The Conductor shouts "All Aboard"  and we slowly roll out of the windy city which certainly lived up to its name that day. Our route north along  Lake Michigan to Milwaukee began as a plank road for horses and wagons but from our window  is a view of  towers, warehouses , apartments,  suburbs to Milwaukee now famous for its breweries and beer brought over by German immigrants.  It is winter, there's snow and people are well muffled up for the cold.

From Milwaukee we turn to the west through Wisconsin and gradually towns give way to lakes, rivers  and farmland – Columbus with its church steeples, Portage once a stopover for traders and settlers who  had to portage  their gear between the Mississippi and Lake Michigan – to Wisconsin Dells a redstone canyon for boating and rafting – then acres and acres of cranberry bushes (Tomah);  Suddenly  steep hills and we go through a 1,350 foot tunnel to emerge in tree covered mountains and rugged bluffs.

At La Crosse the river is wide and quiet;  the Mississippi is joined here  by the Black and LaCrosse rivers. -  and named by French trappers who used to watch the Indians playing a game which they dubbed  'la crosse'.

We enter Minnesota as the light fades – Winona , then Wabash which is home of  the oldest hotel (1856) Anderson House which provides complimentary shoe shines, hot bricks to warm your feet and house cats to keep you company. More rivers, more  lakes to Red Wing named after a Dakota Chief who  adopted the custom of wearing a swan's wing dyed scarlet. and home to Red Wing shoes..

During the night the Empire Builder continues westwards, stopping briefly in St. Paul-Minneapolis where we  stretch our legs. St. Paul is Minnesota's state capital and home of James J. Hill, the Builder of the Great Northern Railway who became known as the Empire Builder.  We sleep  through  Fargo, named for Wells Fargo Express Company founder and President William Fargo.  This is North Dakota's largest town in the heart of the fertile Red River Valley.   At Fargo our route heads directly north west through the quiet snow-covered farmlands and small towns to the geographical centre of the North American continent – Rugby – we look the stone monument and tower which marks the precise spot.

We have climbed to over 1,500 feet and cross the Gassman Coulee on a steel trestle leading into Minot which is a servicing spot for the Empire Builder and a walkabout for the passengers.  

Near the border of North Dakota and Montana we adjust our watches as we cross from central to mountain time and enter  Williston - oil was discovered here in 1950 and we see many oil dippers along the route. We pass   Fort Union built in 1828 as Jacob Astor's fur trading  company, which shipped buffalo and beaver pelts worldwide.  The fort is near the  confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers which Lewis & Clark documented in 1805.

Now we are in Montana at over 2,000 feet  and  frontier town Wolf Point's role was in wolf trapping and trading.   Then to Glasgow and  Malta once the inspiration for western artist Charles Russell.  Today  ranching remains a thriving business. But the plains are quiet and we glimpse animals sheltering on the sunny sides of the canyons.

Altitude still climbing into the  Bear Paw mountains to Havre where we have time to catch some fresh Montana air!   Here a well preserved Great Northern S-2 steam locomotive is on display. Then  to Cut Bank (3,700 feet) where Lewis searched for a pass through the Rockies.  This is our first view of the Rockies, Sweetgrass Hills and the Canadian Border, 25 miles to the north.

Still climbing through Browning (4,600 feet) to Glacier Park Station (4,800 feet) built in 1913 to be near 50 "living" glaciers and 9,000-10,000 foot mountains.   This lodge was built by the Great Northern to promote  rail travel and attract tourists. An  Alpine style station at Whitefish- then to West Glacier at  the western entrance to Glacier Park.  Snowfall here averages 100-200 inches a year and we watch  many passengers leave the train, collect skis and packs and head for the waiting motor coaches.   We cross another time zone between  Libby and Sandpoint as we prepare to leave Montana, having gone through the seven-mile-long tunnel.

While we are sleeping  our train divides at Spokane, one part going to Seattle and one part to Portland. We awake around Wenatchee  renowned as the 'Apple Capital of the World" – rich farmlands and sleeping orchards await the Spring. We are also entering pine forests and ski country, through Leavenworth, a Bavarian-theme town and now follow the Wenatchee River  – then climb  the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains to 2,800 ft and enter the Cascade Tunnel under Stevens Pass and completed in 1929.

Spectacular scenery and now familiar too.  The sun breaks through the early mist as we follow the Skykomish River through pine and fir forests to Skykomish, Washington.    In this area  prospectors have left their mark - Money Creek, Indian Falls, Table Rock and spectacular Mount Index. On the home stretch now as we descend to sea level past Edmonds Marina and the Kingston Ferry Dock on our right and skirt  the shoreline  to Shilshole Bay and Ballard.  We cross the Hiram Chittenden locks and note the statue of Leif Ericson a tribute to the Scandinavian heritage of the Ballard neighbourhood. One more tunnel and we emerge in Seattle's King Street Station on time.   Make our farewells to the staff and receive Red Cap service to a waiting taxi.   As we are staying close by at the Best Western Pioneer Square Hotel the rest of the day is spent pleasantly exploring this revitalized downtown and historic area.

Tuesday  morning we board Amtrak's daily service to Vancouver on Amtrak Cascades leaving Union Station at 7:40 am and again travel the shoreline north  through Ballard and Edmonds, a busy hub for passengers and  enjoy the ocean views of the islands gateway to the familiar San Juan islands  while having  breakfast.

Through Mount Vernon and  farmland to Bellingham. For a while we parallel  Route 1-5 keeping a steady pace and seem faster than the highway traffic.   Past the Peace Arch and the border into Canada – through White Rock  watching the morning beach walkers, At Crescent Beach and we turn inland for the final stretch  to  Pacific Central Station in Vancouver, the end of our six-day journey on the rails.  

Having crossed the continent twice, seen much, made new rail friends and very glad for all the arrangements made by our Tour Director Bill Johnston.