I choo choo choose you

I was one of those 2 year olds who would bounce around the back seat of the car with joy when I saw a train (usually accompanied by an overly exuberant "Train Train!"). It was an insatiable enjoyment of all things on rails, from model railroad kits to sitting the in Alyth yards with my dad watching the trains 'do their thing'. I've never grown out of it.

I was up in and around Banff last summer and happened to see the telltale pillar of steam of a beautiful old iron horse idleing alongside the station. With a total disregard for anyone else in the car, I made a beeline for the tracks. We spent 45 minutes watching the crew prep the beast (enjoyable for me, not for most) before we found out that it wasn't scheduled to leave for another 2 hours. So I left the station reluctantly and headed back in to town, with the expressed goal of waiting out those two hours so that I could watch (and photograph) the engine as it moved off. We headed back to the station (with careful timing not to miss it) and I joyfully sat on the platform, taking in the sights and sounds of this mechanical marvel as it rumbled past. I was left with a solid sense of bliss (and the pangs of a full bladder... they were late leaving so I had to wait longer than expected).

After that train was out of sight, I was then able to sit and enjoy (much to the chagrin of my car mates) the fact that this was one of CP's main lines and was therefore quite active with powerfully revved multi-engine trains on their passage trough the mountains.