I'm planning on taking the southbound Coast Starlight, connecting to the eastbound California Zephyr post-Gathering (which would be doing the Wyoming detour). The connection between the two trains is in the morning - the CS is supposed to arrive at 6:15am, while the CZ doesn't depart until 11 or so. While not as long as the layover in the other direction, it isn't ideal - particularly due to the early timing (and I'll be riding on coach on the Starlight - switching to sleeper for the Zephyr).
If I booked the connection farther down the line (i.e.at DAV, MTZ, or EMY), would I run the risk of having my Zephyr ticket canceled as a no-show if I got off the Starlight before my booked connection point in order to make the connection (i.e. if I'm booked PDX-EMY, EMY-CHI and get off/on in MTZ)?
Alternatively, does anyone have good suggestions as to what to do in Sacramento at that hour? Are there any nice waiting areas in the station (I remember being there for the Bay Area Gathering, though I don't remember any details about waiting areas). It is a shame the railroad museum isn't open earlier, as I missed it during the last Gathering.
If I booked the connection farther down the line (i.e.at DAV, MTZ, or EMY), would I run the risk of having my Zephyr ticket canceled as a no-show if I got off the Starlight before my booked connection point in order to make the connection (i.e. if I'm booked PDX-EMY, EMY-CHI and get off/on in MTZ)?
Alternatively, does anyone have good suggestions as to what to do in Sacramento at that hour? Are there any nice waiting areas in the station (I remember being there for the Bay Area Gathering, though I don't remember any details about waiting areas). It is a shame the railroad museum isn't open earlier, as I missed it during the last Gathering.