Saxman's Amtrak USA Tour 2009!

[saxman]

Day 14- February 24, 2009

Wisconsin Dells Arrival

8,632 miles down

After sleeping fairly well through Minnesota, I awoke when we were stopped in St. Paul. Normally I would have gotten up to see the station, but I was still tired so I just slept some more. After we pulled out of St. Paul, I got dressed and headed to the diner for breakfast. This time I had the French toast while I watched the Mississippi River go by. This would be my third time on the trip to see the river, yet this time the river was frozen over. The route follows the Mississippi all the way to La Crosse, Wisconsin where it crosses over and heads toward Milwaukee and then Chicago. My stop would be however Wisconsin Dells for a day. I have another friend in the Dells, so I thought I would make this a stop over point.

The train arrived right after noon. Wisconsin Dells is a smaller town in central Wisconsin right on the Wisconsin River. It is a popular tourist spot known for its recreations, such as water parks, amusements, and your other typical tourist traps. I took a short cab ride to my hotel, and hung out with my friend later that evening. Even though I love sleeping on the train, its nice to have a real bed.

Day 15- February 25, 2009

Lazy day in the Dells

 

[saxman]

Day 16- February 26, 2009

Back on the Rails, Chicago and South

The Empire Builder arrived at about 12:50 pm again for my trip to Chicago. My on time streak had ended as the train was running about 45 minutes late. I didn’t worry though because it would still leave me time to make my connection in Chicago. Even though the trip to Chicago was only about 3 hours I still had a sleeping car for this part of the trip. The couple across from me was very interested to here about my trip. They were new to Amtrak and they were going from Montana all the way to Orlando, Florida. They wanted me to show them how to get to the Metropolitan Lounge in the Chicago and I also told them about the lounge in Washington DC, as that was their next connection to Florida. Even though I was also going to Florida, I was taking a different train through West Virginia. I had a quick lunch in the diner after leaving the Dells. All I had was a salad with tuna, as I wasn’t very hungry. Later the train made stops in Milwaukee and finally arrived into Chicago at about 4:20 pm, only about 25 minutes late. I showed my new friends the way to the lounge where I waited for about 45 minutes for the boarding of my next train. During then I was able to catch up on a few emails and such.

Soon they were announcing boarding for my next train, The Cardinal, which would take me to Charlottesville, Virginia. This train is probably not one of Amtrak’s best trains, but I like the scenery along the way. It’s a rather short train and carries only a few coaches and a sleeper. My meals would be simply microwaved, so the food was not all that great either as there is no real dining car on this train. My sleeping car was on the end of the train, where I found my room and got settled in. We departed Chicago right at 5:45 pm and I went straight to the café for dinner. For being microwaved, my braised beef actually was not too bad. It came with mashed potatoes and vegetables on the side. I sat by myself though. Afterwards I relaxed in my sleeper for another hour or two before calling it a night again.

Day 17- February 27, 2009

The New River Gorge and the Mountains of West Virginia

9,703 miles down

I must have slept well through the night, because next thing I knew, day was breaking over West Virginia. I didn’t really feel like getting up yet, so I stayed in my room for a bit to look out the window. Later we made a stop in Charleston where I stepped off for some air and of course pictures. My luck with the weather ended, as it was pouring rain there. Soon after we pulled out of Charleston it was time for breakfast. I had a cheese omlette, which was not good at all. The potatoes it came with weren’t good either. So I ate what I could and then headed back to the café car to enjoy the scenery.

Even though for the lousy food on this train, it probably has the best scenery east of the Mississippi. The route enters the New River Gorge area and travels along it for quite a ways. The river is a large river with large rapids and steep banks. Besides riding the train, the only other way down to it is to hike down into it or raft it. The train sure is easy but hiking or rafting sure would be fun too. Also one of the highest truss bridges in North America, US Highway 19, goes over the gorge. You can also easily see this from the train. Later the train weaves through the passes and makes several stops in small mountain towns along the way. It also passes by the famous Greenbriar Mountain Resort as the train enters Virginia.

After having lunch, I headed for the shower. It was probably the worst time to take a shower, because it was about the bumpiest ride yet. Changing clothes and washing your hair can be adventure sometimes on the train, all while being jerked and knocked around in a shower stall. Every time I let go of the handle, it seemed the train through me against the wall.

I survived my shower adventure and headed back to my room to get my things together. Charlottesville was coming up and I needed to be ready. We arrived there about 20 minutes late and there a bus was waiting to take me to Richmond, Virginia. From what I could see of the town, Charlottesville looks like a neat college town. You can see the campus of the University of Virginia from the train and it looks really nice. Soon we were on our way to Richmond on the bus. I slept most of the way. About an hour later, we pulled into town and it dropped us off at the Amtrak station. Here I would catch my next train, the Silver Meteor to Miami!

The station was pretty for being so small. It lays out in the suburbs, but there were several places to eat around. My layover would be about 5 hours. I was also glad to find that the station had wi-fi access, so I caught up on email and the normal internet things while I was there. I also walked down to the grocery store to get a bite to eat. I had some chicken and corn for 4 bucks. It filled me up though. Later I went back to the station to wait for my train. Soon it arrived and I was back on the rails leaving Richmond promptly at 9:50 pm.

My sleeper again was a single level car. This time I decided I would try the upper bunk because it has a second window up top for me to see out. It’s also nice have chairs below, without having to make the bed up or take it down all the time. The ride was pretty bumpy up there going south though. Finally I fell asleep and rested until about 8 o’clock.

 

[AlanB]

We made it to the car, and made our way back into downtown by way of a gas station. Chris told me that Oregon is the only state in the union that prohibits people from pumping their own gas! I had never heard this and I still wonder why this is. Sure enough we pulled up to the gas pump and the attendant pumped the gas for us. I suppose that’s a nice thing to have if its cold out.

Chris would be wrong. Oregon isn't the only state that prohibits people from pumping their own gas. New Jersey also still has such a law on the books.

 

[gswager]

Since there is always leftover wine, the attendant asked some trivia. I, of course, won the first bottle because the first question was which US State is the furthest east. Everyone should know its Alaska!

Alaska is the furthest west, not east. So I'm assuming that Maine is the furthest east, right?

 

[PRR 60]

Since there is always leftover wine, the attendant asked some trivia. I, of course, won the first bottle because the first question was which US State is the furthest east. Everyone should know its Alaska!

Alaska is the furthest west, not east. So I'm assuming that Maine is the furthest east, right?

Ah HA! It is kind of a trick question, and one that is loved by geography nerds (like me).

East and west, geographically, are demarcated by the 180deg longitude. Locations from east of 0 degrees to 180 are EAST, locations from west of 0 to 180 are WEST. The Aleutian Islands are part of the state of Alaska. The island chain extend across the 180deg longitude. The closest island on the west side of 180 (Semisopochnoi Island) is, in fact, in the eastern hemisphere. That island, located at 179 degrees, 46.5 minutes EAST is the eastern-most point in the USA.

Semisopochnoi Island

Another favorite question is:

Q: Of Reno, Los Angeles, and San Diego, which is the western-most city.

A: Reno

 

[amtrakwolverine]

We made it to the car, and made our way back into downtown by way of a gas station. Chris told me that Oregon is the only state in the union that prohibits people from pumping their own gas! I had never heard this and I still wonder why this is. Sure enough we pulled up to the gas pump and the attendant pumped the gas for us. I suppose that’s a nice thing to have if its cold out.

Chris would be wrong. Oregon isn't the only state that prohibits people from pumping their own gas. New Jersey also still has such a law on the books.

why is that. here in Michigan its rare to see gas stations with FULL and self service. there all self serve.

 

[AAARGH!]

Since there is always leftover wine, the attendant asked some trivia. I, of course, won the first bottle because the first question was which US State is the furthest east. Everyone should know its Alaska!

Alaska is the furthest west, not east. So I'm assuming that Maine is the furthest east, right?

Ah HA! It is kind of a trick question, and one that is loved by geography nerds (like me).

East and west, geographically, are demarcated by the 180deg longitude. Locations from east of 0 degrees to 180 are EAST, locations from west of 0 to 180 are WEST. The Aleutian Islands are part of the state of Alaska. The island chain extend across the 180deg longitude. The closest island on the west side of 180 (Semisopochnoi Island) is, in fact, in the eastern hemisphere. That island, located at 179 degrees, 46.5 minutes EAST is the eastern-most point in the USA.

Semisopochnoi Island

Another favorite question is:

Q: Of Reno, Los Angeles, and San Diego, which is the western-most city.

A: Reno

Alaska is the Western most, Northern most, and eastern Most. Of course the Southern most is Hawaii.

Another geographic question:

If you are in downtown Detroit and you go due south, what is the next country (other than the U.S. of course) you would enter?

A: Canada. Windsor, ON is south of downtown Detroit as the Detroit River makes an S-curve with Windsor inside the lower part of the S. This one is fun at parties (well, at leat the parties I go to :huh: ).

 

[GG-1]

Since there is always leftover wine, the attendant asked some trivia. I, of course, won the first bottle because the first question was which US State is the furthest east. Everyone should know its Alaska!

Alaska is the furthest west, not east. So I'm assuming that Maine is the furthest east, right?

Ah HA! It is kind of a trick question, and one that is loved by geography nerds (like me).

East and west, geographically, are demarcated by the 180deg longitude. Locations from east of 0 degrees to 180 are EAST, locations from west of 0 to 180 are WEST. The Aleutian Islands are part of the state of Alaska. The island chain extend across the 180deg longitude. The closest island on the west side of 180 (Semisopochnoi Island) is, in fact, in the eastern hemisphere. That island, located at 179 degrees, 46.5 minutes EAST is the eastern-most point in the USA.

Semisopochnoi Island

Another favorite question is:

Q: Of Reno, Los Angeles, and San Diego, which is the western-most city.

A: Reno

Alaska is the Western most, Northern most, and eastern Most. Of course the Southern most is Hawaii.

Another geographic question:

If you are in downtown Detroit and you go due south, what is the next country (other than the U.S. of course) you would enter?

A: Canada. Windsor, ON is south of downtown Detroit as the Detroit River makes an S-curve with Windsor inside the lower part of the S. This one is fun at parties (well, at leat the parties I go to :huh: ).

But Wait, If Alaska can count all the islands, what about the 1500 islands in the Hawaii chain, That is a lot of area. And dont forget we are growing a new Island east of Hawaii

 

[Chi_Train_Fan]

Chris would be wrong. Oregon isn't the only state that prohibits people from pumping their own gas. New Jersey also still has such a law on the books.

No trouble pumping my own gas in Parsippany, NJ in September 2008. I find these laws annoying as I have also been for a fill up in Portland, OR. All rental cars. I do not want to wait on an attendant, and they certainly do not earn a tip for something that I would normally do myself.

David

Chicago, IL

 

[Chi_Train_Fan]

Chris would be wrong. Oregon isn't the only state that prohibits people from pumping their own gas. New Jersey also still has such a law on the books.

No trouble pumping my own gas in Parsippany, NJ in September 2008. I find these laws annoying as I have also been for a fill up in Portland, OR. All rental cars. I do not want to wait on an attendant, and they certainly do not earn a tip for something that I would normally do myself.

David

Chicago, IL

The Google told me you were right Alan. I guess that's why I had some guy offer to help. I thought that was weird. I knew about the law in Oregon, but not in New Jersey. Guess I broke the law!

 

[saxman]

Day 18- February 28, 2009

Arrival into Miami, Florida! 10,758 miles down

Somewhere during the middle of the night, just two miles outside of Florence, South Carolina, I hit a huge milestone for this trip. 10,000 miles! I was fast asleep during this momentous occasion so I didn’t really get to celebrate. The train kept time throughout the night and I awoke just as we were coming into Florida. Jacksonville would be the first stop in the Sunshine State.

During breakfast I sat across from a lady who was going to Miami to bring her mother back to New York. She does the train often and mentioned she wants to take the train out west. Well who better to tell her about the trains out west, than yours truly. I told her to make a big circle from her home in New York, and then go New Orleans, Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, then back home. She wrote it down and said she was going to do it. I’m glad I can make more people ride the train more often.

After breakfast, the train pulled into Jacksonville for about 30 minutes. I stepped off again as usual to check out the station. Since the station is just north of downtown, there isn’t much to see. Soon we were on way south again making stops in Winter Park, a suburb of Orlando then Orlando itself. This of course is a popular destination for all the theme parks around such as Disney World. We continued south again, through many of Florida’s orange groves. They really seemed to be ripening because there were oranges on just about every tree I saw. Other then orange groves, the scenery in Florida is not all exciting; at least from the train. But we did speed along at a brisk pace on our way to Miami!

Finally the train reaches the South Florida coast with a stop in West Palm Beach. From here it would be smooth sailing as the train makes several stops, yet only lets people off the train. This way, delays are minimized by not having to reload. Local passengers can take the Tri-Rail, which makes frequent trips between West Palm Beach and Miami. After stopping in Fort Lauderdale, and Hollywood, we finally arrived into Miami. I split a cab with the same lady I had breakfast with to go to Miami Beach. There I checked into my hostel, the Ohana Hostel on 4th Street, just a few blocks from the beach. They were serving dinner at the time so I helped myself to a free hotdog. My room was pretty plain. I met two French guys who were staying in my room also. They were staying in Miami for a week to lay on the beach and also see other things like the Florida Keys. The hostel had a nice patio so I stayed there for a while before going to bed. I didn’t really feel like going out that night. I was too tired.

Day 19- March 1, 2009

It’s March. To the beach!

During the day, I went to beach and swam in the Atlantic Ocean. It was great! It was a little cloudy but the sun did poke through often. It was a nice day to be there. I also walked along Ocean Drive, with the numerous restaurants and fancy cars parked in front. I had a quick bite a Johnny Rockets, a 50’s diner. It was good because it was a lot cheaper then all the other places. After lunch, I went to the beach again for a bit. And I didn’t even get burned.

Later that night, I met some of the other hostellers at the free dinner. They were cooking up barbeque chicken and it turned out to be really good….or so I thought.

 

[AlanB]

To Mark in Hong Kong,

While I understand your reasons for making your post in this topic, it really is the wrong place for it. This forum is for trip reports, not for advice on picking the best route. It would take the ongoing reporting being done by Saxman way off course if lots of people were to respond to you here. Additionally, you'll most likely get far more advice with the post in the correct forum than you would here.

You can find your post by clicking here.

 

[p&sr]

Another geographic question:
If you are in downtown Detroit and you go due south, what is the next country (other than the U.S. of course) you would enter?

A: Canada.

That's a good one. Here's another. Suppose you are in Northern California, just north of Crescent City, in the Town of Smith River (where all the Easter Lilies come from). What would be the next country you would enter if you head due east?

Answer: Canada. That same area around Windsor.

Therefore California (part of it, anyway) is just as far North as (part of) Canada.

Next question: Is any part of California as far east as Wyoming?

Anwer: Yes! Cabo San Lucas (down in the Tropics) at the tip of Baja California is farther east than Yellowstone National Park in the State of Wyoming.

 

[GG-1]

Aloha

My burning question :huh: can you get to all the places listed by train?

Mahalo

Eric

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

Saxman, your reports have made for fascinating reading and I have found myself looking forward to your ongoing installments. Now I'm really in suspense as I fear something dreadful is going to result from that free chicken dinner

 

[Long Train Runnin']

Chris would be wrong. Oregon isn't the only state that prohibits people from pumping their own gas. New Jersey also still has such a law on the books.

No trouble pumping my own gas in Parsippany, NJ in September 2008. I find these laws annoying as I have also been for a fill up in Portland, OR. All rental cars. I do not want to wait on an attendant, and they certainly do not earn a tip for something that I would normally do myself.

David

Chicago, IL

I live in NJ and yeah you never tip the gas station attendant I honestly don't know how to pump gas... although I suspect I could handle it lol. And yeah the attendants get all nervous and weird when you get out of your car before they start to fuel.

 

[saxman]

Hahaha, didn't know I was keeping everyone in such suspence. Well fear not, I'm still alive and well.

Day 20- March 2, 2009

Back North and not feeling too well.

That chicken must have not been cooked, because I wasn’t feeling too hot the next morning. I arose about 5:30 in order to take a bus to the train station. It was a sleepless night because the hostel beds were lumpy and all they gave us was a sheet and one thin pillow. I at least need two pillows to prop my head up, but I prefer three, so I can hold the other. I guess I’m picky. Plus it wasn’t exactly warm in the room. So I used my jacket as another blanket. I may as well have been camping out, but this was worse.

After checking out, I walked down to the 24 hour CVS Pharmacy to get some water. Maybe I would feel better. It helped a little. From there I caught the M bus line toward downtown Miami where that would connect me with the MetroRail. Once I figured it out, it was pretty easy. But the Metro station near the Amtrak station isn’t really close either. I could have taken another bus, but just walked the 4 blocks with two suitcases to the station. I probably wouldn’t have want to take the walk it at night though. It wasn’t exactly Miami’s best part of town. It seemed ok during the day though.

I got to the station, which I might add is almost exactly the same layout and design as St. Paul, Minnesota’s station. There, I checked my bag all the way to Boston for my next layover. They have a little room set aside just for sleeping car passengers. It was small but adequate. I was feeling a little bit better, so I went ahead to board the train when they called. This was the one time I was really glad to have a bed to lay down on. Just after leaving Miami I made the top bunk up and climbed in to get some sleep. Since Florida wasn’t the most scenic from the train, I knew I wouldn’t miss much.

Back on the Silver Meteor, the train departed right on time at 8:40. I slept some after leaving and woke back up coming into Orlando. The CSX Railroad had starting doing track work along the route, so we were slow moving through out. We ended up in Orlando about an hour late. I had lunch in the dining car and later had dinner. It was a pretty crowded train this time, because Florida is popular this time of year with the Northeasterners. I always like a packed dining car though. It makes for some good times and good conversation. (And yes, I do actually talk to my fellow passengers….well sometimes) After dinner, I headed back to get some sleep early. Hopefully I could feel somewhat better. It was definitely that chicken that didn’t go down right.

 

[saxman]

Day 21- March 3, 2009

Up the Northeast Corridor

I slept pretty well throughout the night. Somehow the train made up the time it lost in Florida, so we were only about 15 minutes late arriving into Washington DC. The Northeast had just gotten hit by a huge snowstorm, so everything was white with lots of snow. Luckily the sun was out, so it made for great morning pictures, coming into the DC area.

I got off the train for my second layover in DC. It still wasn’t very much fun as I was still not cured from my bad chicken. Although I felt fine- lets just put it this way…I had to take many trips to the bathroom on the Northeast Regional train. Luckily a bathroom wasn’t too far away in my transit to Boston.

I waited again in the lounge for my next regional train to Boston. Since this is the busy Northeast Corridor, there’s no sleeper service here. I was able to get business class however. Now you would think, since Amtrak owns the rail lines on the Northeast Corridor I would be on time. But my trip to Boston actually was my worst train yet! This was most likely due to the snowstorm though. We left Washington DC about an hour late. I tried to get some sleep in my business class seat, but didn’t have too much luck. The seats are a little hard, and don’t really conform to my body surprisingly. If I had the choice I could have taken the Acela, Amtrak’s highspeed train service. But Amtrak charges a premium for that service, so I chose to skip it for this trip. The train travels through Philadelphia, then New York City. Then it makes its way along the coast of Connecticut. It’s actually a pretty scenic ride, as you can see out to Long Island Sound and many beaches. At Rhode Island it turns north and makes a stop in Providence. It was here where we got even more delayed. Apparently, on a bridge ahead, there had been a car accident over the rail line. Emergency crews were on the rail line, so they would not let any trains pass. They also had to send a bridge inspector out to make sure there was no damage. Finally after an hour of sitting in Providence we were able to depart for Boston. The train pulled into Boston South Station at about 8 pm. Nearly and hour and a half late. Oh well, can’t win them all.

Since my sister, Bronwyn, lives in Boston, I would stay with her. I caught the Red Line and then the Green Line out to her school where I could meet up with her. Later she took me home where I turned in for the night. She lives in a house where she rents out a room from another couple. I guess to save money they refuse to use any heat during the winter. So staying in a 55 degree house wearing your overcoat is not fun. Luck I had my 0 degree sleeping bag there, so it actually kept me nice and toasty.

 

[saxman]

Day 22- March 4, 2009

All day in Boston

I spent most of the day driving around Boston. Since my sister had class most of the day, I was able to steal her car to drive around town. I went to South Station to pick up my checked bag also. Since my regional train from Washington, did not offer checked bag service, it arrived on a later train that morning. I also took a drive outside of the Boston area and made a big loop. I’ve seen the cities, but never get to see outside the areas. Later I met my sister for dinner and then went back home for the night.

Day 23- March 5, 2009

Round trip to Portland, Maine.

Since the theme of my trip is hitting all corners of the US by train, I figure I’d better get more extreme and go even farther north to Portland Maine. Amtrak offers several trips a day to Portland, on it’s Downeaster service. Bronwyn drove me to the Boston North Station so I could make the 11:05 am departure. It’s quick two and half hour trip up, and I was also excited to find out, the Downeaster train offers free wireless internet! I had never seen wireless on board a train before, so I was eager to see it work. Luckily I had my laptop. Hopefully this service spreads soon to other trains in the system soon. After an hour layover in Portland I was back on the train coming back. It was a little cold to go explore the city, plus I had already seen the city before.

After arriving in Boston, I met my sister again for dinner and later headed back home. I’d be back on the rails again tomorrow!

 

[MrFSS]

Day 21- March 3, 2009Up the Northeast Corridor

I slept pretty well throughout the night. Somehow the train made up the time it lost in Florida, so we were only about 15 minutes late arriving into Washington DC. The Northeast had just gotten hit by a huge snowstorm, so everything was white with lots of snow. Luckily the sun was out, so it made for great morning pictures, coming into the DC area.

I got off the train for my second layover in DC. It still wasn’t very much fun as I was still not cured from my bad chicken. Although I felt fine- lets just put it this way…I had to take many trips to the bathroom on the Northeast Regional train. Luckily a bathroom wasn’t too far away in my transit to Boston.

I waited again in the lounge for my next regional train to Boston. Since this is the busy Northeast Corridor, there’s no sleeper service here. I was able to get business class however. Now you would think, since Amtrak owns the rail lines on the Northeast Corridor I would be on time. But my trip to Boston actually was my worst train yet! This was most likely due to the snowstorm though. We left Washington DC about an hour late. I tried to get some sleep in my business class seat, but didn’t have too much luck. The seats are a little hard, and don’t really conform to my body surprisingly. If I had the choice I could have taken the Acela, Amtrak’s highspeed train service. But Amtrak charges a premium for that service, so I chose to skip it for this trip. The train travels through Philadelphia, then New York City. Then it makes its way along the coast of Connecticut. It’s actually a pretty scenic ride, as you can see out to Long Island Sound and many beaches. At Rhode Island it turns north and makes a stop in Providence. It was here where we got even more delayed. Apparently, on a bridge ahead, there had been a car accident over the rail line. Emergency crews were on the rail line, so they would not let any trains pass. They also had to send a bridge inspector out to make sure there was no damage. Finally after an hour of sitting in Providence we were able to depart for Boston. The train pulled into Boston South Station at about 8 pm. Nearly and hour and a half late. Oh well, can’t win them all.

Since my sister, Bronwyn, lives in Boston, I would stay with her. I caught the Red Line and then the Green Line out to her school where I could meet up with her. Later she took me home where I turned in for the night. She lives in a house where she rents out a room from another couple. I guess to save money they refuse to use any heat during the winter. So staying in a 55 degree house wearing your overcoat is not fun. Luck I had my 0 degree sleeping bag there, so it actually kept me nice and toasty.

Chris - hope you're feeling better, now. When do we get to see the pictures?

 

[saxman]

Day 24- March 6, 2009

Back West and all better again.

This would be a busy day for me. I had several things to do before my 11:55 am departure and needed to be ready. My sister, Bronwyn, was going to catch a flight home from Boston that morning, so I was up early to drive her in her car to the airport. Since Boston South Station and Logan Airport are right near each other, I thought I should take my bags to check them in. That would avoid me having to drag two suitcases onto The T, Boston’s subway system. And if you’ve ever driven in the city of Boston, you know that it’s easy to get confused and also that the traffic is bad. After dropping her off I eventually to South Station to check in my bag. I knew where the station was. It was getting to it was the hard part. I eventually got there after circling downtown several times and parked in the parking garage. It was only two dollars for 30 minutes, so I could handle that. After getting my tickets, I realized there was a mistake. I was suppose to go to California in a sleeper, but someone booked me in coach for the trip to Chicago! Since I used my Amtrak rewards points for this ticket, the ticket agent would not help me. So I could have to call them to get things straightened out.

When I left the parking lot to drive back home, the attendant told me I owed 7 dollars. What!? According to him I had been there 31 minutes. After 30 minutes, the price goes up to 7 dollars! I pleaded with the man to just let me pay the 2 dollars, but he wouldn’t let me out without paying 7 dollars for staying merely one minute longer. Great! I wasn’t too happy with him and stormed off. Eventually I got back to my sister’s house to park the car and again walk to The T, for my trip back to South Station. I also made a call to the Amtrak Guest Rewards and was able to get my ticket straightened out. Even then I still had a hard time doing that! After a 20 minute walk and a 30 minute subway ride, I was back at South Station, ready to relax in the lounge. Boston has one of the nicest lounges to wait in, so I enjoy using it as much as possible. I caught up on the usual email and internet surfing while I recovered from the mornings crazy activities.

Finally it was time to board my train to Albany and then Chicago, the Lake Shore Limited. The Lake Shore Limited makes runs between Chicago and New York, with some cars splitting in Albany to run to Boston. However, they don’t offer a sleeping car from Boston to Albany so I had to rough it out in coach until Albany. Here another friend, Anthony, was able to join me for part of the trip. Like Bill whom I had met in Atlanta, I had met Anthony at both of the gatherings in Chicago and Los Angeles. He was able to get away from school to ride the train with me to Worcester and then catch another train back. Likewise we talked about trains and such, and then he stepped off in Worcester and he went on his way.

I relaxed and wrote some on the rest of the way to Albany. I was pretty surprised how hilly and scenic Massachusetts really was. Onedifference about the east and the west are the number of trees. The trees make it difficult to get good shots from the train because they block the view. I was looking forward to get back out west again for some good pictures. That’s not to say the East doesn’t have any mountains or other scenery. It’s just hard to capture it in a camera while on a train going 79 miles per hour.

Soon the train arrived in Albany where I had about a 2 hour layover. We had to wait for the train from New York to arrive to hook onto the back of the Boston train. It also had my sleeping car on it. Luckily, Albany has a very nice station to wait in complete with a coffee shop, newsstand, a full service post office, and free wireless internet. The post office really came in handy, because I had to mail my tickets back to Amtrak Guest Rewards, for the mistake they had made. I’m glad they were still open on Friday evening because they were just about to close. Hopefully they will refund my points as soon as possible. I need to use them to get home!

I waited longer in the station, and finally the Lake Shore Limited from New York arrived. They did a couple quick maneuvers to hook the two trains together, and soon I was on my way down to board my sleeper. I was in for a special treat because on this trip, I was upgraded to a larger bedroom, complete with a toilet, sink, shower, and much larger bed. I was surprised. Although I don’t think it had anything to do with my messed up reservation, Amtrak called to tell me something was wrong with my original room. I guess no other smaller rooms were available, so I got a free upgrade. I guess that made up for my messed up reservations as well as the parking lot attendant who wouldn’t give me a break for being parked one minute over.

After the train departed Albany it was already dark outside. I made my way to the dining car for a quick dinner. I had the braised beef while I sat alone. It was pretty good though. Soon, I was back in my spacious room to take a shower before heading to bed.

 

[saxman]

Day 25- March 7, 2009

Back in Chicago and to the Zephyr!

13,627 miles down

I awoke near Elkhart, Indiana while I lay in bed not really wanting to get up. I was enjoying my nice wide bed. Finally I got up to have a quick breakfast. This time it was French toast again, which was just like every other French toast I’ve had on this trip. (Can you tell I’m getting bored with some of the meals?) After a station stop in South Bend, we soon pulled into Chicago Union Station at 9:45 am, right on time again.

I made the usual shuffle over to the Metropolitan Lounge to again wait for my next train, the California Zephyr. There I caught up on the latest episode of The Office and tried to update my trip reports. Yet later the wi-fi connection went out for the rest of the afternoon and I couldn’t use the internet at all. Oh well. I decided to go grab some lunch. This time I walked down to another train station in Chicago, the Ogilvie Transportation Center. This serves some of Chicago’s Metra commuter trains, and has a great food court. It’s only about 2 blocks from Union Station. After a small bite to eat, I walked over to a CVS store for a few essentials and made my way back to Union Station. It was a foggy and rainy day in Chicago, so it wasn’t much fun for sightseeing. Plus the few dozen times I’ve been there, doesn’t make it all exciting as much anymore.

I continued to wait in the Metropolitan Lounge for my departure. Still no luck with the internet working. I talked with another man who was catching the Capitol Limited toward Washington later that evening. Turns out he was just hired by Amtrak to work as an Assistant Conductor out of his home in Carbondale, Illinois. He was going to spend 10 weeks in Wilmington, Delaware for training. This was only his third trip on a train before, but he seemed to be excited to have gotten a good job. I guess Amtrak and other railroads want fresh people off the street with little railroad experience. I always wonder if I would get hired, being such a railfan. He also told me told me about the how long the hiring process was, with tests, background checks, and credit checks. They even asked him why he was late on a cable bill several years ago. Geeze, my airline interview wasn’t even like that. It only took a matter of days, and I was sitting in training. And I’m sure they didn’t check my credit.

After chatting with him for a few minutes, they called us for boarding of the California Zephyr, enroute to the San Francisco Bay Area. I was in room 10 on the 532 car. My attendant was named Reggie and he did his normal introduction, and soon we were on our way out of Chicago. Soon afterward, I fell asleep sitting up in my compartment for about an hour or so. Since I had already seen this on the Southwest Chief, I didn’t really mind missing that part of Illinois. We sped down the tracks at a nice speed and later crossed the Mississippi River as we pulled into Burlington, Iowa. This was my fourth crossing of the river. The sun was just going down and I headed to the diner for a 7 o’clock dinner. I decided to have the special, which was pork loin and vegetables. The pork was a little tough, but I enjoyed. After dinner I headed back to my room to look out the window to see the farmlands of Iowa in the moonlight. It was still pouring down rain as we rolled across the plains. The train soon pulled into Omaha at about 10:30 pm, where I stepped off for a bit. After that I headed to bed for the night.

 

[saxman]

Day 26- March 8, 2009

Rocky Mountains and Moffat Tunnel

Early in the morning again I awoke going through Eastern Colorado just outside of Denver. The rain had stopped and it was a sunny cloudless day. I sat in my room to wake up and watch the sunrise before watching our approach into Denver’s Union Station. Despite the hour we lost during the night we somehow had made up a good half hour already. During the night, Daylight Savings time kicked in so as always you have to “spring forward” the clocks. So then we were all of a sudden late. However, I didn’t have to change anything, because right after Daylight Savings began at 2 am, the train crossed from Nebraska in Colorado meaning we gained an hour again. So my watch stayed the same.

I watched the approach into Denver as the train makes a sharp turn to the right and then backs into the station. This is so it can head straight out leaving as it joins another line going into the mountains. Denver has a nice station right in downtown… Or so I’ve heard at least. I never had to time to actually go into the station, so I just stepped off onto the platform for some fresh air and the usual photo op. After a quick runaround the train I got back on to get ready for breakfast. I had the French toast again, which was just the same as every other French toast I’ve had on this trip. They’re nice big thick slices of bread so they’re actually quite tasty. During then we were speeding through the northern suburbs of Denver to get ready for the ascent into the Rocky Mountains. I sat with two guys, one going skiing in Winter Park and the other going to see his parents in Glenwood Springs. We made the normal train banter before I headed to the lounge car.

After the normal meal chat, I headed to lounge car to a good view of the terrain. This is where the California Zephyr, which is probably one of Amtrak’s most scenic routes, starts to…get scenic. The line makes several sharp horseshoe type curves as it ascends into the Rockies. You can clearly see the city of Denver in the background as the train makes it way up the ridge and finally turns into the mountain range. This is when the lounge car gets crowded usually. Naturally every seat was taken but one, so I took it right away. I got several shots and soon we were about to enter Moffat Tunnel. This 6.2 mile long tunnel is the longest rail tunnel in the US. It sits right on the continental divide. As soon as you exit the tunnel, Winter Park Ski Resort is right outside. The train travels right through the resort and you can see all the lifts and skiers taking a ride and coming back down. About 10 minutes later the train makes its station stop for the resort and neighboring town of Fraser, Colorado.

We continued through the Rocky Mountains, following the river and then following Interstate 70. It was great to have the sun shining the whole day. We stopped in Glenwood Springs later. Glenwood Springs is a really neat town right in the canyon. Hopefully I can stop there one day. Later on the route, we made a stop at Grand Junction, where there’s a gift shop right on the platform for passengers. I stepped off and bought a few post cards before being off again. Since the room across from me was now empty, I often sneak in there to take a few photos out that window. Sometimes the scenery is better on the other side. For some reason my car attendant didn’t like me doing that. He said I had to stay in my room only, and not take photos from the other room- a room that was empty- that no one was scheduled to be in- where I wasn’t allowed to stick my head in to take a couple shots. I thought that was odd, as other attendants have actually said its ok to take photos from the other room. Following that incident I just made sure he wasn’t around before I stuck my head in there. He didn’t catch me after that.

Soon it was dinner time and I chose the 7 pm dinner seating again. This was the first time it was light during dinner as we had more daylight this time. Somehow, by luck of the draw I ended having to sit alone, while everyone else had at least several tablemates. So I ate my steak dinner quietly by myself and went to look out the window in my room of the Utah landscape. This time the moon was bright as it got dark so I shut my curtains and watched the scenery go by. Soon we would be in Salt Lake City. But before, I decided to turn in for the night. I was pretty tired so I decided not to step off. Somehow we made up all lost time by Salt Lake though.

 

[AlanB]

I talked with another man who was catching the Capitol Limited toward Washington later that evening. Turns out he was just hired by Amtrak to work as an Assistant Conductor out of his home in Carbondale, Illinois. He was going to spend 10 weeks in Wilmington, Delaware for training. This was only his third trip on a train before, but he seemed to be excited to have gotten a good job. I guess Amtrak and other railroads want fresh people off the street with little railroad experience. I always wonder if I would get hired, being such a railfan. He also told me told me about the how long the hiring process was, with tests, background checks, and credit checks. They even asked him why he was late on a cable bill several years ago. Geeze, my airline interview wasn’t even like that. It only took a matter of days, and I was sitting in training. And I’m sure they didn’t check my credit.

Conductors and assistant conductors handle money for Amtrak, hence the credit check. Pilots don't handle money for the airline and it's not like it's easy to steal the airplane and hide it somewhere or to sell it.

 

[PRR 60]

Great reports. It's like we're along for the ride.

One minor correction:

...I got several shots and soon we were about to enter Moffat Tunnel. This 6.2 mile long tunnel is the longest rail tunnel in the US. It sits right on the continental divide.

Moffat is the third longest rail tunnel in the USA. The longest rail tunnel, at 7.8 miles, is Cascade Tunnel on the BNSF in Washington State. Second is Flathead Tunnel, 7 miles, also on BNSF, this one in Montana. Both are on the Empire Builder route, with Cascade on the Seattle section only.

Moffat does have the distinction of being the highest elevation reached by any Amtrak train - 9239 feet above sea level. You may have had some short-hop flights that did not get much higher than that.