"Railfan Madness, Part II"

[ehbowen]

On the California Zephyr, day 2, between Green River and Grand Junction: An oh-dark-thirty wake-up call yesterday as the Coast Starlight was an hour early into Sacramento. I tumbled out of bed and dressed without time to shave or brush my hair, barely had time to brush my teeth. Fortunately the station agents let us day - check our carry-ons with the red caps without charge since we were sleeper passengers.

We were at Perko's a block away when they opened at six. Breakfast was good; eggs and bacon for Dad, a spinach and cheese omelet for Mom, and I feasted on chicken-fried steak and eggs. After breakfast we returned to the small sleeper passenger waiting area. Construction in the station was very noisy; the station agents passed out ear plugs. We needed them!

Mom and I spent some time walking through Old Town Sacramento just down the street. Very little was open but the storefronts and riverfront were photogenic enough. The eastbound Zephyr was on time and we boarded without incident.

The scenic highlight of the day was, of course, the crossing of the Sierra Nevada. For all three of us it was our first time by rail. We secured seats on the left (north) side of the Sightseer Lounge. This was the wrong side for the approach to the pass, but once we passed the summit and the tunnel we were on the best side for views of Donner Lake.

A very rowdy group of coach passengers joined us in Truckee; the first thing they wanted to know was the location of the bar. I sensed they were already off to a good start....

Dinner was the steak for Dad and I and the crab cakes for Mom. I took a shower and went to bed early. Pictures are from the crossing of Donner Pass.

 

[ehbowen]

Another incident of note from last night: Blake Caedmon Parrish was born at 1:20 a.m., central time, September 22nd, 2016. I am now a great uncle and my parents are great-grandparents for the second time. Mother and baby are doing fine.

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

I am continuing to enjoy the description of your trip and the lovely pictures.

Glad that the mother and new baby are doing well also. Also glad that you are having such a good trip with your parents--as my parents got older, I was thankful that I had been on some nice trips with them. It will be a lovely memory for all of you.

Glad you got to meet Meat Puppet. Wherever there is a train, there seems to be at least one AUer on it!

That empty tray at the Empress tea looks like a dessert tray that I might have demolished.

 

[ehbowen]

Sitting in the Galesburg station, waiting for a bus: The crossing of the Rockies yesterday was worth the price of admission. However, I should have taken the hint when I came into the Sightseer Lounge and saw the right (south) side packed and the left side half empty. Mom and I took empty seats on the left side, hoping that we might cross the river at some point and the scenery might improve. No such luck... at least, not for a long while. I'd say that the best views turned out to be 80% on the south side, 20% on the north side. The train stayed mostly on time throughout, though, so we had good views descending the Front Range on the eastern side of the summit tunnel.

We all ate lunch together in the diner as we passed Glenwood Springs. By this time the Amtrak menus were getting a little old. We almost missed out on dinner, though... when the LSA took dinner reservations Dad, back in the room reading, deferred to me. However, Mom and I were in the lounge car which is the last place they check. When the LSA finally got around to me all of the slots were filled and we had to go on the waiting list. I made jokes about breaking out the Dinty Moore and the LSA pretended not to know what I meant. However, one table didn't show on time and they were able to slip us in about 7:30. They even had enough steak and crab cakes to take care of us. No Dinty Moore!

A big group of Nebraska Cornhuskers fans bound for the Northwestern game in Evanston boarded during the night... coach was Sold Out. I woke Mom up before general announcements began for an early breakfast. Good thing, too...the diner went on a waiting list shortly after we arrived and they were calling "group 18" last I heard that morning.

We arrived in Galesburg about a half hour late and schlepped the luggage down the street to the nearest open restaurant, which turned out to be a brick building called the "Packinghouse." Pretty good food, too...Mom had the soup and salad bar, Dad had a BLT flatbread, and I had the pot roast beef dip sandwich with mashed potatoes. They also gave us some wonderful homemade cinnamon rolls... small, but very rich and sweet. Everyone left satisfied.

Now here we sit, awaiting the 2:15 bus to Springfield....

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

Your Sierra photos make me wish I was there right now! Thanks for posting them (though I'd be out hiking rather than on the train, not that I'd mind that either).