A couple weeks ago I finally rode the train between the Grand Canyon and Williams, Arizona. This is a trip I had anticipating making even before my arrival in the Canyon last September. But things happen. I was busy adjusting to a new job; the weather turned cold; I'd wait for the steam to start running again; etc.; etc.; etc. Even with the enticement of a free ride for myself as an employee, it did not happen until the very last day of July. 
This was not my first ride on a Grand Canyon train, however. Back on June 9, I rode on shakedown runs of the Coconino Canyon train which were open only to residents of the Canyon. This is a new service being tried this summer to test the market for a train originating in the Canyon. Unfortunately the public response has not been great and I doubt we will see the train offered next season. The train would be much more successful, in my opinion, if a chuck wagon dinner with campfire and cowboy music were offered before the turnaround at the far end of the route. Of course, if a steam locomotive could replace the GP7 I think success of the train would be assured. As it now operates there just isn't enough scenery or glitz to attract a significant audience.
The daily train comes up to the Grand Canyon from Williams each morning. During the height of the tourist season there are two trains a day. One of the trains is headed up by steam locomotive from the Memorial Day weekend until the Labor Day weekend. This year the operation of two trains was cut short by rising fuel costs and some decrease in ticket sales. As a resident of the Canyon, I did not want to drive to Williams to catch the train's morning departure only to drive back to the Canyon following the train's return to Williams. So I chose to take the afternoon train from the Canyon and stay overnight in Williams. I had "purchased" my ticket (employees ride coach at no cost) the previous day but arrived a half hour before departure. I was then able to upgrade from coach to first class observation car in available unused seating. This gave me access to the rear platform for picture taking.
At this time Engine 29 is the lone operating steam locomotive on the Grand Canyon Railroad. Two other steamers were traded off to acquire a larger locomotive capable of handling larger trains on the stiff grades of the GCRR. That locomotive still sits on track outside the shops in Williams awaiting restoration. The restoration has been in doubt since the takeover of the railroad by Xanterra. If the impending purchase of Xanterra by Phillip Anschutz, who has some personal and business interest in other trains, may have any effect on the future of the restoration project is unknown. Engine 29 is heading up the train today and the return trip tomorrow as well.
The train departed Grand Canyon station promptly at 3:00 PM and was quickly headed south out of the Park. To exit the Park the route follows a depression created by the Bright Angel Fault which bisects the Canyon at the west end of the village on the South Rim. There is scarcely a glimpse of the Grand Canyon from the train. Upon leaving the southern boundary of the Park, the train enters the Coconino National Forest. This is part of the world's largest forest of Ponderosa pines. The stout, red trunks carry the crowns of these trees more than 100 feet into the air. During this initial portion of this journey, the train will lose a thousand feet of elevation and then must climb again to regain the thousand feet before arriving in Williams a bit more than 60 miles to the south.
The scenery along the route is far from spell-binding but the GCRR treats us to snacks, drinks, and entertainment during the ride.
There is a distinctly western character to it all, of course. Passengers have full opportunity to interact with the entertainers in this intimate setting. There is even a train robbery before arriving in Williams. A few passengers taking a nap during this two and a quarter hour trip are jolted from their rest. Desperadoes pursue the train from horseback and board the train to lift a bit of silver and perhaps a few greenbacks from the passengers. Their ill-gotten gains go to a worthy cause I'm sure. There is no escape for these criminals who are apprehended before they can make a getaway. The marshal and his deputies take the villains into custody without firing so much as a single shot. If only all justice where so swift! All of this transpires with nary a pause in the train's progress toward its' final destination in Williams.
Upon arriving in Williams I walked two blocks from the station to my overnight accommodations in the historic Williams Hotel. Staying in this hotel struck me as being pretty much like my visits to Grandma's house back in my childhood. 
The place is furnished entirely with antiques. The rooms are small. The bathrooms are inadequate. There is no air conditioning, but a ceiling fan and an open window do the job with the cool mountain night air. Williams, located on historic US Route 66 is both archetypal small western town and tourist town. Without it's proximity to the Grand Canyon, it's Route 66 heritage, and the luck of being the terminus for the railroad Williams would have passed into near or total oblivion. But it bustles with tourists patronizing several shops, dining and drinking establishments, and more than a few motels. Most of my fellow employees bypass Williams for Flagstaff on their days off. I have come to enjoy the small town atmosphere, general friendliness, and camaraderie as a "local". If you're looking for night life this is not the place to be, however. By 10 o'clock PM the streets get pretty quiet. This is not a town with a lot of late night action. Even the bars seem as if you are sitting at a quiet kitchen table having a drink with friends. So it is early to bed.
Next morning, I go to Max and Thelma's restaurant for the breakfast buffet. This is a new building next to the historic Santa Fe station. It was built by the local couple who revived the Grand Canyon Railroad. By the time I have finished my breakfast the train is on the tracks behind the restaurant and the station and restaurant. This morning I get upgraded to the first class parlor car, but as a first class passenger I will still have access to the open platform at the rear of the train.
Both the parlor car and the observation car where I rode the day before have been fully restored. Riding in them you can understand what "luxury" rail travel once meant. The two dome cars in the train have also been returned to prime condition. I took a peek into one of the domes shortly after our departure from Williams. The large windows of Amtrak's lounge cars give great views of Glenwood Canyon
on the current California Zephyr but domes like these would have been even better on the original train. The scenery between Williams and the Grand Canyon is not like that between Denver and Glenwood Springs, so I return to the open platform to take pictures of the train.
As the train moves between Williams and the Grand Canyon the line drops into a bowl which is 1,000 feet lower than either Williams or the Canyon. The bottom of the bowl has a distinctly different ecology than the rim on which the two ends of the line are situated. Williams and the South Rim of the Canyon are both forested. The bowl is grassland and scrub which makes it suited for ranching. Although some early copper mining took place in the northern transition area between grassland and forest, it is only ranching which persists. Some corrals still exist and once were served by stock trains but are now visited only by trucks. Locomotive 29 puts on a show from time to time as it encounters stiff sections of grade. It is unfortunate these locations are on private land and in any case would be accessible only with an ATV or some other 4-wheel drive (both of which are popular in this area). Whereas I have neither I will have to be content with the shots I get from the rear of the train. The trains arrived back at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on schedule just after noon. Since my ride I pass by the train nearly every day on my way to and from work and as I go about my daily activities. There will not be many more days with engine 29 at the head of the train, so this will certainly have been my only ride behind GCRR steam this season.
