Three separate trips kinda stand out because they were over track that has since been either ripped up or is now dormant:

(1.) A round-trip ride Campo-Plaster City through Carriso Gorge when KYLE was running the SD&AE. The train moved so slowly through the Gorge that my friend and I spent most of the time standing on the catwalk near or at the front of the lead locomotive. The schedule was such that we were treated to the Gorge in daylight, both directions.

(2.) A one-way trip from Carlin, NV to Klamath Falls, OR over the Modoc Line when I knew the line was not long for this world. The two-man Carlin-Wendel crew was approaching their 12-hour limit and I functioned as a switchman, helping them make a set out / pick up at the Sierra Army Depot at Herlong. This was shortly after the Persian Gulf War and we were switching some CSX boxcars the were bringing some bombs from Kuwait and Iraq back to Herlong. That crew included me as part of their "turnover" when they handed the train off to the Wendel-Klamath Falls crew! Fortunately, the train was expedited through Wendel and I didn't have to spend a day or two there. 'Cause there ain't much in Wendel!

(3.) A one-way ride from Pueblo to Kansas City over the ex-MoPac line when I also figured that line also wasn't long for this world. I talked my way onto a coal train from Pueblo to Horace, KS and the crew suggested that I get a room at the bunkhouse there, just like a legitimate railroader. So, I did! Next day I B.S.'ed my way onto an auto-rack manifest and rode that train all the way to the outskirts of Kansas City. Getting through Harrington Yard was a little challenging as the train's power was serviced there. I bailed off the train while we were stopped at a red signal on the outskirts of Kansas City, taxied to a motel for a few hours rest and a shower and, next morning, headed to MCI airport to catch a flight back to California. Kudos to my tolerant wife!

One of these days, probably after I'm retired and have some time, maybe I can scan some of the slides from these trips and some others . . .