Hours of Monkey Business

Somehow I missed the fact that one should have a res for the Durango to Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway. I had to prepare the kids for the possibility that we might not be able to go, but that the only way to even try was to wake up and get moving early. Lo and behold, Peanut coughed at 5:55am which got everyone rolling to Doodle's tune of, "Hurry Hurry! We won't miss the train, right?" We were at the train station, without breakfast, at 7am sharp, and luckily they were able to get the 5 of us on board in the open-air car. It had 2 benches with assigned seating, all outward facing. Perfect.
Perfect for about 30 minutes until all the soot started flying in our faces. Now we understood why we were supposed to wear dark colors and sunglasses! Can you say covered? I even had the stuff in my bra when we got home. For those of you considering this ride as part of your trip to the Southwest, hear me loud and clear: Leave your 3 year old at home and consider leaving your 5 year old, too.

Life with Doodle became an absolute nightmare after the 1 hour point. She climbed all over us and exercised every opportunity to practice her mighty 3 year old control. Constantly I found myself using full upper arm strength to hold her down. You name it, she attempted it. This little demon was unrecognizable to me for hours on end. And if you think I'm overreacting, keep in mind that it was nearly a 4 hour ride up, with a lunch time stopover in the old mining town of Silverton, followed by a 4 hour return ride back to Durango.

Overall, I'll give it a net positive because there's something very magical about actually hearing, feeling and touching this kind of train. And the scenery, like most of Colorado, was breathtaking. Remember, however, that I'm a die-hard optimist and I have a big threshold for pain.