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The smoky air of the valley stung my eyes and my throat was dry as the motorcycle increased speed merging onto the freeway. It was the hottest part of the day and the temperature had soared to 100 degrees. As we rode north and up into the mountains we could see the billowing smoke on the hills around us from lightning strike fires.
As we gained altitude the air became clearer and the temperature cooled. Now we began to enjoy the scenery of the forests, Shasta Lake, and Castle Crags looming above us. We left the freeway behind and took the winding highway into McCloud, our final destination.
McCloud is a beautiful little mountain town at the foot of Mt. Shasta with a timber and railroad history. Many of the buildings are original from the 1800’s and have been beautifully restored. We quickly found the Mercantile Hotel and were shown our room. The rooms don’t have numbers. They have names. Ours was “Friday George.” I have no idea what that means.
The room was quaint, lovely, clean and quiet. It had a tin ceiling, antique furnishings, and a tiny claw foot tub (about half-size) with a shower. We quickly dumped our gear and went downstairs for an icy cold lemonade. We were thoroughly parched. We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the town, the museum, and the shops. At 5:30 we boarded the train.
The train has been restored and furbished in mahogany sides and ceilings with brass light fixtures and thick carpeting. As the train winds from McCloud to Mt. Shasta and back, we were served a delicious meal with a variety of breads, appetizers, and salad. Then we took a break and walked out to the observation car where we enjoyed the scenic countryside as we rolled and rattled along the rails. Back at our table we were served the main course which for us was Beef Wellington, but there were a wide variety of choices. All this was followed by a delicious dessert and coffee.
It’s a three-hour trip there and back again. There is plenty of time to experience the whistle of the engine, the smoke from the stack, the swaying of the train as you walk from one car to the next, the beauty of the mountain scenery, a leisurely meal and lots of conversation.
And it was nice to go back to our little room above the mercantile and sleep till morning light. We were well rested next morning and enjoyed a generous breakfast downstairs as part of the price of our room.
Thank you Tammy and Bill. It was a unique experience and a great gift.
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Posted by penguin on 2008-06-28 20:33:57 | Rating: | Views: 63
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