With the next storm wave coming in tonight and up to 7 FEET of snow predicted in the high Sierras it might be a mess around Donner for a while. Maybe I will be able to get video of the rotary snow blower trains when I head up the hill on the CZ on Saturday. That would be a trip. Just a few days ago I happened to catch a documentary on my local PBS station in Sacramento (KVIE) about the rotary snow blower trains. I did not realize how rarely they are used. Sometimes not years at a time.
I am resigned to perhaps being bused from Sac to Reno on Saturday but if i-80 is closed again due to mud slides, flooding or avalanches or who knows what, I just hope I don't end up having to fly to Philly for my conference next week. But since these storm systems are helping the drought in California, so be it. I just hope that people stay safe in this extreme weather.
I look forward to hearing more about your trip with your dad. My dad loved trains and when we took the Twilight Shoreliner from BOS to WAS years ago, with my mom too, it was a wonderful experience.