Park Stroll Goes Awry

A friend and I were in a park, strolling alongside a creek somewhere near Denver when we spotted a railroad track of sorts running zigzag across the slope on the other side of the creek. Eventually, we encountered a small train lugging an open-air car of seats, like the kind you see in amusement parks. The train was empty except for a man driving it, who called out to us, "Hey, would you like a ride? There's a snack shop that I run at the end of the way."

We agreed that sounded like a good idea, so we got on. The ride was almost like a roller coaster, zipping up and down the slope. The track eventually straightened out and entered a tunnel, also joined by the creek running alongside. Inside the tunnel, it was like an old-school subway, the walls and curving ceiling totally covered by gleaming white subway tiles. My friend commented, "I had no idea that a subway ever existed in Colorado."

The track ended at a subway platform. The train driver announced this was the last stop, so we all got out. A row of glass doors led to what looked like the middle of an Art Deco-themed amusement park (like Denver's Lakeside park) with a rocket ride twirling merrily in the foreground. As fun as it looked, we were thirsty, and as he promised, there was indeed a convenience store at the end of the platform. It turned out to have nothing but all sorts of Coke products, including lots of collectibles like toy Coke trucks. The train driver clearly was a big Coke fan. After settling on a couple of Coke drinks, we asked when the train would return to where we had boarded it.

The train driver/Coke fan replied that unfortunately, that was the last run. However, he pointed to a tied rowboat in the creek and said we could take it back to our spot. We said that was fine, but before we could board it, another man started loading a few heavy barrels in the boat, causing the boat to sink rather low in the water. We said never mind, and went outside to find a way back.