I was born in the 40's in the small outport of Princeton on Bonavista Bay in Newfoundland, the son of an inshore fisherman. The fond memories related here are of my younger years till age fifteen, when I left home to live in the city. THE NEWFIE BULLET “All aboard!” Those words were so exciting for a young boy from around the bay as I boarded the Newfie Bullet, headed for St. John’s. I can still recall waving to family and friends as the train slowly pulled away from the station. No sooner had the train left the station than I would hear the voice of the conductor coming through and saying, "Tickets please." As the voice got closer, I frantically searched for my ticket, always in fear that, if I couldn't find the ticket, I would be thrown off the train. This fear may have been because I often listened to Uncle Rex sing the song that had the words "Get off the train, you railroad bum". But I solved the problem by getting married and my wife always looks after the tickets now, whether we travel by train or plane. It seemed that almost every time I went to St. John's on the Newfie Bullet, it was in the middle of the night. The clack, clack from the rails and those lovely reclining seats made it almost impossible not to fall asleep. But then would come the rude awakening as the train jerked frontwards and backwards. Maybe a moose on the tracks? If that was the reason, there were a lot of dead moose between Clarenville and St. John's! The politicians would do a lot of campaigning on the train; it seemed they wouldn't quit talking all night and I often wished they would try to get some sleep too. But, on a more positive note, they would often have a job waiting for you when you stepped off the train in St. John's. I also recall taking the train to visit my maternal grandparents in Champneys, Trinity Bay. That meant I had to travel the Trinity Loop. It was always a special thrill to my brother, sister and me to stretch our neck to look back and watch the caboose make its way around the turn. Today it's the only visible train loop in North America and I understand it's quite the tourist attraction. I would get off the train in Port Rexton and would take a car the remaining few miles to Champneys. My grandparents' home in Champneys had a day bed in the kitchen and it seemed to be one of the cosiest places in the world on a wet, foggy day. Years later it broke my heart when I went back there and I couldn't even find the foundation where the house once stood. Another noteworthy thing about the Bullet was the dining car. The decorating and the food and uniforms certainly matched anything I've seen today, as did the unspoiled scenery as I looked out the window. The hills, valley and rivers were beautiful. But what really makes the Newfie Bullet something special to me was that's where I first met the girl that a few years later became my wife. In the words of a song by the late Jim Reeves, “Maybe I used to be a railroad bum, but I’m not one anymore.”   Submitted By: Hayward Prince