Loading the train

We drove 36 miles today across the foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountain Range to La Junta.

It was a misty day after them having many days of rain. The road to the railyard was very muddy. Our Wagonmaster lead the way and soon was stuck in the mud. Luckily one of our fellow Trackers had a 4-wheel drive Chevy towing his 5th wheel. Jim was able to pull the 40' Alfa motorhome from the mud. The rest of the caravan was directed to use another road to the rail yard -- it was rougher but not as muddy.




Here is a photo of the flatcars that are staged for loading.

Walt had no trouble loading onto the flatcar. It is 60-foot long and our rig measures 59-foot. A foot to spare!

Here the workers are securing the truck with cables and chock-blocks. Didn't really look that secure but they assure us that we need some 'play' to avoid damage.

After loading the train, we walked into La Junta. Interesting little town. Checked out the grocery store and town square.

We all went to a hacienda for dinner. It was Dona Caroline and is in the midst of an apple orchard. They grow red & yellow delicious and gala apples. A beautiful setting and a good meal.

The last photo shows the 'walkway' along the right side of our rig. The left side is on the edge of the railcar. The right side has handrails and will be a walkway for us and the guards that ride with us for the next 5 days. (We call them Ninjas.)

We are tucked in for the night and the train will start moving about 8am. We will be living with all our slides in so it will be cozy with only the bedroom & bathroom accessible for us, Biggs & Blackjack!