I decided to take the bus from Brigham to the Ogden station. This I hadn't done before so it was going to be another new adventure. It was suppose to be bad weather and I didn't want to take the Cobalt since it wasn't mine.
So the bus stop is just down the street from me at Peach City and then there is one across the street at Papa Murphy's. I decided to walk since it was only 4 blocks, no biggie.......there wasn't that much snow on the road and it was warmer than it had been last week. I started walking and sure enough it started to snow. No problem, I like to walk in the snow.
So I get about half way to the bus stop and a car pulls up beside me and a woman rolls down her window and she asks me if I want a ride. I tell her no I'm only going to the bus stop. She introduces herself and her husband who was driving and was quite concerned that I was walking in the snow. I told her it was alright but she wouldn't take no for an answer so I got in the car.
She and her husband were very nice and she said it was Christmas and she just couldn't drive by someone walking in the snow and cold. Then when we got to the bus stop she wanted to stay there so I could sit in the car until the bus came. I told her that was okay I could stand under the awning at Peach City until I saw the bus coming. This seemed to be okay with her and they left me.
So it was time for the bus to come and I walked out to the sign because if you aren't right at the sign the bus will just drive right by. Well the bus was running late and it started snowing harder. By the time the bus got there I was covered in snow (I have an umbrella but it was in my car which was in Tremonton at the time).
When I got on the bus there were only 4 other people on and one I work with at Walmart and she got off at the stop by the store. So there were only four of us on the bus to Ogden. The snow was really coming down and sticking to the roads. The bus goes on the old highway and makes stops in Perry and Willard and so on along the highway.
We got to Willard and the bus driver (an older woman, at least older than me) stopped the bus and started shouting at the only man on the bus for help. He was sitting behind me and he wasn't answering her so I turned around to see if he heard her and I know him from the store. He and his wife shop all the time and THEY DON'T SPEAK A WORD OF ENGLISH!
So I ask the bus driver what she needed and she said that she needed someone go out and shake off the snow that was building up on her windshield wipers. I thought to myself, "isn't that YOUR job?" but instead I told her that I could do it. She said no she wanted that man to do it (what? I can't do it because I'm a woman?!). SO she kept yelling at him until he figured out that she wanted him and she somehow got her point across and he went out and got the snow off the wipers. This took about 10 minutes and at that point I knew I was going to miss the train I wanted to take.
It was an hour ride to the Ogden station (if I would have driven it would have been a half hour drive). About two block before the train station is the bus terminal where they park all the buses. Well when we got there she pulled the bus over. I looked a the girl across the aisle from me and I asked her if this wasn't the bus that went the the train station. She said yes. So I leaned over and asked the driver if she was going to take us to the station and she said yes but she had to go to the restroom.
Then she turned off the bus and got off and went into the UTA terminal....... Left the bus door wide open and the four of us just sitting there..... I thought to myself "Can she do this? Doesn't she have a schedule to keep?!" When she finally came back I asked her if she was okay and she said that she was fine and we were off again.
We FINALLY got to the train station and sure enough....no train. So I had to sit and wait in the snow and cold for 20 minutes. At least were you sat had a cover over it so you didn't get wet. I pulled out my book and read.
When the train got there I hopped on and and was finally warm but I think my toes were frozen. Then we had to sit on the train at the station for a half hour until it was time for it to leave. To keep you up on the time frame I got on the Bus in Brigham at 10:10 and didn't leave the Ogden station for SLC until 11:46.......
I love the train it makes stops on the way but it is only for a couple minutes at the most. Jamie and the boys got on at Layton so I got to be with them the rest of the way. Leslie and her family were on the next train. She said they pulled up to the Ogden station just as my train was pulling out. At one point as we were looking out at the freeway we were glad we were on the train. Traffic was backed up and at a stand still for 2 miles.
Trevon and Jax on the Front Runner........We got to the SLC station and caught the Sandy Trax (the trains and trax are time coordinated, unlike the buses).
Jamie and Trevon on Trax.......The Trax line from the SLC station to the Sandy station (it is actually the LAST station it runs to) took us AN HOUR. It makes a lot of stops. At every stop the pre recorded message kept telling us "This is a Sandy train". After the third or fourth time we all started making fun of it(yes we were bored) I swear it didn't take Angel and I this long when we rode Trax from the Sandy stop to the Arena for the concert last month.
Part way a policeman got on and wanted to see everyones tickets. He was quite mean, Jamie said it was because of the part of town we were in. We finally get to the last stop and Angel is there to pick us up. It is now 1:20pm.
Leslie and her family got there little over an hour later. Then after the party was over we had to go back. This time we ALL (5 adults and 5 children and gifts) piled in Angels tiny SUV so she would only have to make one trip. We got there just in time to catch the Trax back to the train station.
Leslie, Cambria, Paul and Gunner on Trax.......
Every body is all tired out by this point, Cambria fell asleep on the way.....
Trevon and Braxton playing on Trax.....The ride back to the station took yes, another hour, and the train was packed because everyone was getting on to go downtown to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's Christmas concert.
We got to the train station just in time to jump on the Front Runner. We only had to wait about 15 minutes before it pulled out. The Front Runner was also packed.
On the way home the kids started to get restless and Jamie and Leslie have vowed NEVER to do this again until the Front runner goes all the way to Sandy. Jamie left us at the Layton stop and we pulled into Ogden at about 6:35. I begged Leslie that if she let me squeeze into their car I would buy them all dinner. Of course they said yes, so we put Gunner's car seat in the trunk and Paul got in the back with the kids and Leslie and I rode up front.
If they hadn't taken me I would have had to wait at the station until 7:30 for the last bus to Brigham. I was not looking forward to that. It was dark and cold and I would have been all by myself and the station is down on Wall and 25th street. Diana should should remember what kind of neighborhood that is. It can be scary at night.
We got into Brigham at 7:15. It was a little slow going home because the roads were icey from it snowing all day. We stopped at Wingers and had dinner and then we all went home. I figured I spent almost six hours on the transit system. It was one long day. In some ways it's worth it and in some ways it's not.
Tomorrow I'll tell you about Angel's party. If you want to see more pictures I have posted them on my FB page.
This evening I got another gift left on my doorstep. It was a box of craisin sugar cookies dipped in icing. They are very yummy.
I want to take my Dad for a ride on the train sometime. I think we'll wait for warmer weather though.
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