Southwest Chief --- a beautiful ride in jeopardy

The possible rerouting of the Amtrak managed Southwest Chief has been followed with great interest here.  Its path from Chicago to Los Angeles goes through many small towns in Colorado, Kansas, and New Mexico among other states, and these small towns rely on it.  It's a really big deal for the continuity of life for many of those towns apparently.

I took rides on that train in 1964 and 1966 to go to and return from Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico.  It was some route from Virginia to Chicago to the Chief that I don't exactly remember.  Chicago train station stands out in the memory of this former small town boy.  We were sort of chaperoned but could just do as we pleased in that seemingly vast building and the downtown around it.  The ride that began on the Chief there was amazing as it developed, with full length windows on both sides of the train and, not without great importance, that was back in the day when trains served full meals in dining cars.

It was obviously a long trip and obviously a great adventure.  I do hope the Chief survives intact for others to enjoy the views and so that the small towns it serves survive, even though the ride now is without the amenities that once existed on trains.