IT has been 20 years since this traveller joined an Amtrak press ski trip to Whitefish, Montana. A heady dose of railroading, it then continued on to Seattle, and down the coast past a still smouldering Mount St. Helens.

After a couple of days at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf, we settled into comforts of Santa Barbara's San Ysidro Ranch, a favourite hideout for Hollywood celebrities. Then it was on to Los Angeles and home through Denver. By anyone's definition, it was an epic trip.

This time, we opted for something simpler. The Empire Builder Superliner would leave Chicago at 2.15 p.m. and arrive in Whitefish the next evening at nine . . . or thereabouts. One of the major focal points of the trip would be Glacier National Park which my brother Jim hadn't revisited since he was 13 years old.

The same mood and ambience which made the trip to Albuquerque such a delight was also present here. Obviously scenery was very different. There's the beauty of paralleling the Mississippi River's bluffs as the route weaves along its wooded shoreline through Wisconsin into Minnesota.

Again, it was a delightful geography course all the way, one full of memories of driving trips through these areas . . . up past Fort McCoy between Tomah and Sparta, Wisconsin where it's possible to see soldiers from this area embarking on intense training before departing for Iraq.

We used to enjoy spring trips to nearby Devils Lake State Park as youngsters and the area remains as forested today as then.

place names flashed by. At Wisconsin Dells we couldn't help but reminisce and sadly lament about our lost military amphibious landing craft. The area is famous for offering rides on these famous World War Two vehicles, driving down the road, then along the shoreline and into the river for sightseeing trips of the Dells sandstone formations.

A town near us had obtained one after the war for civil defence and unexpectedly put it up for bid, a sort of spur of the moment thing, when they decided it was no longer needed.

We won the bid, excited at the prospect of driving from our house down to the beach and out into Lake Michigan. It sounded like a fun idea at the time, but the local insurance world wasn't quite ready for it, probably questioned our sanity, and did not share our enthusiasm.

We tried out best ? and Jim is definitely someone who does not give up easily ? but no company was interested in covering it insurance-wise.

So we called Tommy Bartlett, a very colourful personality we'd often written about, who owned all of those so-called "Ducks" at the Dells in connection with his tourism business.

Regretfully, we told him he was welcome to pick up our low bid at no profit if he so wished. And, of course, he was delighted since they're quite scarce and hard to come by.

Now, in recent years we've seen them at a number of places used just as we intended . . . so apparently insurance companies have changed their view on the matter in decades since.

The vastness of North Dakota eased into Montana's mountainous landscapes, and again we enjoyed cocooning in our bedroom suite, watching scenery glide by from our picture window.

Until you travel via a long-haul Amtrak route, you don't realise the enormous volume of freight moved by railroads. On this route, it became routine to see freight trains numbering more than 100 cars . . . and since they're often double-decked, that means 200.

Often they're Chinese containers transferred from ships docking in Seattle. And because freight (the line's real money-maker) takes precedence, passenger trains wait on the siding as the container cars rumble by.

As a consequence, the Empire Builder is often late. In fact, one of Whitefish's uniquely eccentric pastimes for both locals and visitors is to arrive at the station to watch the train pull in and unload and load passengers.

I must confess that we soon fell victim to that most unusual habit. It wasn't too different than the number of locals and tourists passed along the entire rail route parked beside the tracks taking pictures as the train raced by. They stood entranced, as though viewing an apparition.

Quite simply explained, there's a special, unexplainable, magical excitement and nostalgia about railroading that draws and entrances a wide segment of the population.

Since the train wasn't scheduled to arrive until 8.56 (and rarely does) there's a chance to chat with locals. Evenings we decided to drive into town for its arrival, we were often still there at 10.30, even 11 p.m., peering down the track looking for its bright beam to appear through the darkness Normally, we're more likely to arrive on a scene without reservations, since it's a travel journalist's best opportunity to analyse an entire region's offerings before making a choice and advising readers.

But when one arrives in a popular vacation area just before July 4 (our trip was June 22 to July 3) that just isn't possible unless one wants to run the risk of encountering a sold-out situation. So we set about studying guidebooks, local literature, web sites and so on to make a reservation. And next week we'll tell you about our finds.

But this is probably a good time to pass on some travel suggestions resulting from both these current Amtrak experiences. We'll certainly be using them ourselves on our next trip.

were in bedrooms C and D on the Southwest Chief and Bedrooms B and D on the Empire Builder. All excellent except for the fact B had more clickety-clack noise and motion than the others. We soon discovered why when we stepped onto the station platform in Wolf Point, Montana and saw that A and B were over the wheels.

On Superliner trains like both these routes, A is also configured differently and slightly smaller. Good for one passenger, not as roomy for two. E is beside the staircase and more apt to hear passenger traffic noise.

Be warned rooms are not soundproof; connecting doors do transmit noise and can also be opened to turn two bedrooms into one large super suite. But we had quiet neighbours and no problems.

Also, the Empire Builder is a longer train made up of two sections. Both share the same diner and lounges, but sleeper cars going on to Seattle are in front of the diner and the one that cuts off for Portland, Oregon at Spokane is at the rear of the train, caboose-like.

We made our reservations only a couple of weeks in advance, so choices were very limited and the only large deluxe bedroom was in the Portland car.

Turns out we had to walk through six other cars, passing through the lounge and coaches, to get to the diner. It would probably have been okay at any other time of the year.

But we happened to be on the train on June 22 and 23 with what seemed like a couple of hundred high school students. Unfortunately, I'm embarrassed to say, the worst examples were over- privileged, undisciplined, spoiled brats from the North Shore area where we live!

They were sprawled on the floor across the aisle, stretched out on seats with their heads literally hanging in the aisle, behaving in a way that had porters about to lose their sanity . . . a mob scene worthy of a spring break expos?. No chaperone was in sight.

Jim walked through doors connecting coach cars, it was dark at the entrance way and he paused before proceeding ahead because he sensed something there (we were told they partied all night, then closed shades in the daytime to sleep when scenery appeared).

Turns out it was a head stretched out on the floor across the aisle . . . one of several. When we disembarked at Whitefish, the rowdy group were hauled off in vans to the Glacier Institute to spend some of their summer learning how to be "concerned" environmentalists. No comment.

En route back we were in the Seattle car, a great improvement and we were able to walk directly through the lounge into the diner.

Our porter from Chicago to Whitefish was Paul Linker, a long-time Amtrak employee who definitely deserves an award for the quality of his work and devotion to duty. You'll certainly be lucky if you encounter him on your trip. He was superb and his kind of superior care spoils one.

Ready to self-destruct over the level of behaviour of students causing chaos in the coaches, he tended his bedroom and roomette passengers with great attention. There was a choice of welcoming champagne or sparkling cider, bags of tasty nibbles, again the perpetual coffee pot, orange and apple juice.

On each route the dining room crew are different. On this one, no luncheon reservations were offered. Instead you had to struggle up through those six cars to do it personally, then go back to your bedroom and wait to be called over the intercom.

Happily, Paul came to the rescue, coping with a very curt young prima donna ma?tre d' who imagined herself queen of the May. Again, food was good. The elderly woman in the next bedroom had meals brought to her by Paul, something that's offered as a possibility.

Because of track repairs and heavy freight passing, we had several delays and instead of arriving at 9 p.m. we came in at 10.30 p.m. We'd tried to call ahead and warn Hertz so our four-wheel drive would still have been available. Turns out we needn't have worried. The rental agency is actually in this impressive historic station built by J.J. Hill in the style of dramatic Glacier Park lodges.

Interestingly, they're the oldest Hertz licensee, and have been here 60 years. The current owner told us: "Dad bought the licence back then for one dollar."

We'd chosen Hertz because of convenience. Our vehicle was waiting in the parking area beside the station. Nine days' rental cost $589 and gas was only $2.77 a gallon, much less than at-home rates.

fare for two in the deluxe bedroom with upper and lower bunks, picture window, private bathroom, sink and easy chair cost us $2,653 total, including all meals.

Rates vary by season and day, with Monday through Thursday less expensive. We'd travelled over weekends. Our Southwest Chief trip was in May, this one in the heart of the busy season and this traveller's recommendation is definitely for off-season. In fact, we're toying with the idea of an autumn return to Whitefish on the Empire Builder.

There was even a wine tasting in the diner for first class passengers featuring Washington State wines, which was great fun.

Again, sights and scenery were so special we rarely left our room except for meals. This scenically interesting route follows Lewis and Clark's trail part of the way.

One passes large ranches, great herds of cattle, wild horses, mountain vistas, prairie lands, crosses portions of the Blackfoot Indian lands and some dramatic views going through Glacier National Park. It's definitely a winner!

q Charms of Whitefish and Glacier National Park