Thank You Amtrak, I Saw America So Grand

I saw America

From Amtrak today

Breathtaking beauty

Along the way

Sunshine's splendor

The morning glistening

To the Zephyr's song

Each moment listening

From my window's view

Mountains touched the sky

A welcoming wave

From the passerby

Across sparkling deserts

And rivers wide

Fishermen standing

At their side

With each salute

Across the land

Thank you Amtrak

I saw America so grand

The Story of America As Seen Aboard Amtrak

It truly was one of my life's great experiences to ride the Amtrak Capitol Limited between Chicago and Washington, DC after Amtrak Train Days in Chicago.  I have always been fascinated with the story of how our railroads built America.  Traveling this stretch of the historic Baltimore and Ohio truly was a treat.
As I relaxed and had a french toast breakfast in the dining car, I watched history roll by my window.  The scenery unfolded in a rich forest of hardwood trees which built the progress of the railroad and the cities and towns along the right of way.
As you see America from a train, your eyes truly experience the story of our country.  You see how the cities and towns connect.  You understand that a lumber mill or factory in the town that you pass sparked the growth of the communities that surround.  You truly see the story of America when you ride upon Amtrak.

A Moment in Cumberland Along the Baltimore And Ohio

I enjoy visiting the historic route of the Baltimore and Ohio.  Many of the cities and towns along the right of way are rich with scenery and history.
Many times, I find myself pausing in Cumberland.  I enjoy watching the freight trains of today's CSX and Amtrak's Capitol Limited as they pass through town.
Cumberland is known as the Queen City.  Cumberland developed as a key junction of the Baltimore and Ohio, where traffic headed for Pittsburgh and Chicago diverged from the line to Cincinnati and St. Louis.

The Legacy of Railroading-A System That Moves America

Amtrak was born out of our railroad system.  In today's BNSF, Union Pacific, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern, we see the legacy of many historic railroads and their named trains.
Amtrak's Southwest Chief, California Zephyr, City of New Orleans, Capitol Limited, Empire Builder, Silver Star and many others take their name from a legacy of railroading.  Railroads such as the Baltimore and Ohio, Great Northern, Illinois Central, Pennsylvania Railroad, Southern Railway and many others built the rails upon which we travel and their freight railroad successors maintain the right of way in order for us to get the goods we need everyday and to make our Amtrak journey possible.  
Here a BNSF locomotive moves intermodal containers at Hobart Yard built by the Santa Fe railroad in Los Angeles.  Railroading truly is a system that moves America.  As our train passes by, we witness the legacy of railroading.