After returning to the boarding location and meeting Bob and Elizabeth once more, we waited to board the Dinner Train. It was late in arriving and as the sun was blocked out by the bridge, I excused myself to take this picture once the train finally reversed to the boarding location.
The consist of our Dinner Train was Iowa Interstate QJ 2-10-2 7081, BNSF "Powder River", Iowa Interstate dining car "Abraham Lincoln" and Iowa Interstate business car "Hawkeye".
BNSF bi-level coach "Powder River" BNSF 45, ex. BNA 41 1996, exx. Transisco Tours "San Francisco" 1992, nee Southern Pacific 3707 built by Pullman in 1955. PPCX 800537.
Iowa Interstate dining car "Abraham Lincoln", exx. Kansas City Southern 40 "Kansas City", ex. Amtrak 8096, nee dining car Union Pacific 4812 built by American Car and Foundry in 1949.
Iowa Interstate business car 100 "Hawkeye", ex. KCS 1887 "Arthur E. Stilwell", exx. Midsouth "Prospector", exxx. Ontario Northland "Moosonee", exxxx. St. Louis-San Francisco 3, exxxxx St. Louis San Francisco 4, exxxxxx. St. Louis-San Francisco "Oklahoma", exxxxxxx. St. Louis-San Francisco 6, exxxxxxxx. St. Louis-San Francisco 1924, nee St. Louis-San Francisco buffet-coach 1702 built by the railroad in 1928.
The passengers for Car A waited for the train to be spotted, then we boarded through the "Hawkeye" and since I was first on, it allowed me to take a few pictures.
The lounge.
The dining area. I then walked into the "Abraham Lincoln" where I waited for Bob and Elizabeth to pick out a table for us to enjoy dinner together tonight and we were joined at our table by Dean, a truck driver from Cedar Rapids.
On every table was a menu for tonight's meal.
There were special embossed serviettes which I kept and still have to this day.
The interior of "Abraham Lincoln". The Dinner Train started by reversing up to the Rock Island depot before we went over the Government Bridge to Davenport. The meal started with jumbo shrimp and cocktail sauce and crab cakes with mustard sauce.
Iowa Interstate Chairman Henry Posner III greeted us aboard the Flood Relief Dinner Train and informed us that all proceeds from tickets purchased were donated to the Salvation Army for Flood Relief and that his railroad ran these trains just to thank us. From the tickets sold for the Excursion and Dinner Train, $50,000.00 was raised for the Salvation Army Flood Relief Project.
During the meal, wine was served with the courses. The First Course was a Bargetto Pinot Grigio from Santa Cruz, California. The Second Course was a Bonny Doon Erbaluce Di Caluso "La Funambola" from Piedmonte, Italy. The Third Course was an Omrah "Unoaked" Chardonnay, from Mt. Barker, Western Australia. The Fourth Course was a Pedroncelli "Three Vinyards" Cabernet from the Sauvignon Dry Creek Valley, California. The Fifth Course was an Achaia Clauss Muscat of Patras from Achaia, Greece.
For those of us who do not drink like me, Bob and Elizabeth, water or lemonade was available. The train steamed out of Davenport out in to the countryside of Iowa towards Walcott.
Birthday boy Bob, across the aisle, enjoying the Dinner Train. Salad was served next which comprised Romaine lettuce, berries and pine nuts with poppy seed dressing. The train stopped just short of the grain elevator in Walcott and the entree was served.
The meal was Traditional Barbecue Smoked Pork, Marla's Famous Lasagna, Peruvian Lomo Saltado with Tacu-Tacu and Tender Portions of Beef Tenderloin Sauteed with Onion, Tomato, Parsley and Chili Peppers served with Rice and Lima Beans. This was a most unique meal which featured food from each of the countries in which the Railroad Development Corporation operated at that time.
The train was pulled by a diesel back to a bridge over Highway 61 in Davenport where the train stopped for over an hour.
The Featured Chefs for this evening's Dinner Train were Hugo Avile {Peru}, Joel Lopez {Guatemala}, Mike Burkart {Cedar Rapids} and Bob Pietrandrea {Pittsburgh}. The Dessert was Tres Leches Cake, a Guatemala Cake created using three different milks. After my dessert, I was bored that we were not moving and visited the open door of "Hawkeye" for some fresh air. The train finally started to move I rode across the Government Bridge with a fantastic moon overlooking the Mississippi River. In the Rock Island Yard, the cars were watered and I took the oppportunity for some more pictures.
The interior of BNSF "Powder River", after which I walked back to the "Abraham Lincoln".
The kitchen. After the crew finished watering the cars, the QJ pulled us back to the boarding area and we detrained from a most unique and memorable dinner train experience.
QJ 7081 sits in the dark at Rock Island.
The diesel was sitting beside the road so the lighting was better. Bob, Elizabeth and I walked back to the car but I had an idea for a couple pictures.
The Davenport skyline.
The bridge between Rock Island and Davenport. We made our way back to the Ecoline Motel and called it a night after a great day with the Chinese QJ steam engines.
