Planes a Pain? Try a Train.

"Don't touch my junk" has quickly become a viral sensation. TSA screenings to say the least are becoming a tad intrusive. Cops copping feels. OK, we live in a dangerous world and the bad guys are finding ingenious ways to try and attack us. They're not going to give up. So air travel at least, is simply going to be more of a hassle than ever before. Add inexperienced travelers to the mix during the Thanksgiving and Christmas crush and well, patience will be more than a virture but a necessity.

So let me suggest an alternative. Travel by train. It's something my wife and I have discovered in recent years. I'll write about it more, but first this video of a trip from Los Angeles to Seattle aboard Amtrak's Coast Starlight.



This video has had almost 13,000 views on YouTube so there's more than a passing interest in train travel. The trip took 36 hours, and yes, we had to fly from here to Los Angeles and then back home from Seattle. But the experience itself was terrific. We had to be at the station about a half hour before departure and the only security check was for I.D. The scenery was spectacular, meals grand and the afternoon wine tastings were delightful. While we were on a "Train-cation" others on the train traveled by train on a regular basis. It was simply more affordable. Factor in time spent going to and from airports, waiting for security etc, it's also faster depending on how far you're traveling. It's certainly the case for travelers of all sorts in the northeast part of the country.

If I had to go to San Francisco from Denver for example, either for business or pleasure, I'd definately think about taking the train instead of the plane. But for our regular trips to Atlanta, the plane is our only and best choice. Getting there by train would take about 3 days with the trip routing through Chicago, Washington DC then south. OK, one last video and if you're thinking about a trip to Alaska worth a look. We did a "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" vacation to the 49th state this past summer and the Alaska Railroad was a key part of our journey.



Alaska's scenery is spectacular and there's no better way to see it than by train and I highly recommend the Alaska RR, but not the cruise line cars. Travel on the actual railroad-owned cars. More of a real Alaska experience.

There was one, and very nice surprise when we flew back to Anchorage from Fairbanks on ERA. Other than an I.D. check, there was no TSA security screen. We simply walked to the gate then on to the aircraft. An added bonus by the way is the view of Denali from the air. Wow.

So there are real alternatives to air travel. Travel by train is worth looking into depending on where you're going and how fast you need to get from here to there. Either way, safe travels everyone.

Brian Olson
Conversation Starters LLC
"We start the conversation about you"

Alaska Air Crash

It was very sad to hear of the plane crash that took the life of former Senator Ted Stevens and others aboard the aircraft. What hit home is that we were just in Alaska and had flown a Piper Navajo from Fairbanks to Coldfoot, AK north of the Arctic Circle. The particular aircraft that went down was a De Havilland "Otter." It's one of the backbones of Alaska Aviation.

Planes are like taxis in Alaska. one in 70 Alaskans have a pilot's license. You can't drive to Alaska's Capitol city of Juneau. You have to get there by boat or plane.

We saw one neighborhood outside of Anchorage that had a plane in the backyard of every home!

It will take awhile to determine the cause of a crash, but weather could have been a factor. Both times we've been to Alaska you could always count on at least some foggy/rainy weather. Mountains and oceans make for rapidly changing weather, despite the best forecasts.

When I flew with the Civil Air Patrol in Wyoming and Texas, but especially Wyoming, we learned that mountainous areas create their own weather. According to reports the plane Stevens was aboard was flying VFR or Visual Flight Rules although it's very likely the pilot was instrument rated which is required to fly in bad weather. Maybe the cause was mechanical. We just don't know.

My flight instructor taught me early on he wasn't teaching me how to fly, but how not to crash. When you're flying over rough terrain your options for a safe landing are slim should you have problems with your aircraft. You train to do it, but mountains and heavily wooded areas make lousy landing fields.

With the CAP I also learned that a crashed aircraft looks anything like a plane. It's a crumpled pile of metal, usually hidden deep beneath huge trees and very difficult to spot. Then there's the challenge of getting rescue crews to the crash site which was the case in Alaska.

Despite this crash, there will be thousands of takeoffs and landings every day in Alaska because that's how you get from "here to there" in the 49th state. Whether in the Lower 48 or in Alaska, the most dangerous part of your trip is the trip to the airport. Given a choice between flying by plane or driving down the road, I'll take the plane any day.

While in Alaska, I took video of various planes whenever I could, so here's a video montage of an important, make that a critical part of transportation in Alaska.




Brian Olson
Conversation Starters LLC
"We start the conversations about you"

Alaska Aviation

There are a few ways to get around Alaska. Cars, in the rare instances there are roads from here to there, which is rare. Trains are great but planes are the definitive way to get around this incredibly huge state, that yes, is even bigger than Texas. Alaska has been pissin' off Texas since 1959 with no small amount of enthusiasm.

During a "Trains, Planes and Automobiles" tour of Alaska last week I had the opportunity to grab a few clips that capture the variety of aircraft used in Alaska. One in 70 Alaskans have pilot's licenses and chances are where you see a home with two cars in the garage, there's a bush plane in the backyard, ie. "Airport"

I'll let the video tell the rest of the story. Have a grand weekend everyone.

Brian Olson
Conversation Starters LLC
"We start the conversation about you"

Pipelines, Highways and the Internet

I just spend a great week in Alaska, the second such trip although this one was a "Trains, Planes and Automobiles" journey as opposed to a cruise. Much of the travel was via the Alaska Railroad, with a couple of side trips by plane and car.

One such trip was to Coldfoot and Wiseman, AK. Our plane departed Fairbanks at 7pm for a flight north of the Arctic Circle, landing at Coldfoot. The trip then continued via road to Wiseman, a settlement of 15 people who live a sustainable lifestyle. Along the way you travel along the Alaska Pipeline and the road itself is the one you see on "Ice Road Truckers."

Living in Wiseman is a full time job. Our host's home had both solar (good at least a couple of months a year but it works 24 hours a day in the summer) and electric generators. He traps, grows his own vegetable and hunts for food, usually caribou and moose. Temps range from as high as 80 in the summer to -65 in winter. Living is hard work in this community which traces its roots back to the first settlers that came to Alaska.

There was one connection with the outside world however. Satellite provided Internet. Another example that regardless of lifestyle, communication in this age remains important. Our host enjoys life away from civilization but at the same time doesn't want to lose touch with civilization. Or at least what claims to be civilization these days.

We were also surprised at the cell phone service availability just about every place we went including travel between our base city of Anchorage to Whittier, Fairbanks and Seward. Even Denali. The folks in Alaska remain justifiably proud of their frontier spirit despite the influx of tourists. They also like to be connected. Technology makes it possible. It wasn't that long ago that snail mail moved at a truly a glacier pace, especially "Way up North." Not anymore.

Brian Olson

Conversation Starters LLC

"We start the conversation about you"