainous area, with some the highest trestles Ive seen in my travels. We arrived in Courtney at about 1:00, about 15 minutes late. However unlike my travels on Amtrak, no one complained, and no one seemed to be in a hurry. We stayed in Courtney for only 20 or 25 minutes while the conductor reversed the seats. I reboarded and took out "Waiting on a Train" which I had been meaning to read. For the next four hours I read quietly and dozed off a few times. We slowly pulled into Victoria and I detrained feeling refreshed. As I walked back to my hotel, I reflected on my little journey. I surmised that this must be the train time forgot (even after my trip on the Canadian), the train that didn't survive back in the states.... the local making stops in the middle of nowhere to let that single person off.....that local flavor......the simple unrushed nature of people who don't have to be there yesterday. Sure there were a fair share of tourists on board but it just felt different and I liked that. Perhaps the only thing that would have improved the atmosphere would have been a voyage on a Canadian Pacific steamship to Seattle instead of the clipper, but only in dreams I guess.
I awoke about at about 6 on Saturday morning and left my room at around 6:45 or so. I headed out hoping to find a coffee shop that was open, however Victoria seemed to be still mostly asleep at 7. So I strolled along the waterfront and found a place that was just opening and popped in for cup of coffee and a danish. I then proceeded to the small station located just across the Johnson Street Bridge. I checked in at the station and received my tickets. There was a good number of people waiting to board many using it as basic transportation and some like myself just a Saturday excursion. Shortly the single RDC slowly crossed over the drawbridge pulled into the depot. I boarded and found myself a window seat. I settled in and watched the backyards of Victoria go by as we trundled along the grass covered jointed rail. The "conductor" came by and collected tickets. He wore no uniform and was dressed in jeans and polo and took his time to chat with the passengers. We soon left civilization and proceeded into the forest and through a mountainous area, with some the highest trestles Ive seen in my travels. We arrived in Courtney at about 1:00, about 15 minutes late. However unlike my travels on Amtrak, no one complained, and no one seemed to be in a hurry. We stayed in Courtney for only 20 or 25 minutes while the conductor reversed the seats. I reboarded and took out "Waiting on a Train" which I had been meaning to read. For the next four hours I read quietly and dozed off a few times. We slowly pulled into Victoria and I detrained feeling refreshed. As I walked back to my hotel, I reflected on my little journey. I surmised that this must be the train time forgot (even after my trip on the Canadian), the train that didn't survive back in the states.... the local making stops in the middle of nowhere to let that single person off.....that local flavor......the simple unrushed nature of people who don't have to be there yesterday. Sure there were a fair share of tourists on board but it just felt different and I liked that. Perhaps the only thing that would have improved the atmosphere would have been a voyage on a Canadian Pacific steamship to Seattle instead of the clipper, but only in dreams I guess.
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