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I was ticketed from NYP-JAX-LAX-OKJ-PDX-NYP Of course Hurricane Katrina came and the tracks were closed from Jacksonville to San Antonio, so the day I was to leave Saturday August 27th I called Amtrak and was re routed through Chicago on the Lake Shore and the Texas Eagle to LA. I m very glad I was able to get the sleeper from Chicago to LA.
As always the Lake Shore Limited was packed. I was in coach to Chicago. I don't understand why they pack all the Chicago passengers in the last coach of the trainset...furthest from the dining car, and no electrical outlets. I always enjoy the ride up the Hudson. If you take the train northbound sit on the left. The Albany-Rennsaleer(sp) station is newly renovated. It s a nice place to spend time betweem trains.
We got into Chicagos Union Station on time on Sunday the 28th. The Metropolitan Lounge has been renovated since I was there last and they seem to be doing things right. It wasn't even that crowded this time. Many of us were watching the big screen TV tuned to the coverage of Katrina which was a day away from hitting New Orleans.
The Texas Eagle boarded on time. It s always such a pleasure to enter a sleeper. After a night in coach it was a welcome sight. We rolled along through Illinois and by 8:30 I was ready to call it a night. I try to sleep when it is dark so I can get as much daylight as I can. I did stay awake long enough to see the Arch in St Louis at night. What an impressive sight with the city in the background.
Monday morning and rolling through Arkansas. We were pointed out Bill Clintons birthplace in Hope and in Texarkana half the train was in Texas and the other half was In Arkansas. Dallas and then Fort Worth..a service stop. There is a lot of padding between Dallas and Fort Worth so we had almost an hour and a half there. I took the opportunity to do a little walking through the city. Straight south through Austin, where the capital building is higher than Washington and on time arrival in San Antonio. It is very easy to sleep in San Antonio considering we are stationary waiting a 5:30AM departure. However the Sunset Limited was not meeting our train from Florida. Train #1 was and I do believe still is originating in San Antonio, so our train was far from full.
I am not a smoker but I do enjoy the brief stops..a chance to stretch your legs and get some fresh air. El Paso is always a nice break. My biggest concern was scheduling my dinner so it didnt coincide with our El Paso stop. We were actually on time out of El Paso and for train #1 that was nothing short of incedible. However we did lose time near Tucson and ended up in LA about three hours late. I did enjoy seeing Palm Springs and the Coachella valley during daylight.
Arrival in LA at 1PM a little less than three hours late..or on time for #1 and the next leg of my journey was at 1:20AM on the Bakersfield bus..so of course I killed time by riding the Surfliner to Oceanside, which is right by the beach. Back in LA at 10..the Bakersfield bus after 1 and right on the early morning San Jouquin to Oakland. My next leg was #14 the Northbound Coast Starlight. I passed the day by taking the ferry into San Francisco. 14 was three hours late so it arrived at 1AM Friday morning. I knew we would be bussed from Klamath Falls, being I foolishly made a same day connection on the Empire Builder, but I did this months ago before 14 was having all sorts of timekeeping problems. Indeed we got off the bus in Klamath Falls four hours late and were on the way to Pasco to pick up #28. Lo and behold we had a flat tire miles from anywhere and we were stuck for close to three hours. The scenery through Central Oregon is beautiful. We were bussed to Spokane where we would catch 28. After an all night bus ride and an all night train ride in coach my sleeper was most welcome. I just wanted to make sure I was up early the next morning to get off in Whitefish and enjoy Glacier Park.
The Empire Builder has certainly improved. You could tell from the minute you stepped on board. The showers were greatly improved everything else seemed improved as well. Loved that afternoon wine and cheese tasting..now only if there was a Pacific Parlour type car. Havre, Williston ND and nightfall and on time arrival in Minenapolis-St Paul Sunday morning. I always enjoy the ride from St Paul through Minnesota and Wisconsin. What a nice feeling reading the Sunday paper with a cup of coffee in the sightseer lounge car watching the small towns on the Mississippi river go by. Everyone was thinking about what was happening at the other end of that great river in New Orleans. The hurricane and its aftermath was the dominant story through my trip. Reading USA today every morning brought all the horrifying events to us.
10 minute early to Chicago and two hours before I boarded the Capital Limited. I was going back to New York, but I already came out on the Lake Shore and wanted to do a different route, plus the Capital Limited, a superliner, is a much nicer train. My only repeat routes on my trip was the Surfliner back to LA from Oceanside and the route to Cleveland which is the same as the Lake Shore. Cleveland at 1AM, Pittsburgh at 4AM(what an ungodly time for a major stop) and the lovely scenery through Western Pa ,Maryland and West Virginia. Harpers Ferry is a pretty stop at the junction of three states: Md,Va and WVA.
We arrived on time to DC where I quickly boarded a very crowded regional to Penn Station in New York, thus bringing to a close another great Amtrak adventure.
I never tire of my Amtrak trips. I ve been riding the rails for 15 years having ridden all the major routes several times. This was one of my vacations..nine days on Amtrak..no hotels..just train riding. I always feel like Im in a fantasy world when I do these trips..no responsibilities,no pressure, just relaxation..and the simple pleasures of life are amplified so nicely on a train trip.
I work in radio and I always bring a boom box on my trip..not to listen to but to record different stations across the country. I number my cassettes and augment the stations..some of which I know, and others I don't with audio commentary and the obligitory train annoucements describing the scenery and the station stops. I think I recorded close to 50 of these tapes, and now I will edit them with songs I like, interesting station chatter and the like into a permanent audio rememberance of my 2005 Amtrak trip.
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Thanks so much for your trip report. I recently took the Coast Starlight to Portland and went eastbound on the Empire Builder myself, so much of what you said is bringing back my own happy memories!
I am curious, why did you take the bus to Bakersfield and the San Joaquins instead of the Pacific Surfliner to San Luis Obispo and Coast Starlight to Oakland? Is it because the Starlight is so late? I am planning on a CA trip in the future and just wondered.
Also, how did you get from Whitefish to see Glacier Park? Did you rent a car, or was there a bus? That is another stop I'd like to make some time.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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I took the sunset Limited to LA and knowing the constant tardiness of that train I booked a connecion I knewi would make..the 1:25AM Bakersfield bus. Since we were "only" three hours late I had the extra time to ride a surliner South. my time was limited to only 9 days and I wanted to use that time on the train with no hotels so I had a full day in theLA area and by taking the Bakersfield bus San Jouquin combination to Oakland that would give me a full day in San Francisco before catching 14 that night
I didn t leave the train in Whitefish. I just wanted to step off the train during the service stop and head to the Sightseer car and enjoy the scenery through Glacier on the Builder..
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Thanks for the info, Graynt. Were you able to sleep comfortably on the bus? How far is the ferry to San Francisco from the Oakland train station? Thanks again
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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sojourner, the closest stop to san francisco is emeryville, which is just a short trip over the bay bridge away. (takes about 15 minutes). very convenient.
Posts: 416 | From: St. Albans, Vermont | Registered: Feb 2003
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The Bakersfield bus is a little over three hours with a few stops. By 1:30 in the morning I was so exhausted I didn't have any trouble cat napping. the bus was full. In Oakland the ferry is a short walk from the train station and it takes about 40 minutes to get to Pier 41 in San Francisco..a very pleasant ride.
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For full information on the ferries from Oakland/Jack London Square go to www.eastbayferries.com . Not all of the ferries go to Pier 41. Many stop at the Ferry Building first. The Amtrak Ferry Building Bus Stop is also at Pier 41. I'd say it's about a five block walk from the Amtrak Station (OKJ) to the Ferry Dock. I stayed at the Best Western Inn at the Square and found it to be a great location with easy access to restaurants, Amtrak, the Ferry and BART 12th Street Station.
Frank in Sunny SBA
P.S. Thanks for the great trip report! Next time ride the Surfliner up the coast to SBA. It's an easy walk down State Street to Stearns Wharf. Longboard's (upstairs from its pricey sister "The Harbor") is a great place for lunch or dinner.
Posts: 2160 | From: Santa Barbara, CA, USA | Registered: Oct 2003
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I enjoyed your report. Especially regarding the improved Empire Builder.I so much wish I can get to ride on that train. Unfortunately, I am in the middle of relocating and need to focus on looking for a place to live. When I travel overnight I love to peep out the window to see the little towns whizz by. Like a kid in a candy store I can't get enough of the train experience, day or night.
Posts: 498 | From: New Hope, PA, USA | Registered: Jan 2003
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Graynt - good to hear from you again, and I enjoyed your latest trip report. Remember when you and I met on the Empire Builder (in Whitefish) a couple years ago? Unfortunately I haven't taken any train trips since then -- I got myself married here a few months ago, but next summer my wife and I are tentatively planning a big "National Park" train trip out west. We'll be riding the EB again, then probably renting a car and taking in Glacier Park, then driving south through Yellowstone, Colorado, Grand Canyon, etc., and returning probably on the SWC, then the Capitol Ltd to one of the Fla. trains. We were at first going to take a trip on the American Orient Express, but that trip, even though it sounds great, is WAAAY too expensive for us!!!!
BTW, does anyone have any info on the Izaak Walton Inn? We would like to stay there on our tentative trip (we'd take the EB to Essex, obviously).
--Rich K
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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My wife and I stayed in the Izaak Walton on our honeymoon in 1998 after taking the Empire Builder out from Chicago.
Highly Recommend.......
but if there is any particular favorite juice or soda that you prefer, you may want to bring some with you. If the Empire Builder is real late the gift shop, restaurant, and bar will all be closed. Unless it has changed, you won't find a vending machine there either.
I can still remember stepping off the train about 10:30pm with my new wife and discovering (to her absolute dismay) that there wasn't a place to buy a Diet Pepsi until the next day!
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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I stayed at the Izaak Walton Inn the end of July, arriving & departing on westbound Empire Builder. As part of my package plan, I took a red jammer bus tour of Glacier Park. It was a great trip - we were gone from about 10:30 AM until after 6 PM & had a beautiful day for touring. The food at the inn is very good, but there is not a lot happening in Essex (except running out to wave at the Empire Builder each morning & evening). There is no a/c, but rooms have ceiling fans. I was able to book a corner room & had great ventilation; other guests told me some of the rooms were a little stuffy in the early evening. The inn also has rental cars available, but unless you plan to do a lot of hiking, I think you can see much of the park from the bus tour without the hassle of driving the "Going to the Sun" road which is very narrow & hugs the edge of the cliffs. Leave the driving to the bus driver who does it every day and isn't trying to look at the view while he drives.
Posts: 122 | From: Milwaukee, WI USA | Registered: Jun 2004
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quote:Originally posted by Grandma Judy: I stayed at the Izaak Walton Inn the end of July, arriving & departing on westbound Empire Builder. As part of my package plan, I took a red jammer bus tour of Glacier Park. It was a great trip - we were gone from about 10:30 AM until after 6 PM & had a beautiful day for touring. The food at the inn is very good, but there is not a lot happening in Essex (except running out to wave at the Empire Builder each morning & evening). There is no a/c, but rooms have ceiling fans. I was able to book a corner room & had great ventilation; other guests told me some of the rooms were a little stuffy in the early evening. The inn also has rental cars available, but unless you plan to do a lot of hiking, I think you can see much of the park from the bus tour without the hassle of driving the "Going to the Sun" road which is very narrow & hugs the edge of the cliffs. Leave the driving to the bus driver who does it every day and isn't trying to look at the view while he drives.
My favorite 'less than professional' job ever remains the two years I held down a regular route driving for the campus shuttle while I was a student at the University of Maryland.
Maybe in retirement I can spend a season or two driving a 'Jammer' bus at Glacier National Park. Think those buses will still be there in 2021?
Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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I agree with Grandma Judy. Leave the driving to the bus driver. Going to the Sun Road is beautiful, not to be mised but you need nerves of steel to drive. It usually doesn't bother my husband who does have nerves of steel but he was holding the steering wheel so tightly I thought we would have to pry him loose. I solved the situation by closing my eyes at times. Do take a lot of film as the views are spectacular
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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