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I'm thinking about a three-day trip on the Southwest Chief from Chicago to the Depot Inn at La Plata, Mo.
As a shutterbug I'd like to make use of the heated "vantage point" for railfans near the Inn, but am wondering if it will be possible for me to make the hike to the structure. (I'm a bit of a gimp.)
I emailed the Inn to ask if they had a way to transport guests to the structure in the winter, but have had no response.
Anyone know? Maybe I should wait for spring.
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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I've been to the Depot Inn twice. Once in beautiful, warm weather. And once in snowy, freezing, yucky weather. Well, yucky to me.....I live in California. In "normal" walking conditions (for example, during the summer), it will take you about 10 minutes to walk from the Depot Inn to the lookout point. This is assuming a person has no physical disabilities. You would walk through the Depot Inn parking lot, through a bank parking lot, through the Red Rooster Restaurant parking lot, then around the back of the restaurant, and onto a long dirt and gravel road. It is NOT a short walk if you have physical disabilities. Now if you add to this snow and ice (and an un-paved dirt/gravel road leading to the lookout point), a person with disabilities will have VERY significant problems getting out to the lookout point.
There are exceptions to this....for example:
1) Chris Guenzler (whom the lookout point is named after) tends to walk at hyper-speed, and walks by himself leaving everyone else in the dust behind him. It would take him less than 5 minutes to walk from the Depot Inn to the lookout point in a winter blizzard with 10 feet of snow. But most people would probably not attempt a walk in such conditions.
2) Perhaps the Depot Inn has some sort of arrangement for people with disabilities to arrange for a one-time transportation to the lookout point in a four-wheel-drive vehicle? I know that the owner of the Depot Inn has a four wheel drive vehicle, and perhaps he would be willing to drive you out there? If not, you can also rent an Enterprise Rent A Car directly from the Depot Inn. I have done this twice. The one thing I will point out is that I specifically requested a four wheel drive vehicle from Enterprise, and the only thing they had for me was a two wheel drive Nissan Pathfinder---so I did NOT attempt to drive that vehicle down the snowy road that leads to the lookout point. So if you choose to rent a car, MAKE SURE that Enterprise understand that you MUST have four wheel drive---and NOT just an SUV. Sometimes rental car agents think that an SUV is automatically a four wheel drive, but this is not the case.
If you want the freedom to come and go to the lookout point as you please, then wait until the snow is melted and the weather is warmer. Then you will have FREE use of their golf carts and you can drive yourself back and forth whenever you want between the lookout point and the Depot Inn. You can even take the golf cart over to the Red Rooster Restaurant if you'd like. It's a neat place to stay---I HIGHLY recommend it!
BTW, they are having an event in February at the Depot Inn and I am choosing to skip the event this time, even though I've attended the last two. I just don't want to go to La Plata in February----it's tooooooooo cold for my bald head! Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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Thanks, Smitty. Unless the Inn responds that they will take me to the lookout point in a Sno-Cat or similar vehicle, I'll either wait for the spring thaw or ask Chris to carry me piggyback (not so easy since I'm a 200 pounder).
I wonder if the Inn hasn't responded because it doesn't want to leave a paper (er, electronic) trail in what might become an ADA issue. I have no intention of it becoming that.
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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Gee, you guys. You make it sound like Missouri is the North Pole. I have often driven down to La Plata from Minnesota to catch the SWC in February. When I leave my car there for a week the ice even melts off it!
If it's that bad, an SUV won't help. Think dogsled. And on the positive side, you don't have to worry about snakes or mosquitos.
Posts: 1572 | From: St. Paul, MN | Registered: Dec 2002
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Cold is nights in the 20's, days just barely reaching into the low 50's......that's typical Western North Carolina cold although there are several stretches when the nights may go to single digits and the days not get above feezing for three or four days in a row. That's borderline COLD.
But for COLD I think of what seemed like a month I spent one January weekend in Dubuque, IA. There was a foot of snow on the ground, the high temperature was -7 (and the nights were so cold that it was noticeable that it had warmed up significantly to get to reach that -7), and a Dubuque native I know confided that the temperature hadn't been above freezing a single moment since Veteran's Day. That folks is COLD. That's Zip-5 weather. Not for the timid.
-------------------- 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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In "normal" walking conditions (for example, during the summer), it will take you about 10 minutes to walk from the Depot Inn to the lookout point. This is assuming a person has no physical disabilities. You would walk through the Depot Inn parking lot, through a bank parking lot, through the Red Rooster Restaurant parking lot, then around the back of the restaurant, and onto a long dirt and gravel road. It is NOT a short walk if you have physical disabilities. Now if you add to this snow and ice (and an un-paved dirt/gravel road leading to the lookout point), a person with disabilities will have VERY significant problems getting out to the lookout point. ![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
