I apologize for putting this question on the Amtrak forum but the Tourist Train forum gets absolutely no traffic and I think possibly an Amtrak regular may have an answer.....
The Durango and Silverton tourist operation features a premium fare observation car named 'Silver Vista'. It's seating is 2 on one side and 1 on the other. (This much I know)
I'm wondering if anyone here has ridden this car and can tell me how the seats are numbered....for instance are even numbered seats the aisle seat on the two seat side? Are odd numbered seats always window seats? Any tips would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Posted by ladylawyer (Member # 2653) on :
I can't help you with that particular car, as it wasn't there when we took our trip. I do have "fond" memories of that trip in early May. Luckily, we chose an enclosed car as opposed to the open air car because we wound up in a blizzard! If you take the train both ways, it can be tedious and uncomfortable, even if you love, love trains. You might want to consider the train up and bus back.
Posted by RRRICH (Member # 1418) on :
David - when we took the Silverton last summer, there was a "Silver Vista" car, but i did not realize it was a premium fare car, so I can't really answer your question. Why would you want to pay the premium fare though? That car was not that much different from the other cars.
Lady Lawyer - NO NO NO!! Take the train BOTH ways!!!! The seats are not "that" uncomfortable, but the train does tend to sway a lot more than an AMTRAK train does! Sorry about your blizzard!
Posted by ladylawyer (Member # 2653) on :
RRRICH...picture this: 2 California tourists, dressed in summer clothes and sandals. Temperature drops to below freezing and no heat on the train. Run from train to restaurant with snow up to our ankles. See others getting on warm bus, but we get back on train, soaking wet. Temp still below freezing and no heat on the train for the 3 hour trip back to Durango...
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
Hi Rich and ladylawyer,
Thanks for your replies. I am going to Durango as part of a whirlwind solo trip to Southwestern Colorado. Fly in. Ride three tourist railroads in three days. Fly out.
Ladylawyer, I know the weariness you speak of. I rode the Durango & Silverton with my girlfriend in 1997 and the last 45 minutes of the return trip were difficult. That girlfriend is now my wife and comfortable in saying "No dear, I don't want to ride a steam train all day for three straight days......you go and have a good time." (The obverse of my "I don't want to go to Florida and lay on the beach all day for three straight days.")
The unexpected blizzard and no heat on the train for the trip back is something I experienced on the Bald Knob trip at Cass Scenic Railroad in West Virginia......but that's another story.
Since I'm going alone (and since the only comfortable seat on a bus is the driver's seat) it's the train both ways. I'll bring extra layers of clothing. If the return trip is miserable.....well at least it was my fault and I didn't inflict it on anyone else.
Rich, the Silver Vista has a glass roof......kind of like the old sun lounges Seaboard used to run on the Silver Meteor.....a single level dome car if you will. Last summer was it's first year in service.
The Silver Vista is a replica of a car that was used on the Silverton trains from 1947 until 1953 when it was destroyed in a fire. Management decided not to rebuild or replace their sightseer car at that time because...well...they were wanting to continue cutting back the narrow guage lines and anything that might attract more passengers rather than fewer was not consistant with corporate policy. If it were not for this Silver Vista replica I wouldn't even be going to Durango on this trip......I'd instead spend a second day at the Cumbres & Toltec.
My interest in the Silver Vista is due entirely to it's historical significance and not the free soft drinks and snacks included in the extra fare. Free snacks had absolutely nothing with my wanting to ride this car!
Well......maybe a little.
Posted by sojourner (Member # 3134) on :
Is there a way to get to this train without flying or driving? i.e., train to X, then a bus? What is the closest Amtrak stop?
I'd love to take it some time.
Posted by TwinStarRocket (Member # 2142) on :
Grand Junction (Zephyr) may be the closest stop to Silverton, but cabs and local busses there are awful for getting from Amtrak to anywhere else. It has an airport with a few airlines serving it.
Albuquerque and Lamy, closer to Durango on the more reliable SWC, might be a better bet. Greyhound is right at the ABQ Amtrak stop. A bus line with a name like TNM&O runs to many towns in the area, but I don't know about Durango? Anybody?
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
There is (or at least was a year ago) a single daily bus operated by TNM&O between Albuquerque and Grand Junction. This bus stops in Durango, CO which is about the midway point of the run. TNM&O is a subsidiary of Greyhound and the schedule for this bus was on the Greyhound website when I looked into it last year.
I don't believe that there is any ground transport into Antonito, CO or Chama, NM, the endpoints for the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad. There are tiny airports in Alamosa, CO (30 miles from Antonito) and Farmington, NM, about 50 miles more-or-less from Durango.
Normally I would take the Southwest Chief into Albuquerque and rent a car from there. However, on this trip I only had a total of four days and the best available airfares were in and out of Colorado Springs. I'm doing a rental car there.
PS - Just doublechecked at Greyhound. The TNM&O bus still runs. Departs ABQ daily at 6:55am and gets to Durango around 11:30am. The other direction it leaves Grand Junction at 12:40pm and gets to Durango around 5:00pm.......about 4 and 1/2 hours run in each direction.
Sojourner....you would love these narrow guage railroads and I urge you to go check them out....but you're looking at four nights in hotels minimum (there are no 'same day' connections available).
Posted by TwinStarRocket (Member # 2142) on :
A bus ride between ABQ and Grand Junction would be pretty much all spectacular scenery, especially the "Million Dollar Highway" between Durango and Ouray. TNM&O has a good reputation. A trip combining the Zephyr, SWC and Durango-Silverton would be a great Rocky Mountain tour without any driving.
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
quote:Originally posted by TwinStarRocket: A bus ride between ABQ and Grand Junction would be pretty much all spectacular scenery, especially the "Million Dollar Highway" between Durango and Ouray. TNM&O has a good reputation. A trip combining the Zephyr, SWC and Durango-Silverton would be a great Rocky Mountain tour without any driving.
Hi TwinStar,
Just saw where you 'outted' your true identity over on Ms. Vicki's trip report.
Yes. This route would be a fabulously scenic bus ride.....and I came close to using it before. I have had difficulty getting around Grand Junction without a car in the past though and shied away from it. TNM&O is the company which operates the bus connection between Denver and the Southwest Chief at Raton. They have a decent reputation.
Posted by sojourner (Member # 3134) on :
Thanks for the info! I'll put it on the list!!!
Posted by RRRICH (Member # 1418) on :
Lady Lawyer - your explanation put your dilemma in more perspective for me!! Thanks for sharing, and sorry your Silverton trip was "less than ideal"..........
David P - yes that was the Silver Vista car we saw on the Silverton train last summer. It did look nice..........
Posted by TwinStarRocket (Member # 2142) on :
To be specific about cabs in Grand Junction: last year we waited 1.5 hours to get a cab from Amtrak to the airport for our car rental. This meant we drove the beautiful highway to Moab in the dark.
On the way back, we put in a call way ahead of time for the airport and our cab was still late. The driver claimed he knew our train was late so he didn't hurry. No cabs waiting at the airport.
They come, ...eventually. Even the locals joke about the cabs there. Only one company. Nice friendly town though. Mass transit is skeletal. I noticed no hotels near Amtrak.
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
Hi TwinStar,
Similar story for me in 2005. I dropped a rental car (which I had picked up in Salt Lake City days earlier) at the Grand Junction airport and was shocked to find no taxis waiting at the airport looking for fares.
I called the company, requested a cab, and waited for about an hour before one showed up. By this time about a dozen people were waiting for a cab. The driver took as many fares as he could dropping them off based on whoever was closest first. I actually got to the Amtrak station just 5 minutes before the California Zephyr arrived (on-time that day......it was a while ago!).
Talk about a tense experience. Likewise, I noticed no hotels near Amtrak and I generally keep an eye out for that kind of thing for future reference.
Posted by yukon11 (Member # 2997) on :
This thread is making me want to ride the Durango-Siverton narrow gauge, again. We did that about 10-12 years ago. I picked up a great booklet called "Cinder and Smoke". At that time, I don't believe they had the "Silver Vista" car or the "first class parlor car".
If you are in Durango, check out the old Strater Hotel and the Diamond Belle saloon.
A friend of mine just got back from the Durango-Silverton excursion. On the way back, he got to ride in one of the "popcars".......
