Recent content by Chuckles

Very useful information.

We're going to board the #5 at SLC. It seems to be early a good bit of the time, like 45 min early yesterday. If so, will we be allowed to claim our bedroom and go to sleep, or is boarding done by the book based on departure time?

I have a related question. I am not worried about the ticket being canceled, but I was imagining that at a touch-and-go station, the doors of a sleeper coach might not open if no one is expected to get off there according to the passenger list. Does that happen in reality, or do all doors open...

Car rental AT a station is rare; there's generally not enough business throughout the day. What I usually do is go to Google Maps and search "hotels near...", "car rental near..." etc. It's not perfect, the main problem is false matches, which have to be ignored. Following my own advice, I...

There is no Akihabara, but there are still one or two of what used to be "camera stores" scattered around midtown and maybe on the lower east side. Some are reputable, most are dishonest. The whole NYC camera store scene has of course been destroyed by the internets. For real grunge or other...

Children's menus are off-limits in restaurants where they want adult customers to pay for adult meals. But if your meal is included in the fare, there is no logical reason for Amtrak to discourage you from opting for a microwave pizza instead of the full meal.

PRO-EMY is 60% more than SLC-EMY for a bedroom on that date ($665 vs $419). Maybe a passenger has booked a bedroom to SLC and that made it cheaper starting at SLC. Or maybe the price is based on the convenience of the departure time. In any case, it isn't worth it.

Thanks a lot...yes, I do see from tripadvisor that the Red Iguana is the best-rated restaurant in Salt Lake City. Our current plan is to stop in Provo on the way up and eat at the Banana Leaf.

Day of week is Thu. Airport car return (no good alternative). The new light rail (TRAX) sounds good, although it does involve a change of trains with luggage. Stopping for dinner beforre returning the car but after arriving in Salt Lake seems like the thing to do.

As Bob Dylan said (in a movie), all of us are trying to kill time, but in the end time kills us. Anyway, our current plans have us going CHI-GJT and renting a car to SLC via some national parks, then SLC-EMY. To allow for unforeseen circumstances, we'll probably end up in SLC several hours...

The following day's #5 (dep CHi 4/16) has also encountered a service disruption today (4/17). It reached DEN this morning and then nothing further in the status. Perhaps it has been sent to SLC by the alternate route. The #6 got to Helper this morning and then nothing more in the status. I...

If so, I don't understand why the schedule shows the train having vanished somewhere in Nebraska. it is not reported as having ever arrived at DEN, let alone SLC.

Does anyone know what happened? The train that left Chicago 4/10 departed LNK early on 4/11 but has not reached HAS.

Very funny...Norm DePlume is his/her nom de plume (pen name). It's a common internet user name.

I think something like this would work well as an on-train cooler. Good brand, great reviews, and soft-sided (carry as a shoulder bag, or pack in suitcase when not being used). Of course "24 cans" is a great exaggeration, given the supplied measurements (13.3" x 9" x 11.5"), but you don't need...