A lifelong love of trains

My wife and I were on our way to our weekly morning coffee group at our church recently when we experienced a delay. We had to stop at a railroad crossing while a very slowmoving train passed through town. But I didn’t mind, as I enjoyed watching the many varied cars as they passed by.

Ever since I was a young boy, I have been fascinated by trains. Whether it was a locomotive passing through town or my childhood friend’s model train going around in circles, I was fascinated by it. As a child, I longed for my own model train set, but I would have to wait until I was in my 40s before I got my very first electric model train.

As a teacher, I sometimes read stories about trains to my students. I told them how I had always wanted a train set, but I never got one. One day one of my students brought me his electric train set and insisted I keep it. I was reluctant to accept it, so I called his mother. She told me her son wanted me to have it, so I graciously accepted his generous gift. Little did I realize then that I would eventually end up with a sizable model train collection.

Living in Dorchester as a child meant I would see many Soo Line trains pass through town. Because there was a feed mill and lumber company along Center Street, the trains would stop and leave boxcars in town. If I were lucky, I might see a hobo jump out of a boxcar. I can also remember how I would go into the empty boxcars, as they were an intriguing place to explore.

Over the years, I have enjoyed several experiences with trains. One was a scenic ride my wife, and I had through the beautiful countryside and small towns of Sweden. Travel by rail is very convenient in most European countries, and we found it to be a very relaxing and fun way to travel.

Another great once-in-a-lifetime experience was to have a very close-up look at the famous Big Boy 4010 Locomotive when it came to Altoona in 2019. To see the world’s largest locomotive in action would be any train enthusiast’s piece di resistance.

There is talk about developing a passenger train service between Eau Claire and Minneapolis. I hope I live long enough to experience it.

Ken Anderson, the “Mayberry Guru,” can be reached at themayberryguru@gmail.com and www.themayberryguru. com

BE OUR

G UEST

KEN ANDERSON “THE MAYBERRY GURU”