Washington DC to San Diego

[Royal Blue]

Other Half and I recently finished our Washington, DC – San Diego – Los Angeles trip on the Capitol Limited, Southwest Chief, and the Pacific Surfliner. All in all, a good trip. All trains were essentially on time, not a DEA agent to be found, and we had some of the best dinner companions ever.

Part 1 – Capitol Limited

We left Washington Union Station on Friday afternoon on the Capitol Limited. Our previous experience on this route (also leaving on a Friday afternoon) last October was not optimal – we got caught in the hours-long delays in Ohio and Indiana, and arrived in Chicago 11 hours late. This trip was much different and better. Our SCA was Emmanuel (Manny), who judging by his accent is African, although we didn't ask. He had been our SCA on the previous trip. We noted that he looked much better rested this time; those long delays last fall must have been terrible for the OBS crews. Manny took impeccable care of his car; he's not really the type to help out in the diner or anything, though. Our waiter was Myles – he was on his own in the dining car, although one of the other attendants helped out during dinner. We were impressed with how well Myles held it together. We enjoyed our first experience with an observation car and the Trails to Rails program. The Trails to Rails guide, Dave, donned a coonskin cap and gave us some fine stories about the area between Harper's Ferry and Cumberland.

The train rolled into Chicago only about 15 minutes late. We overnighted in Chicago since neither of us had ever been outside of O'Hare or Union Station. The downtown Chicago architecture is fabulous! We were fortunate to be able to check into our room at Club Quarters early, then proceeded to the Art Institute of Chicago to admire some favorite works in person. Dinner, following advice from the AU forum, was at Giordano's. The place was crowded, so we sat at the bar and had excellent service from a couple of very attentive bartenders. The deep dish pizza was as advertized.

A dinner companion had asked us if we were going to see the Bean. We originally thought not, because we didn't think there was much to it, but on the way back from a good breakfast at Wildberry Pancakes and Cafe (saving Lou Mitchell's for another trip), we stopped to look at the Bean. And, within 30 seconds, were having a fine time taking selfies in the Bean's reflective surface. Later, we popped into the Chicago Cultural Center across from Millennium Park, and were astonished at the beauty of the two Tiffany domes and the stunning mosaic work. This place gives the Library of Congress Jefferson Building a run for its money.

Back to Chicago Union Station to board the Southwest Chief. More to come...

 

[Bob Dylan]

Sounds like a great trip, thanks for sharing! Looking forward to the next chapter in your excellent adventure!

 

[Royal Blue]

Part 2 – Southwest Chief

On the Southwest Chief, Other Half and I had roomettes across the hall from each other (thanks again, AU forum, for the suggestion!) The two roomettes together were actually less expensive than a bedroom. We have always shared a roomette, but for this longer ride, we thought we would enjoy a little more space. Our SCA was the friendly and efficient Dorothy, based out of Los Angeles. For our first dinner on the Chief, we were seated with a nice retired couple from Southern California, and as soon as we sat down, the train came to a stop, just before crossing the bridge over the Mississippi River, and stayed stopped until after we had finished our dessert. We didn't have moving scenery during dinner, but it's hard to complain about the beautiful view of the Mississippi that we enjoyed. I had the salmon entree, as I had done on the Capitol Limited on Friday night. I'm not really a salmon fan, but it was excellent both times, gently cooked and topped with a nice lemon butter sauce. I also had the new tiramisu dessert, which was good, but not as good as the chocolate mousse dessert I had last fall – multiple times.

Our servers were Janine and Bobby, once again with a little help from the attendants. This crew really seemed to pull together to help each other out. Janine was thoroughly in control, announcing reservations over the loudspeaker as spaces opened. Bobby seemed pretty stressed, particularly the first dinner and breakfast, so he focused mainly on drinks and carrying food. We had a pretty good after-dinner conversation going with our dinner companions as we crossed the Mississippi, and I guess Bobby was worried he wouldn't get everybody fed, so he gave us the boot shortly after we had finished our desserts and coffee. I couldn't tell if Bobby is always stressed, or if he was just having a tough run.

I noticed that the tracks were rough overnight through Kansas, except for a short stretch before Dodge City, where we rolled along so quietly that we had to be on welded rail. After breakfast, Other Half and I repaired to the observation car to be sure to have good seats for the Raton Pass, our primary purpose for taking the Southwest Chief. Lots of farmland in Kansas and Colorado, gradually changing to the red dirt and scrub pine forests of New Mexico. Beautiful scenery all the way through New Mexico.



We were pleased to note on the front of the Raton Ranch Store that the residents of the town had access to everything they might need there, including coffins.



I was looking for semaphores all the way across the Raton pass, but only saw a couple, somewhere around Las Vegas, NM. I wasn't fast enough to get pictures.

We had some old reliables for lunch and dinner – salad and burger for lunch, steak for dinner. The dinner sides the second night weren't the best prepared, but after a day of idleness, neither of us had big appetites, anyway. Other Half called this trip a cruise on rails – all we did was watch scenery, eat, sleep, and read. Our lunch and dinner companions were veteran riders and very enjoyable to dine with.

I noticed that many of the old Southwest style Santa Fe Railway depots are still in existence and well-maintained, many still bearing the Santa Fe Railway logo. I don't recall any Amshacks on this route.

We rolled into Los Angeles almost half an hour early, dropped our baggage in the Metropolitan Lounge, and headed for Philippe's. It was only 9 a.m., but the Philippe's counter lady was kind enough to put together a couple of French dip sandwiches for us – we shared a beef sandwich and a fresh-out-of-the-oven lamb sandwich. Both were quite tasty. Then off to poke around Little Tokyo a bit before going back to the Metropolitan Lounge to wait for our Surfliner.

Despite our being coach passengers on the Pacific Surfliner, the Metropolitan Lounge attendant wouldn't hear of letting us walk to the gate to board, so we were driven to our train by a redcap. Unfortunately the redcap told us wrong as to which side to sit on for the best ocean views, so we had to change sides after leaving Los Angeles. We worked it out and enjoyed the views of the ocean from the train. We disembarked at Old Town, not far from where my friend works.

San Diego highlights included Kansas City Barbecue – yeah, the movie “Top Gun” was partially filmed there and it is full of movie stuff, but the barbecue doesn't even need all that. It's some of the best pulled pork I have had in a long time, and Other Half was well pleased with his brisket. We saw a fraction of the Balboa Park museums, including the model railroad museum. The model railroad museum contains several large layouts in different sizes, with amazing detail. One of the builders told us that all of the rails and individual crossties are laid by hand. I could have spent a whole day there admiring the layouts.



We climbed back on the Surfliner the following day, this time getting on the correct side of the train for the view, and returned to Los Angeles Union Station. We caught a Flyaway bus to LAX without difficulty, and (reluctantly) boarded an eastbound flight. We would have loved to take the train back, but unfortunately our vacation time is limited. This trip went too fast, but we are already looking forward to our next long distance trip.

 

[Railroad Bill]

Great trip report. We have had Manny on the Capitol numerous times and he is one of the best. Glad you enjoyed your Chief ride. It is second to us only after the Zephyr. And a Surfliner to San Diego is also another fine ride.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Thanks for sharing,glad y'all had a great trip! I'm sure you are already thinking about your next rail adventure!

 

[shelzp]

I enjoyed following along on your trip! Good report!!