Perhaps you’ve heard the term before: “fly-over country”. It’s a phrase used by busy jet-setting types that tend to pop from New York City to Los Angeles and back. By “fly-over country” they summarize the entire middle section of America - the heartland, the vast stretches of plains and forests and prairies and mountains full of amazingly scenic vistas, small towns and the good people. This simple, dismissive phrase covers everything seen from far above when zooming from coast to coast, all rolled up and dismissed as unimportant in three cold words.
I grew up in fly-over country, along the shore of Lake Erie in Northern Ohio where the airliners can be seen day and night on their way to and from points east and west. I have lived in it, and have also seen it from above when flying, the patchwork of farm fields, woods and rivers so far removed and impersonal far below.
The whole concept of “fly-over country” is transformed by taking trip via train. The tracks run and the trains roll right through the middle of these stretches of the country, so often overlooked from above. In rolling through them, you have the time to sit back and really soak in the true beauty and aspect of America from ground-level.
Roads and highways often follow the railroad lines, which often had first choice of routes through the country. However, there are many sections of track with no roads nearby, and scenery you can only view from a train. Travel by rail is preferable to going by bus, as there is a lot more room to move around, and usually fewer stops and more options to get a break from other riders. In many ways it’s also better than a road trip, as you are able to sit back and relax as opposed to the stress and hassles of driving.
Now, it is true that going by rail takes longer. There can be delays, sometimes substantial, and the trains only run at certain times. It simply won’t work if you have to get across the country for a meeting and head back the next day. And it might not be a wise choice if arrival at an exact time for a tight connection is part of the itinerary. I would suggest, though, that it’s a good goal to try to structure your life in such a way that those sorts of trips happen seldom, if at all. Travel by train lets you step back from the breakneck speed of the modern world, gives you a chance to slow down and catch your breath and look around you at what you’ve been missing. If you can afford a room on a sleeper sleeper car, even better: you get even more privacy and opportunity for rest and reflection.
There’s just nothing quite like being able to sit back in a comfortable seat and watch the country stream by your window as if projected on a screen. So make time to roll through instead of flying over, and experience America like you’ve never done before. There’s a whole lot of America out there worth seeing.
Written by Ben "Gitty" Baker, the Ramblin' Railfan
December 29, 2022