Sometimes things just don’t go as planned. I had a simple day trip planned going from Portland to Eugene. However, my Amtrak day trip didn't go as planned. I’ve never been to Eugene and I took my bike with me so I can ride around, see the area, get something to eat and drink, and then take a leisurely train ride back. Amtrak’s schedule between Portland and Eugene already isn’t that great.
There's only one train from Portland Union Station to Eugene at 11:08am. The other are buses. Once in Eugene, there's only one train back at 4:30pm. This trip only gave me 2 1/2 hours to bike around Eugene. But it was fine, because part of this is to see the Oregon countryside.
So, when someone decided to be on the tracks while the train was coming, we grind to a halt.
First thing is I don’t know the details of what happened. Second is, my day trip is trivial compared to what happened to this person that was either walking, playing on the tracks or intentionally got in front of the train.
But this incident reminded me again that not everything goes according to plan. There are external circumstances that are out of our control.
My goal was to explore Eugene by bike and find some good food and beer. But things happen. By the time my train arrived in Eugene, I had maybe 45 minutes before it would depart back to Portland. And this got me thinking about how to deal with plans that don’t pan out. Here is a short list of how to cope with unplanned circumstances.
My trip is not more important than someone else’s life. Nobody did this to me on purpose. I need have a bigger picture of the situation
The train manager (and this applies to airline personnel as well) knows there will be angry people when there are disruptions in travel. They are trying to manage the situation the best they can with probably limited information.
Think of what alternative plans I can make. By the time I got to Eugene I had maybe 45 minutes before I had to board the same train back to Portland. It was only enough time to go a few blocks and grab a quick bite. If I had zero time, then at least I took a nice train ride with cool scenery. I also brought my laptop so I was able to do some work as well.
Since this was just a simple day trip, I can always reschedule it again in the summer.
Bring cash and make sure your phone is charged or can be easily charged. You never know when you’ll need to make a call or use your phone to navigate somewhere.
Bring water, snacks and a pack-able jacket in case you’re stuck outside for a long period of time.
This simple day trip reminded me to hope for the best and plan for the worst. My next trip will also be on Amtrak again going up to Seattle and then a ferry to Victoria, BC for Memorial Day weekend. I’m first hoping nobody gets hurt in or around the train as well as the ferry. Then second, hope for the best but will plan for the worst.
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