Arriving very early on a Saturday morning at the Amtrak station in Portland, our family was ready to embark on the train for an afternoon Bruins game in Boston. We parked our handicap van and paid in advance three dollars for the day. Once in the station, there was complimentary coffee, juice, donuts and newspapers. We had our tickets long before this day. We also needed to carry identification in the event we were asked for it. Shortly before we were ready to depart, a gentleman passed out free Boston maps to anyone who wanted them. He told us that Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall were about a ten minute walk from North Station.
            As passengers were filling up the seats in the station, we were asked to board first. They had a metal ramp all ready for the wheelchair. We had great leg room and were seated comfortably. For anyone traveling by rail, the bathrooms are large enough to accommodate a wheelchair with another person for assistance. Once on the train, a gentleman came around and made conversation with the passengers. There was a counter to buy snacks, burgers, drinks etc.
             It took about three hours as we were held up at one point because there was maintenance on the track ahead of us. I think normally it may take a little over two hours.
            Our first stop was in Saco, Maine where the view was lovely overlooking, what I believe were the old Pepperell mills. Sadly these old mill towns once thrived with work, but many of the old abandoned buildings with boarded up windows or no windows at all were reminiscent of ghost towns. Revitalization would be a good thing to see along the rail lines. To see a town that is alive, instead of tired, would be a welcome sight along the rail line. Still it was impressive to see the mills from this angle.
             The train stopped at stations where prepaid passengers were awaiting. It was all according to the needs of the business. On any given day, the same train might stop at additional towns along the way. Our next stop was Wells, Maine. After we left Wells, we stopped at Dover, NH. I noticed many old depot stations that were well worn with age and positioned behind a newer platform from which passengers boarded. Once I noticed some old rusted train track stacked up beside one of these old fences behind the depot station. I witnessed an auto graveyard or junkyard and alongside these rusted vintage autos was a long line of old rusted out boxcars which appeared to still be joined as if waiting to ride the rails once more. They were twisted pieces of metal, once streamlined beauties. It sort of reminded me of Depression times. 
             As we traveled the rail a little further, I noticed the landscape changing from rural to suburban. Gone were the little cemeteries, carriage roads, and hints of Main Street, America lined with old Victorians and trees only to be replaced with abandoned garages, smokestacks, and warehouses and old tractor trailers. It was a suburban concrete landscape, a skateboarder’s paradise. Backs of strip malls and fencing covered with graffiti lined the rails on the way to Boston. Rows of tenement houses with sagging porches were a common sight along the rails. These areas near the rails were once industrious, businesses and warehouses that used the rails to ship freight and receive freight. Like a river, the rails also were lined with industries which made money by that type of transportation. Cities and towns were born near the rivers and the rails.
             This was not the typical view one sees when they visit a town, which made it interesting for me to observe. Although it looked worn out in the closest places to the rail, I could see church steeples on the horizons of these little towns and variety stores and some fine homes. The trees were barren offering me a glimpse I would not have seen in summer. Old telephone poles lined the rails with worn crossbars, sagging drop wires and broken and missing glass insulators. It was interesting how some of the trees had growth interfering with the lines, a real challenge to the telephone repairman.
             Our next stops included Exeter, NH. and then we passed through Haverhill and Lawrence , MA. with no stops. We passed Andover and Wilmington, MA. I saw an old theatre in Wilmington and in one location I saw an old rounded top building painted blue which was an old roller rink called Skateland. We then stopped in Woburn, MA where I noticed the most populated cemetery I ever saw. The stones were almost piled atop of each other. From here we had eighteen more miles until we were at North Station in Boston.    
            As we got closer to Boston, highways passed above us, rooftops with numerous metal ducts were beside us and cranes littered the horizon. We were now in the city. We were graciously allowed to exit first. After our day in Boston, sitting on a bench in busy North Station, we were approached by two people from Amtrak looking for our family so we could board first again for our journey home. Along the rail this time we saw the sun setting as colorful as cotton candy. This trip was a little different because we made a few other stops. We left Boston at 5PM and arrived in Portland at 730PM. It was a wonderful day spent with my family, with shopping, food, and a hockey game.