The adult in me needs to take a business trip....
so the kid in me does it by taking the train.
NE Regional Charlottesville to DC
Capitol Limited DC to Chicago
Empire Builder Chicago to St. Paul
Full post with lot of pretty pictures:
https://snvboy.exposure.co/the-adult-in-me-takes-a-business-trip
Since some folks don't seem to like leaving this site, here's the full text:
I had a gig to do in Chicago, and luckily this time I had enough notice that I could scout out the Amtrak options. Being the low season, sleeper car roomettes were reasonably priced and my schedule worked out that I could take the train for this trip. Part of that was dependent on getting a lot of work done between my home base of Charlottesville, VA and Chicago.
I like to take the train, and it's not just the kid in me. There's no TSA B.S., no fighting for the overhead bin, and amazingly almost everybody on the train is always totally chilled out. It's just a very different vibe from flying. The train is it's own little world in so many ways. For me, this is one of my "happy places" and I travel on it every chance I get.
For work trips, those chances are few and far between. First is the time it takes to where you are going. On short to moderate distances - like D.C. to New York - when you factor in driving and parking at the airport, TSA screening, etc. etc. the train is just as fast as flying if not faster. Extend the distance some more, like D.C. to Boston, and the plane starts making more sense from a time perspective.
Charlottesville to Chicago? Well, for a little town Charlottesville is lucky to have two non-stops every day on American Airlines to Chicago. It's about a two hour flight. Add in the parking, TSA, getting from O'Hare to downton, and it's maybe 6 hours tops door-to-door. So, how to justify the train which is going to take about 24 hours total?
First, and foremost to me, is my mental health. I used to love flying when I was young, before 9/11, when you could show up 20min before a flight with no problem, when folks were not on the verge of a riot on every flight, when it still had a few vestiges of pre-deregulation class to it - even in economy. The train still has some of that, and more. It's hard to describe the sense of community - however temporary - that there is on a train. People interact, talk to each other. They're all in it together. Add in the liberal luggage policy, more space, and better scenery and it all makes for a happier voyage.
Price is always a consideration. I'm not enough of a big shot to justify first-class air travel, so if I'm taking the train it needs to be reasonably comparable to the price of coach airfare. This is a lot easier in the winter when demand on Amtrak is low. It's possible almost any time of year if you travel Coach class on Amtrak, but I'd rather deal with 5 hours of airline hell than 24 hours of coach purgatory. I'm not knocking Amtrak's coach product, but if I'm sleeping I'd like to lay flat and if I'm eating I'd like real meals. A sleeper accomodation on Amtrak takes care of both.
Another point is the 'real' cost of it all. If I were to fly one of the two AA non-stops, one of the flights leaves at 5:30 in the morning. Which means being at the airport before 5 to check in and clear TSA. Backtime that from our farm and it means getting up before 4:00 in the morning. That doesn't set me up for a productive day when I land. Which means taking the afternoon flight and staying an extra night in Chicago. So to TRULY compare (or justify) the train means facotring in an extra night of hotel and meals in a not-inexpensive city. On Amtrak the meals are included in the sleeper accomodation. While it's not a five-star hotel, the bed is completely flat and the water in the shower is hot, hot, hot. From this perspective, taking the train to Chicago is actually cheaper - even in a "first class" sleeper ticket - than flying.
Which leaves the productivity question. If I'm in motion for 24+ hours, am I going to loose a complete day of work? On this trip I would be challenging the idea that a "remote worker" can really be remotely working from anywhere. By and large I think I was nearly as productive as had I been in my office despite not having my multiple monitors, large desk, and more powerful computer. Or at least productive enough. I'll touch on that more below as our story progresses.
On to the first leg of our trip: Charlotesville, VA to Washington, DC on Northeast Regional #176.
My wife dropped me off at the Charlottesville, VA station about 30min before the scheduled departure. My train is a few minues behind, but not as behind as the Crescent #20. A lot of people are waiting for the Crescent, and the little station is crowded and getting more so by the minute as passengers for #176 keep arriving. The Crescent pulls in, and it looks like we'll be chasing right behind them. Locomotive #20 is pulling train #20 - I thought that was an interesting coincidence.
The Crescent comes and goes, and the announcement is made to head out to the platform for the Regional. I'm always amazed at how many people take this train from Charlottesville - the platform is packed. I start walking towards the business class end of the platform, when I hear my name called out. I'm not expecting anybody, so I keep walking as my name is called a couple more times. Turns out a colleague of mine is heading to D.C. for a different event. A pleasant surprise!
We both settle in and flip open the laptops to get a little work done. I keep an eye out the window as we roll north through Orange County, VA where I live. It's always fun to see familiar sights from a new angle. And just like that we've already gone through Manassas and are heading into suburban DC. Though I'm ticketed to DC, I have a long four hour layover and instead I'll be jumping off at Alexandria to meet up with another colleague who lives in Arlington. We'll grab lunch together and spend some time working on a few projects.
In the afternoon he gives me a ride across the river to Union Station in Washington, DC. I drop by bags at the Club Acela lounge (which is open to any sleeper car passenger), and step out to get some snacks and beverages for the trip to Chicago.
Washington, DC to Chicago, IL
Boarding is called for the Capitol Limited to Chicago. It's a short walk from the lounge to the platform. This isn't my first trip and I don't need any assistance, so it's a quick hello to my sleeping car attendent (SCA). He checks me off on his manifest, and I step aboard the Superliner Sleeper and go upstairs to my roomette. Since it's a working trip, I start getting all my work junk organized. Plug in a 'tripple tap' to the wall outlet, flip out the laptop, get my cameras at the ready to shoot anything interesting that goes by on the journey. I was a little bummed out because my room was on the "wrong" side of the train to watch the Potomac River as we go through the panhandle of Maryland to Harpers Ferry, where the two forks of the Shennandoah river converge to form the Potomac.
And then the train starts to back up.
"Whoa?!?" my brain shouts - where the heck is the train backing up to in the station? This seems to always happen to me. We're not backing up, we're pulling out. The stairs to the second level of the car make a 180 degree turn, and I had mis-oriented myself. So, it turns out I'm on the "right" side of the train to watch the river, and I need to turn my laptop and work junk all around.
Soon after leaving the SCA for our car, Jemal, stops by to introduce myself. Since I'm a seasoned Amtrak traveler, he skips the usual instructions on where things are and what to expect on the train. He asks what time I would like the room made up, and I ask him if he can do it in Pittsburgh since I'm planning on staying up until then. He doesn't want to make up any rooms later than 10pm, so I just ask him to stop by later. I understand that the SCA is basically on-duty for the entire trip, and I don't begudge them that they need to have some opportunity for solid sleep. But 10pm seems to me to be just a little early for a hard and fast cutoff.
The next visitor is from the Lead Service Attendent (LSA) whos is responsible for the dining car. She is here to take a reservation for dinner. I make it for 6pm. The winter sun is falling quickly to the horizon as the D.C. suburbs fall away. We are largely paralleling the old C&O Canal and the Potomac river, and it's a challenge to keep focused on work with so many nice sights to look at out the big window of my compartment. We arrive on time at Harpers Ferry, and the sun is behind the mountains now but not fully set. We continue on into the dusk. Night falls on Martinsburg, WV and it's time for dinner.
I walk through the two other sleeper cars to get to the dining car. I wait at the doorway for the LSA to seat me. Amtrak practices "community" seating, which means they try to fill all the seats at each table by mixing parties together. It's not practical for them to seat a solo traveler like me at a booth made to seat four. This is one of the highlights of Amtrak travel to me - sharing a meal and conversation with complete strangers. I am joined by Roger and Betty, who will be connecting in Chicago to the California Zephyr. A few minutes later we were joined by Betsy, another solo traveler, who was returning to the Northwest after vising family on the east coast.
As a sleeper passenger, all meals are included in the fare. The LSA or server will give you a ticket that LOOKS like an order form, but ONLY fill out your car & room number and sign it at the bottom. The rest of the form, which is indeed an order form, is supposed to be filled out by the server. They get cranky about this on every train. What isn't included is any beer, wine or other alcohol. I ordered the steak, which came with mixed vegetables and a baked potato, and a half-bottle of wine. Dinner is supposed to come with a salad, but more and more you have to ask for it. It's still included in the price.
No seat is empty at my 6pm seating. The dining car we are in tonight is called a "Cross Country Cafe" which is a combination of dining car and snack/cafe car. Amtrak uses this configuration during the winter months on this route where there is less ridership. Half the car is seating for the diner, the other half is tables for the cafe/snack bar, and the snack bar is in the middle. The kitchen for the dining car is below us on the first level. Some riders don't like this arrangement, but I don't mind. In fact I think I like it better since it keeps all the service staff together. Typically the cafe will be on the lower level of the sightseeing car, with the cafe attendent left by themselves.
Dinner arrives and is perfectly fine. The veggies are fresh and crisp, though I think my steak may have been through too many freeze-thaw cycles and wasn't as good as it usually is on Amtrak. Dessert was bread pudding with pecan sauce, which was really, really good. Two minor complaints about the service: I had to remind my server that I had ordered wine (which she promptly brought), and no refills were offered on water (I was at the end of the meal, so just adjusted my tipping accordingly).
Back in my room after dinner, I get back to some work tasks. Now that the sun has set, there isn't much to see outside. We are traveling through the Alleghaney mountains now from Cumberland, MD headed for Pittsburgh. These are gorgeous to see in the daylight (which is when the eastbound Capitol Limited goes through). North of Cumberland the cell service becomes very spotty, which I expected being up in the mountains here. Just a note for future travelers. My connection had been consistently good on Verizon until now, and east of Pittsburgh it's strong again.
Connelsville, PA and we just six minutes behind the schedule. There aren't any passengers here, so we slide into the station and the train stops for about thirty seconds, and then we're pulling out on our way again. Just past 10pm and Jemal stops by to see if I want the room turned down for the night. I'm still working, but appreciate him checking back with me. Since he doesn't have any passengers at Pittsburgh, he's going to bed. I'm fine on my own - I've turned down the room before and it's really not that complicated. There is a bedroll comprised of a mattress, sheet, and blanket that is already made up and kept in the upper bunk. The two seats slide together to become a fully-flat bed. Open the top bunk, grab the bedroll and roll it out on the lower bed.
We arrive at Pittsburgh very much ahead of schedule - almost a full twenty minutes. This is a service stop, meaning the operating crew (Conductor, Assistant Conductor, and Engineer) will change here. The train never leaves early from a scheduled stop, so we'll be here for about a half hour. I step off to stretch my legs and shoot some photos. Imagine my surprise as I get to the front of the train and see that our lead locomotive, #20, is the same one I saw this morning in Charlottesville pulling the Crescent.
The engine toots it's horn and the Conductor calls "All Aboard" though I'm the only passenger still hanging about the platform. I hop back on the train and we're on our way a minute away from a new day.
I get myself going again around 7:30am and we are about an hour late into Waterloo, IN. Through the night I heard a lot of freight train traffic, though I don't recall stopping for any long period and I didn't wake up for any of the stops west of Pittsburgh. So I don't know what put us behind. I take a shower and go to the dining car for breakfast.
Around 8:20 am, an announcement is made asking if there is a doctor or medical professional onboard. That's never a good sign. Sure enough, about ten minutes later we stop at a crossing in a little tiny place called Otis, IN. I'm assuming that an ambulance is meeting the train here to address whatever medical emergency is occurring. Another announcement is made apologizing for the unscheduled stop and delay, and explaining that a passenger needs medical attention. Ten minutes later we're are rolling again.
We don't make up any time and wind up arriving in Chicago about ninety minutes late. I grab my things, get an Uber, and head over to the McCormick Place convention center to start my working day.
Some work happens here. It's not all that exciting (this is why it's called work) so I won't write about it.
Chicago to Minneapolis
From Chicago I am traveling on to Minneapolis for a few days to visit friends and family, and pick up a car that I'm inheriting and driving it back to Virginia. One of the really great things about the train is that the station is in the heart of downtown, and there isn't two hours of checking/TSA to deal with. So, for my 2:15pm Empire Builder #7 to Minneapolis, I can arrive at Union Station in Chicago by 1:30 and have PLENTY of time to make the train. So I have a lunch with colleagues at McCormick Place, and then Uber back over to the train station. I don't have any bags to check, so I proceed directly to the Metropolitan Lounge. Even though it's a short 7 hour trip to Minneapolis, I booked a sleeper car - both for the meals, and to have the room to spread out and do some work.
The new Metropolitan Lounge is wonderful. The old one was dark, had low ceilings, and not much space. It would be standing-room-only during the afternoon rush when all the western long distance trains depart. The new lounge is spacious, bright, filled with mobile-device friendly furniture (meaning, USB chargers and outlets EVERYWHERE). It's also spit up into several different sections, with a special section just for kids with a play area.
Since I have a little time, I stash by bags and wander around the Great Hall to shoot some pictures.
Boarding from the lounge was a little confusing. At the old lounge, you literally exited the back of the lounge direct to the train platforms. The new lounge is in a different place in the station, with no back-door way to get to the trains. Instead, they queue up passengers in the lounge, then release you as a group into the common concourse to proceed to your train platform. This isn't well signed, but I'm not sure how they could do it better. In some ways its much more like an airport VIP lounge, where you are responsible for getting yourself from the lounge to the gate. The difference being that the train doesn't really have a "gate" in the airport sense - with a dedicated line for first class, etc. Everybody just goes to the platform and gets on the train.
The confusion today is doubled because they are boarding both the Empire Builder and the California Zephyr at the same time, from the same platform. And the digital signage on the door only listed the Zephyr. Many announcements were made onboard the train during boarding that this is the Empire Builder, and if you are going to California to get off this train and get on the other way adjacent. I make my way along the platform, looking for my car 0730. The first sleeper I come to is 0731, and has a long line of passengers to board, so I keep hiking. The next sleeper is signed 0731. Huh? It turns out that the car number mechanism was broken, so 0731 was indeed 0730.
I'm on the lower-level of the car this time. Some people prefer the upper level for better views, and for not having the climb the stairs to get to the other cars. In some ways I prefer the lower-level. There is less foot traffic, since all of the inter-car people movement happens on the upper level. The lower level makes it easier to hop off the train during station stops - even brief ones - just to catch some fresh air. The shower and more toilets are on the lower level, and strangely most people on the upper level seem to be always be unaware of this. Lastly, the luggage racks are on the lower level, so if I need something out of my bigger bag it's right there.
Across the corridor from me is Sam, a young man taking his first long distance train trip. He's quite the adventurer. He works as a pilot in Alaska, and basically works two weeks on, two weeks off. As a commercial pilot, he can fly in the jump seat on just about any airline. So he spends his time off traveling the world. We have dinner together later, and then swap stories in the lounge car for the rest of the ride to St. Paul.
In the meantime I get my kit spread out to start doing some work on the laptop. Which is dead. I guess I forgot to charge it up. No problem, since each roomette has an outlet there is plenty of power. And it's still dead. So, to conclude my thoughts on getting work done on Amtrak - it's entirely feasible if your laptop doesn't die a grizzly death in the middle of your trip! Overall internet access was very good for me on the Verizon network (using either a MiFi or hotspot off your phone). Some Amtrak trains, especially on the Northeast Corridor routes, offer WiFi onboard for free. This internet service is ultimately being provided by cell towers as well, and since it's a shared WiFi connection with your entire car it may be more sluggish than you need. There is plenty of room in Coach to use a laptop (unlike coach class on the airplane, where i can't open my 15" laptop enough to see the screen even if the seat in front of me isn't reclined). If you need more room you can move to the Sightseer Lounge on trains that have it, but it is a community area.
I found the Roomette to be perfect for my needs, even on the daytime trip to Minneapolis. Not only is there enough room to get out not only my laptop but some of my other gear as well (some of my work involves testing software on multiple mobile devices), it is also a private area so I can take phone calls and online meetings without disturbing other passengers. And as a private area, it's safe to just leave everything setup if I want to walk to the Cafe car or head off to a meal in the dining car.
We are early into Milwaukee, so the train will dwell here for about 10 or 15 minutes. I get off to walk to the platform and shoot some pictures. It was snowing in the Midwest yesterday, and the station has spread a very liberal amount of rock salt on the concrete platform. Which I don't really pay any mind, until after we leave Milwaukee and I realize I've tracked in a LOT of rock salt into my Roomette. Guess I'll bump up the tip to the SCA for having to deal with this mess.
I think the SCA in our car is in training. He's friendly enough, but doesn't say much. I didn't catch his name. His heart is in the right place, but he has that "deer in the headlights" look, and a different SCA is handing the bags and doors at each stop.
We are on-time all the way as we go across Wisconsin. The sun is just about set and it's very dusky as we cross the Mississippi at La Crosse. This is one of the most scenic parts of the Empire Builder route, as it goes up the Minnesota bank of the river through the bluffs of the upper Mississippi. Though being the heart of winter, it's dark so there isn't much to see.
We wind up arriving at St. Paul a solid thirty minutes ahead of schedule. Which means my pickup hasn't even left their house yet! I take some time to explore the restored St. Paul Union Depot (aka SPUD) and shoot some pictures. And then I again get myself totally turned around. What one THINKS is the entrance to the station isn't really the entrance anymore. It used to be, and there is still the broad sweeping drive along the front of the building to the doors. This is no longer used, since the light rail line and station blocks access to it. Well, if you are taking the light rail then this IS the door you want to use. The actual pickup/dropoff area is accessed on Kellog Street, and this isn't very well signed at all in the station. And even if it was or is, that signage is really tough to see when your eyes are distracted by the enormous space of the hall.
so the kid in me does it by taking the train.
NE Regional Charlottesville to DC
Capitol Limited DC to Chicago
Empire Builder Chicago to St. Paul
Full post with lot of pretty pictures:
https://snvboy.exposure.co/the-adult-in-me-takes-a-business-trip
Since some folks don't seem to like leaving this site, here's the full text:
I had a gig to do in Chicago, and luckily this time I had enough notice that I could scout out the Amtrak options. Being the low season, sleeper car roomettes were reasonably priced and my schedule worked out that I could take the train for this trip. Part of that was dependent on getting a lot of work done between my home base of Charlottesville, VA and Chicago.
I like to take the train, and it's not just the kid in me. There's no TSA B.S., no fighting for the overhead bin, and amazingly almost everybody on the train is always totally chilled out. It's just a very different vibe from flying. The train is it's own little world in so many ways. For me, this is one of my "happy places" and I travel on it every chance I get.
For work trips, those chances are few and far between. First is the time it takes to where you are going. On short to moderate distances - like D.C. to New York - when you factor in driving and parking at the airport, TSA screening, etc. etc. the train is just as fast as flying if not faster. Extend the distance some more, like D.C. to Boston, and the plane starts making more sense from a time perspective.
Charlottesville to Chicago? Well, for a little town Charlottesville is lucky to have two non-stops every day on American Airlines to Chicago. It's about a two hour flight. Add in the parking, TSA, getting from O'Hare to downton, and it's maybe 6 hours tops door-to-door. So, how to justify the train which is going to take about 24 hours total?
First, and foremost to me, is my mental health. I used to love flying when I was young, before 9/11, when you could show up 20min before a flight with no problem, when folks were not on the verge of a riot on every flight, when it still had a few vestiges of pre-deregulation class to it - even in economy. The train still has some of that, and more. It's hard to describe the sense of community - however temporary - that there is on a train. People interact, talk to each other. They're all in it together. Add in the liberal luggage policy, more space, and better scenery and it all makes for a happier voyage.
Price is always a consideration. I'm not enough of a big shot to justify first-class air travel, so if I'm taking the train it needs to be reasonably comparable to the price of coach airfare. This is a lot easier in the winter when demand on Amtrak is low. It's possible almost any time of year if you travel Coach class on Amtrak, but I'd rather deal with 5 hours of airline hell than 24 hours of coach purgatory. I'm not knocking Amtrak's coach product, but if I'm sleeping I'd like to lay flat and if I'm eating I'd like real meals. A sleeper accomodation on Amtrak takes care of both.
Another point is the 'real' cost of it all. If I were to fly one of the two AA non-stops, one of the flights leaves at 5:30 in the morning. Which means being at the airport before 5 to check in and clear TSA. Backtime that from our farm and it means getting up before 4:00 in the morning. That doesn't set me up for a productive day when I land. Which means taking the afternoon flight and staying an extra night in Chicago. So to TRULY compare (or justify) the train means facotring in an extra night of hotel and meals in a not-inexpensive city. On Amtrak the meals are included in the sleeper accomodation. While it's not a five-star hotel, the bed is completely flat and the water in the shower is hot, hot, hot. From this perspective, taking the train to Chicago is actually cheaper - even in a "first class" sleeper ticket - than flying.
Which leaves the productivity question. If I'm in motion for 24+ hours, am I going to loose a complete day of work? On this trip I would be challenging the idea that a "remote worker" can really be remotely working from anywhere. By and large I think I was nearly as productive as had I been in my office despite not having my multiple monitors, large desk, and more powerful computer. Or at least productive enough. I'll touch on that more below as our story progresses.
On to the first leg of our trip: Charlotesville, VA to Washington, DC on Northeast Regional #176.
My wife dropped me off at the Charlottesville, VA station about 30min before the scheduled departure. My train is a few minues behind, but not as behind as the Crescent #20. A lot of people are waiting for the Crescent, and the little station is crowded and getting more so by the minute as passengers for #176 keep arriving. The Crescent pulls in, and it looks like we'll be chasing right behind them. Locomotive #20 is pulling train #20 - I thought that was an interesting coincidence.
The Crescent comes and goes, and the announcement is made to head out to the platform for the Regional. I'm always amazed at how many people take this train from Charlottesville - the platform is packed. I start walking towards the business class end of the platform, when I hear my name called out. I'm not expecting anybody, so I keep walking as my name is called a couple more times. Turns out a colleague of mine is heading to D.C. for a different event. A pleasant surprise!
We both settle in and flip open the laptops to get a little work done. I keep an eye out the window as we roll north through Orange County, VA where I live. It's always fun to see familiar sights from a new angle. And just like that we've already gone through Manassas and are heading into suburban DC. Though I'm ticketed to DC, I have a long four hour layover and instead I'll be jumping off at Alexandria to meet up with another colleague who lives in Arlington. We'll grab lunch together and spend some time working on a few projects.
In the afternoon he gives me a ride across the river to Union Station in Washington, DC. I drop by bags at the Club Acela lounge (which is open to any sleeper car passenger), and step out to get some snacks and beverages for the trip to Chicago.
Washington, DC to Chicago, IL
Boarding is called for the Capitol Limited to Chicago. It's a short walk from the lounge to the platform. This isn't my first trip and I don't need any assistance, so it's a quick hello to my sleeping car attendent (SCA). He checks me off on his manifest, and I step aboard the Superliner Sleeper and go upstairs to my roomette. Since it's a working trip, I start getting all my work junk organized. Plug in a 'tripple tap' to the wall outlet, flip out the laptop, get my cameras at the ready to shoot anything interesting that goes by on the journey. I was a little bummed out because my room was on the "wrong" side of the train to watch the Potomac River as we go through the panhandle of Maryland to Harpers Ferry, where the two forks of the Shennandoah river converge to form the Potomac.
And then the train starts to back up.
"Whoa?!?" my brain shouts - where the heck is the train backing up to in the station? This seems to always happen to me. We're not backing up, we're pulling out. The stairs to the second level of the car make a 180 degree turn, and I had mis-oriented myself. So, it turns out I'm on the "right" side of the train to watch the river, and I need to turn my laptop and work junk all around.
Soon after leaving the SCA for our car, Jemal, stops by to introduce myself. Since I'm a seasoned Amtrak traveler, he skips the usual instructions on where things are and what to expect on the train. He asks what time I would like the room made up, and I ask him if he can do it in Pittsburgh since I'm planning on staying up until then. He doesn't want to make up any rooms later than 10pm, so I just ask him to stop by later. I understand that the SCA is basically on-duty for the entire trip, and I don't begudge them that they need to have some opportunity for solid sleep. But 10pm seems to me to be just a little early for a hard and fast cutoff.
The next visitor is from the Lead Service Attendent (LSA) whos is responsible for the dining car. She is here to take a reservation for dinner. I make it for 6pm. The winter sun is falling quickly to the horizon as the D.C. suburbs fall away. We are largely paralleling the old C&O Canal and the Potomac river, and it's a challenge to keep focused on work with so many nice sights to look at out the big window of my compartment. We arrive on time at Harpers Ferry, and the sun is behind the mountains now but not fully set. We continue on into the dusk. Night falls on Martinsburg, WV and it's time for dinner.
I walk through the two other sleeper cars to get to the dining car. I wait at the doorway for the LSA to seat me. Amtrak practices "community" seating, which means they try to fill all the seats at each table by mixing parties together. It's not practical for them to seat a solo traveler like me at a booth made to seat four. This is one of the highlights of Amtrak travel to me - sharing a meal and conversation with complete strangers. I am joined by Roger and Betty, who will be connecting in Chicago to the California Zephyr. A few minutes later we were joined by Betsy, another solo traveler, who was returning to the Northwest after vising family on the east coast.
As a sleeper passenger, all meals are included in the fare. The LSA or server will give you a ticket that LOOKS like an order form, but ONLY fill out your car & room number and sign it at the bottom. The rest of the form, which is indeed an order form, is supposed to be filled out by the server. They get cranky about this on every train. What isn't included is any beer, wine or other alcohol. I ordered the steak, which came with mixed vegetables and a baked potato, and a half-bottle of wine. Dinner is supposed to come with a salad, but more and more you have to ask for it. It's still included in the price.
No seat is empty at my 6pm seating. The dining car we are in tonight is called a "Cross Country Cafe" which is a combination of dining car and snack/cafe car. Amtrak uses this configuration during the winter months on this route where there is less ridership. Half the car is seating for the diner, the other half is tables for the cafe/snack bar, and the snack bar is in the middle. The kitchen for the dining car is below us on the first level. Some riders don't like this arrangement, but I don't mind. In fact I think I like it better since it keeps all the service staff together. Typically the cafe will be on the lower level of the sightseeing car, with the cafe attendent left by themselves.
Dinner arrives and is perfectly fine. The veggies are fresh and crisp, though I think my steak may have been through too many freeze-thaw cycles and wasn't as good as it usually is on Amtrak. Dessert was bread pudding with pecan sauce, which was really, really good. Two minor complaints about the service: I had to remind my server that I had ordered wine (which she promptly brought), and no refills were offered on water (I was at the end of the meal, so just adjusted my tipping accordingly).
Back in my room after dinner, I get back to some work tasks. Now that the sun has set, there isn't much to see outside. We are traveling through the Alleghaney mountains now from Cumberland, MD headed for Pittsburgh. These are gorgeous to see in the daylight (which is when the eastbound Capitol Limited goes through). North of Cumberland the cell service becomes very spotty, which I expected being up in the mountains here. Just a note for future travelers. My connection had been consistently good on Verizon until now, and east of Pittsburgh it's strong again.
Connelsville, PA and we just six minutes behind the schedule. There aren't any passengers here, so we slide into the station and the train stops for about thirty seconds, and then we're pulling out on our way again. Just past 10pm and Jemal stops by to see if I want the room turned down for the night. I'm still working, but appreciate him checking back with me. Since he doesn't have any passengers at Pittsburgh, he's going to bed. I'm fine on my own - I've turned down the room before and it's really not that complicated. There is a bedroll comprised of a mattress, sheet, and blanket that is already made up and kept in the upper bunk. The two seats slide together to become a fully-flat bed. Open the top bunk, grab the bedroll and roll it out on the lower bed.
We arrive at Pittsburgh very much ahead of schedule - almost a full twenty minutes. This is a service stop, meaning the operating crew (Conductor, Assistant Conductor, and Engineer) will change here. The train never leaves early from a scheduled stop, so we'll be here for about a half hour. I step off to stretch my legs and shoot some photos. Imagine my surprise as I get to the front of the train and see that our lead locomotive, #20, is the same one I saw this morning in Charlottesville pulling the Crescent.
The engine toots it's horn and the Conductor calls "All Aboard" though I'm the only passenger still hanging about the platform. I hop back on the train and we're on our way a minute away from a new day.
I get myself going again around 7:30am and we are about an hour late into Waterloo, IN. Through the night I heard a lot of freight train traffic, though I don't recall stopping for any long period and I didn't wake up for any of the stops west of Pittsburgh. So I don't know what put us behind. I take a shower and go to the dining car for breakfast.
Around 8:20 am, an announcement is made asking if there is a doctor or medical professional onboard. That's never a good sign. Sure enough, about ten minutes later we stop at a crossing in a little tiny place called Otis, IN. I'm assuming that an ambulance is meeting the train here to address whatever medical emergency is occurring. Another announcement is made apologizing for the unscheduled stop and delay, and explaining that a passenger needs medical attention. Ten minutes later we're are rolling again.
We don't make up any time and wind up arriving in Chicago about ninety minutes late. I grab my things, get an Uber, and head over to the McCormick Place convention center to start my working day.
Some work happens here. It's not all that exciting (this is why it's called work) so I won't write about it.
Chicago to Minneapolis
From Chicago I am traveling on to Minneapolis for a few days to visit friends and family, and pick up a car that I'm inheriting and driving it back to Virginia. One of the really great things about the train is that the station is in the heart of downtown, and there isn't two hours of checking/TSA to deal with. So, for my 2:15pm Empire Builder #7 to Minneapolis, I can arrive at Union Station in Chicago by 1:30 and have PLENTY of time to make the train. So I have a lunch with colleagues at McCormick Place, and then Uber back over to the train station. I don't have any bags to check, so I proceed directly to the Metropolitan Lounge. Even though it's a short 7 hour trip to Minneapolis, I booked a sleeper car - both for the meals, and to have the room to spread out and do some work.
The new Metropolitan Lounge is wonderful. The old one was dark, had low ceilings, and not much space. It would be standing-room-only during the afternoon rush when all the western long distance trains depart. The new lounge is spacious, bright, filled with mobile-device friendly furniture (meaning, USB chargers and outlets EVERYWHERE). It's also spit up into several different sections, with a special section just for kids with a play area.
Since I have a little time, I stash by bags and wander around the Great Hall to shoot some pictures.
Boarding from the lounge was a little confusing. At the old lounge, you literally exited the back of the lounge direct to the train platforms. The new lounge is in a different place in the station, with no back-door way to get to the trains. Instead, they queue up passengers in the lounge, then release you as a group into the common concourse to proceed to your train platform. This isn't well signed, but I'm not sure how they could do it better. In some ways its much more like an airport VIP lounge, where you are responsible for getting yourself from the lounge to the gate. The difference being that the train doesn't really have a "gate" in the airport sense - with a dedicated line for first class, etc. Everybody just goes to the platform and gets on the train.
The confusion today is doubled because they are boarding both the Empire Builder and the California Zephyr at the same time, from the same platform. And the digital signage on the door only listed the Zephyr. Many announcements were made onboard the train during boarding that this is the Empire Builder, and if you are going to California to get off this train and get on the other way adjacent. I make my way along the platform, looking for my car 0730. The first sleeper I come to is 0731, and has a long line of passengers to board, so I keep hiking. The next sleeper is signed 0731. Huh? It turns out that the car number mechanism was broken, so 0731 was indeed 0730.
I'm on the lower-level of the car this time. Some people prefer the upper level for better views, and for not having the climb the stairs to get to the other cars. In some ways I prefer the lower-level. There is less foot traffic, since all of the inter-car people movement happens on the upper level. The lower level makes it easier to hop off the train during station stops - even brief ones - just to catch some fresh air. The shower and more toilets are on the lower level, and strangely most people on the upper level seem to be always be unaware of this. Lastly, the luggage racks are on the lower level, so if I need something out of my bigger bag it's right there.
Across the corridor from me is Sam, a young man taking his first long distance train trip. He's quite the adventurer. He works as a pilot in Alaska, and basically works two weeks on, two weeks off. As a commercial pilot, he can fly in the jump seat on just about any airline. So he spends his time off traveling the world. We have dinner together later, and then swap stories in the lounge car for the rest of the ride to St. Paul.
In the meantime I get my kit spread out to start doing some work on the laptop. Which is dead. I guess I forgot to charge it up. No problem, since each roomette has an outlet there is plenty of power. And it's still dead. So, to conclude my thoughts on getting work done on Amtrak - it's entirely feasible if your laptop doesn't die a grizzly death in the middle of your trip! Overall internet access was very good for me on the Verizon network (using either a MiFi or hotspot off your phone). Some Amtrak trains, especially on the Northeast Corridor routes, offer WiFi onboard for free. This internet service is ultimately being provided by cell towers as well, and since it's a shared WiFi connection with your entire car it may be more sluggish than you need. There is plenty of room in Coach to use a laptop (unlike coach class on the airplane, where i can't open my 15" laptop enough to see the screen even if the seat in front of me isn't reclined). If you need more room you can move to the Sightseer Lounge on trains that have it, but it is a community area.
I found the Roomette to be perfect for my needs, even on the daytime trip to Minneapolis. Not only is there enough room to get out not only my laptop but some of my other gear as well (some of my work involves testing software on multiple mobile devices), it is also a private area so I can take phone calls and online meetings without disturbing other passengers. And as a private area, it's safe to just leave everything setup if I want to walk to the Cafe car or head off to a meal in the dining car.
We are early into Milwaukee, so the train will dwell here for about 10 or 15 minutes. I get off to walk to the platform and shoot some pictures. It was snowing in the Midwest yesterday, and the station has spread a very liberal amount of rock salt on the concrete platform. Which I don't really pay any mind, until after we leave Milwaukee and I realize I've tracked in a LOT of rock salt into my Roomette. Guess I'll bump up the tip to the SCA for having to deal with this mess.
I think the SCA in our car is in training. He's friendly enough, but doesn't say much. I didn't catch his name. His heart is in the right place, but he has that "deer in the headlights" look, and a different SCA is handing the bags and doors at each stop.
We are on-time all the way as we go across Wisconsin. The sun is just about set and it's very dusky as we cross the Mississippi at La Crosse. This is one of the most scenic parts of the Empire Builder route, as it goes up the Minnesota bank of the river through the bluffs of the upper Mississippi. Though being the heart of winter, it's dark so there isn't much to see.
We wind up arriving at St. Paul a solid thirty minutes ahead of schedule. Which means my pickup hasn't even left their house yet! I take some time to explore the restored St. Paul Union Depot (aka SPUD) and shoot some pictures. And then I again get myself totally turned around. What one THINKS is the entrance to the station isn't really the entrance anymore. It used to be, and there is still the broad sweeping drive along the front of the building to the doors. This is no longer used, since the light rail line and station blocks access to it. Well, if you are taking the light rail then this IS the door you want to use. The actual pickup/dropoff area is accessed on Kellog Street, and this isn't very well signed at all in the station. And even if it was or is, that signage is really tough to see when your eyes are distracted by the enormous space of the hall.
