North West region - between Seattle down to CA

[Robin Wright]

Planning to visit San Juan Islands/Seatle area next July and then travelling down to Sacremento. I always like to include a rail journey in my visist as I think you see so much more of the country that way. I would welcome any suggestions on any interesting places/areas on this route or anywhere worth stopping off at. I have about 4 days to play around with.

 

[KmH]

As far as rail travel, Amtrak runs the Coast Starlight between Seattle and Sacramento.

But there are commuter trains, Amtrak Cascades trains, between Seattle and Eugene.

 

[the_traveler]

The Cascades are not commuter trains (like Sounder in the Seattle area), there Amtrak trains.

 

[Maglev]

The Cascades trains run between Vancouver, BC, and Eugene, OR. Stops near the San Juan Islands are Bellingham and Mount Vernon, WA. The San Juan Islands can be booked solid in July, so be sure to reserve hotels and ferries early.

 

[ParanoidAndroid]

Between Seattle and Sacramento, Dunsmuir CA might be a nice place to stop at, in proximity to Mt. Shasta. 12:35am southbound is, I don't think, that bad.

Other than that, back in Oregon, Portland with its many garden, and the Willamette Valley for vineyards and wineries, if you're interested in that.

Sacramento itself is interesting too with the railroad museum close by.

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

How easy is it to get to Crater Lake from the train?

 

[Eric S]

How easy is it to get to Crater Lake from the train?

There's a seasonal bus connection from Klamath Falls station to Crater Lake. It would require staying overnight in Klamath Falls after arriving on Amtrak (heading south).

 

[KmH]

The Cascades are not commuter trains (like Sounder in the Seattle area), there Amtrak trains.

My bad. I guess. It looks like a commuter train schedule to me.

Several Daily & Monday thru Friday trains, both northbound and southbound:

https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/394/275/Amtrak-Cascades-Schedule-022016.pdf

Amtrak runs state sponsored commuter/corridor trains in various parts of the country.

 

[CCC1007]

The Cascades are not commuter trains (like Sounder in the Seattle area), there Amtrak trains.

My bad. I guess. It looks like a commuter train schedule to me.Several Daily & Monday thru Friday trains, both northbound and southbound:

https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/394/275/Amtrak-Cascades-Schedule-022016.pdf

Amtrak runs state sponsored commuter/corridor trains in various parts of the country.

Commuter service usually doesn't go past the 75 mile mark from the major market, and usually only has one major market served.

 

[robin wright]

My gratitude to everyone who responded. That has given me a basis to start planning my trip on. I really appreciate your help.

 

[brianpmcdonnell17]

The Cascades are not commuter trains (like Sounder in the Seattle area), there Amtrak trains.

My bad. I guess. It looks like a commuter train schedule to me.Several Daily & Monday thru Friday trains, both northbound and southbound:

https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/394/275/Amtrak-Cascades-Schedule-022016.pdf

Amtrak runs state sponsored commuter/corridor trains in various parts of the country.

Commuter service usually doesn't go past the 75 mile mark from the major market, and usually only has one major market served.

Amtrak Cascades is not a commuter train, it is a regional train just like the Lincoln Service in the Midwest or San Joaquin in California. There is a difference between commuter rail and regional rail.

However, some commuter rail lines are over 75 miles. Just off the top or my head: LIRR Montauk Branch, LIRR Greenport Branch, Metro-North/NJT Port Jervis Line, NICTD South Shore Line, Metrolink Orange County Line, Metrolink Inland Empire-Orange County Line, and New Mexico Rail Runner Express are all at least 85 miles.

 

[brianpmcdonnell17]

The Cascades are not commuter trains (like Sounder in the Seattle area), there Amtrak trains.

My bad. I guess. It looks like a commuter train schedule to me.Several Daily & Monday thru Friday trains, both northbound and southbound:

https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/394/275/Amtrak-Cascades-Schedule-022016.pdf"]https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/394/275/Amtrak-Cascades-Schedule-022016.pdf[/url]

Amtrak runs state sponsored commuter/corridor trains in various parts of the country.

Commuter service usually doesn't go past the 75 mile mark from the major market, and usually only has one major market served.

Amtrak Cascades is not a commuter train, it is a regional train just like the Lincoln Service in the Midwest or San Joaquin in California. There is a difference between commuter rail and regional rail.

However, some commuter rail lines are over 75 miles. For Example: LIRR Montauk Branch, LIRR Greenport Branch, Metro-North/NJT Port Jervis Line, NICTD South Shore Line, Metrolink Orange County Line, Metrolink Inland Empire-Orange County Line, Altamont Corridor Express, and New Mexico Rail Runner Express are all at least 85 miles.

 

[tomfuller]

If the idea of arriving in Klamath Falls about 10 PM and spending the night before renting a car to go to Crater Lake does not appeal to you, you can get off in Chemult.

From Chemult there is a small bus to Bend which has nicer hotels IMO. Rent a car for about 9 or 10 hours to go see Crater Lake from Bend.

The small bus gets you back to Chemult (CMO) by 8PM for the Southbound CZ.

Arrival in Sacramento is sometimes earlier than 6AM.

 

[snvboy]

If you haven't been to Portland, that is where I would focus your layover time on. You can take a Cascades train from Seattle, layover a day or two in Portland, and then continue south on the Coast Starlight to Sacramento. It's a very accessible city with lots of things to do that can be reached on foot or public transit.

Another idea for you it to take the Coast Starlight from Seattle to the Bay Area and spend your time there, and then take a Capitol Corridor train up to Sacramento.