30 Random Unsolicited Observations About the Arcade & Attica Railroad...
1. The interior of the Arcade depot always has smelled like and continues to smell like a fresh urinal cake.
2. The old Cattaraugus Creek bridge had more charm.
3. Every A&A engineer should be forced to change his name to 'Manley'.
4. A ride on the excursion train is incomplete without popcorn. Those who purchase candy, instead, are doing it wrong.
5. The panhandler makes me uncomfortable. Panhandling you expect on Allen Street in Buffalo, not on a scenic railroad.
6. I miss the crazy guy who used to walk through the train selling souvenirs with an emphasis on 'pinwheels'.
7. Newcomers don't know that they can just board the train without handing someone their ticket first. Somebody should tell them that they should just board the train so that they don't mill around, all confused.
8. No. 18 smells, sounds and 'feels' exactly like No. 14.
9. But 14 was better than 18.
10. That having been said, 18 is wonderful.
11. The current paint scheme of the steam engine and tender is not traditional.
12. The tracks actually run across somebody's front yard and driveway. I've always found that amusing.
13. I always leave the gondola and walk into the first coach when the train passes between the two buildings just before it crosses Main Street on the return to Arcade. The whistle reverberating off the walls is defeaning.
14. 18's 'number plate' looks better painted in red than it did before.
15. The depot's old porch was nicer, but at least they still have the slamming screen door.
16. After a ride on the train, you cannot get the sound of 18's bell out of your head for days.
17. The horns of the diesels sound like church organs.
18. If you brave the gondola on the return trip, you will be showered with both soot and unsolicited facts from camera-toting railfans.
19. Yes, the engineer and the fireman are checking out your girlfriend, sir, and there's nothing you can do about it; so get over it and wipe that indignant look off your face.
20. Parents completely lack common sense. I'm surprised every time some kid doesn't get himself killed.
21. No matter how many times a crew member is asked "how fast can it go?" he'll still answer the question cheerfully, as if it were the first time he'd ever heard it.
22. I liked it better when steps were set up on either side of the cab at Curriers so that passengers could walk through and take a look.
23. Motorists wave at passengers as if they were all celebrities, and vice-versa.
24. Sometimes the engine has flags waving from the smokebox and sometimes it doesn't.
25. The bell is filthy.
26. The hotdogs at Curriers are the best hotdogs anywhere.
27. Kids love the toilets on the train. Adults...not so much.
28. I always know exactly where my ticket is until the conductor shows up.
29. You take your life into your hands trying to cross Main Street on foot.
30. The excursion experience is only complete if you go to the creek to watch the next train pass over the bridge...and wave to all the passengers as it does.
1. The interior of the Arcade depot always has smelled like and continues to smell like a fresh urinal cake.
2. The old Cattaraugus Creek bridge had more charm.
3. Every A&A engineer should be forced to change his name to 'Manley'.
4. A ride on the excursion train is incomplete without popcorn. Those who purchase candy, instead, are doing it wrong.
5. The panhandler makes me uncomfortable. Panhandling you expect on Allen Street in Buffalo, not on a scenic railroad.
6. I miss the crazy guy who used to walk through the train selling souvenirs with an emphasis on 'pinwheels'.
7. Newcomers don't know that they can just board the train without handing someone their ticket first. Somebody should tell them that they should just board the train so that they don't mill around, all confused.
8. No. 18 smells, sounds and 'feels' exactly like No. 14.
9. But 14 was better than 18.
10. That having been said, 18 is wonderful.
11. The current paint scheme of the steam engine and tender is not traditional.
12. The tracks actually run across somebody's front yard and driveway. I've always found that amusing.
13. I always leave the gondola and walk into the first coach when the train passes between the two buildings just before it crosses Main Street on the return to Arcade. The whistle reverberating off the walls is defeaning.
14. 18's 'number plate' looks better painted in red than it did before.
15. The depot's old porch was nicer, but at least they still have the slamming screen door.
16. After a ride on the train, you cannot get the sound of 18's bell out of your head for days.
17. The horns of the diesels sound like church organs.
18. If you brave the gondola on the return trip, you will be showered with both soot and unsolicited facts from camera-toting railfans.
19. Yes, the engineer and the fireman are checking out your girlfriend, sir, and there's nothing you can do about it; so get over it and wipe that indignant look off your face.
20. Parents completely lack common sense. I'm surprised every time some kid doesn't get himself killed.
21. No matter how many times a crew member is asked "how fast can it go?" he'll still answer the question cheerfully, as if it were the first time he'd ever heard it.
22. I liked it better when steps were set up on either side of the cab at Curriers so that passengers could walk through and take a look.
23. Motorists wave at passengers as if they were all celebrities, and vice-versa.
24. Sometimes the engine has flags waving from the smokebox and sometimes it doesn't.
25. The bell is filthy.
26. The hotdogs at Curriers are the best hotdogs anywhere.
27. Kids love the toilets on the train. Adults...not so much.
28. I always know exactly where my ticket is until the conductor shows up.
29. You take your life into your hands trying to cross Main Street on foot.
30. The excursion experience is only complete if you go to the creek to watch the next train pass over the bridge...and wave to all the passengers as it does.