Long Train Runnin'
Engineer
Well it went from being a couple of years to a couple of days in between my long distance train rides. After a couple of days at home handling a family emergency and a couple family functions. I found myself waking up on a friends couch after an enjoyable evening at a friend’s celebration dinner. I never quite figured out what we were celebrating, but I had a very fun evening. I packed up my bag made sure I had all my electronics and chargers, and headed out to my car.
Since I was flying home I decided it would be easiest to leave my car at the airport, and catch Amtrak from there. I had a nice easy Sunday morning drive to the airport that took me about 45 minutes. My preferred long-term lot actually borders the NEC and the New Airport Train Station, but of course even though I could see it I had to backtrack for almost 30 minutes to find myself at the train station. I took their shuttle to terminal C where I caught the Air Train out to the train station. I had about 45 minutes to wait until train #143 arrived. My redemption gave me a seat in business class for the roughly 3-hour ride down to DC. Being Sunday the car wasn’t very crowded, and I was able to get a pair of seats to myself.
The ride itself was pretty uneventful I spent most of the time reading various articles and forums on my laptop. I couldn’t help but think about how much more pleasant my trip over these tracks on Thursday was between having breakfast in the dining car, and then returning to my roomette for the rest of the ride. Somewhere around Baltimore I decided I should eat lunch onboard the train, so I could maximize my time in Washington. I had a chicken Caesar salad and a can of Sierra Mist. After I finished eating we were around we were getting very to close to DC. I was looking forward to the layover, but I didn’t really have anything in particular in mind.
We arrived into Washington Union Station on time, and I made my way off the train and into the Club Acela. Where I could leave my bags behind while I walked around. Part of me wanted to find a sports bar and watch some of the afternoon football games, and part of me wanted to revisit some sights that I had seen many times before. I ended up just sort of walking towards the Capitol Building, and then from there I knew I was pretty close to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. I’ve probably visited there at least a dozen times, but I figured why not visit once more. The streets were practically empty and the weather was fantastic, so it made for a very nice leisurely stroll down to the museum. Once I was inside it felt like I had been there yesterday even though it has certainly been about 4 years. I revisited a few on my favorite exhibits, and looked at some of the new ones. Having scratched that itch I began to head back to the train station.
I got back to the station right around 3 o’clock so I knew I didn’t have much longer to wait. I bought some candy to break up a $20 so I would have some small bills for the dining car. I only had about 10 minutes to wait until they called for boarding from the club, and we ushered to the platform to board the train. I was in car 2909 in room 19 which would mean my first trip in the trans dorm. I have read various opinions on being in this car and how the service can vary wildly. I figured for a one-night trip like this it wouldn’t be too big of deal.
They allowed us to board through the lower level of the trans dorm, which I had never personally seen. After solving the last great remaining mystery for me, about Amtrak Superliner equipment I found my way upstairs to my room. The Superliners’ roomettes are defiantly a little smaller then there Viewliner counterparts. Since I was by myself it was more then enough room to store my bags, and be comfortable. I knew that I would be in these rooms for the next 63 hours and 50 minutes if there were no delays.
We departed Washington on time. Now it was starting to set in that I was in fact on my way West to cross the United States by rail for the third time. This would be the first time I am going alone, but I if its anything like my other trips I know that I won’t really be “alone” as I’m sure I will meet a few memorable passengers along the way. As we rolled out of Washington I fired up my laptop, and began writing this report. My concerns about service quickly faded away as my attendant came along quickly, and asked what time I would like the bed put down, and if I’d like to be woken up in the morning. The LSA was pretty much right behind him taking dinner reservations. I spent the next couple of hours on my computer and just kind of zoning out.
I was hoping to get off and walk around the platform at Cumberland, but in all three of the sleepers I didn’t see an attendant there to open up the door. I didn’t want to walk through the diner while they were serving, so I just returned to my room until my 8pm dinner reservation. I sat with a nice older woman from Haiti who was on the way to California. I had another steak with mashed potatoes, which was cooked perfectly. After a pleasant dinner I went back to my room where I had pretty good success streaming the Yankees game. There were a few spots where it dropped out, but the timing worked out that I didn’t miss any of the major plays. The end of the game coincided with our early arrival into Pittsburgh. I stepped off the train for a couple minutes then went to bed.
I slept so well I ended up missing breakfast. I woke up as we departing Elkhart, Indiana. I guess I could have rushed straight to the dining car, but I wasn’t even that hungry. My priority was more about making sure I got to take a shower so I would feel fresh for the layover in Chicago. I got my things together and headed downstairs to take a shower. We pulled into South Bend on time while I got ready for departure. I spent the rest of the time onboard catching up with this report.
Upon arrival in Chicago I headed straight for the Metropolitan Lounge where I was able to beat the long line of other passengers with the same idea. Very quickly I was given my entry pass, and dropped my bags with the red cap. I had absolutely no plans for the five-hour layover in Chicago I guess if I wasn’t on a trip to burn AGR points I would probably have done a run on the Hiawatha to Glenview. Especially since it was the start of a double points promotion. Instead I decided to simply just take a stroll.
I joined the procession of commuters heading into work down Jackson Street. I was hoping to find a local coffee shop, but as I waked further and further it was quite clear that everything in the area was more of a national chain. I remained hopeful as I passed Dunkin Doughnuts after Dunkin Doughnuts followed by Corner Bakery after Corner Bakery. Ugh, no thanks I’m in a different city I would like to try something different. I ended up walking all the way to Michigan Ave I took a short stroll down “The Magnificent Mile” before I turned back. I walked down Adams to Wacker before walking down Wacker to Lake St. Nothing really caught my eye although I understand I never really got out of the corporate offices and to any authentic neighborhoods, but I was still disappointed with the total domination of just a few franchises basically owning the whole area. I just ended up back at Union Station. I had killed a good chunk of time simply around, so I figured I’d just abandon eating breakfast, and just go for an early lunch. I had a couple glasses of water in the lounge while I caught up on some websites.
Around 11AM I headed over to Giordano’s for some deep-dish pizza. I washed it down with a couple of Goose Island Green Line Pale Ales, and fulfilled that desire to enjoy a couple of things I can’t find at home. I then stopped at the Walgreens to pick up a 6 pack of a hard root beer I’ve heard good things about, but can’t find at home. I then got back to the lounge at about 1. It was a total zoo luckily I found a seat, and watched the Texas Eagle and California Zephyr board. At around 1:35 they called for the Empire Builder where I had nice long walk to my sleeper in the Seattle section.
I settled into room #2 where I was soon greeted by James by far the youngest attendant I have ever had. He was I am guessing pretty close to my age which is a large departure from my previous experiences where most attendants started working for Amtrak before I was even born. He was very quick to come by after our departure from Chicago and explain the room. We rolled through Chicago and eventually it started to thin out into farmland. Pretty soon the LSA came around and took dinner reservations I chose the 8pm seating. I spent the time reading various things online I wasn’t sure how the service would be through out the more rural parts of our journey. I stepped out for a moment in the new Milwaukee station. Then I really kind of got lost in my reading, and before I knew it we were arriving at La Crosse where I again stepped off the train for a moment.
Shortly after leaving La Crosse my dinner reservation was called. I sat with 3 very nice people from Minnesota. They were good company even though they were the same age as my grandparents. The one gentleman had some good stories about riding trains in the area in the 1950s. I think he was very surprised with my knowledge of the former railroads in the area. I had another steak, which made me realize I need to change up my ordering patterns. Our server was very good, and even though she was busy made an effort to spend some time talking with all of her tables.
After dinner I headed back to my room and asked for my room to be made up after Minneapolis. I spent some time after dinner working on this report, and catching up with a friend. We arrived into St. Paul Union Depot a few minutes early. The new platform was very nice. My SCA explained that the biggest issue with the new station was only putting one escalator to both bring passengers up and down to the train. I assumed that this was by design. I know how much Amtrak loves to control the flow from the station down to the platform, so I figured this way Amtrak had pretty much total control. It was kind of a shame though as it meant even though there was plenty of time I wouldn’t be able to at least pop up there and take a quick look. After we left St. Paul my attendant set my bed up for the evening. Now I always sleep well on the train, but this was on a whole different level. I didn’t wake up all during the night, or even hear anything. I opened my eyes about 8 and half hours later to a beautiful sunrise in North Dakota!
I felt fantastic and it was a perfect start to one of the most interesting days I think one can have. I love the second day of a Western long distance train journey. There is nothing on the schedule for the day aside from enjoy three meals in the dining car, and just spending the next 24 hours onboard a train. I guess for some people that would sound terrible, but I was very much looking forward to spending the day being nothing more than a passenger. I went downstairs and took a shower to start my big day off feeling fresh. A couple minutes after getting out of the shower we arrived in Minot. I stepped off the train in shorts, and was greeted with a very brisk 46-degree North Dakota morning. Whoops! I was certainly dressed for a different climate. I only stayed outside for a few minutes sadden to think that in only a few weeks those temperatures would be arriving in my area.
I went to breakfast right after our stop in Minot. I sat with a couple from England and a woman from Minnesota. I branched out and tried the omelet it was decent although I don’t think I would order it again. I ended up having a wonderful conversation with the woman from Minnesota, as she was a flight attendant for a few years when she was my age. She also had spent quite a lot of timing traveling by herself at my age, and it was very interesting to hear her perspective. We lingered in the diner well after the meal talking. Again one of those things that only seems to happen on a train. I’m sure that if I sat next to her on a flight we would have hardly said a word to each other, but here on the train it felt totally natural to spend over an hour talking about a wide range of things. I eventually returned to my room where I was pleasantly surprised to find my cell phone still had an excellent data connection.
I spent the remainder of the morning in the room just taking it easy. We crossed into Montana and into the Mountain Time zone. I was quite content with life as we rolled through fields and the occasional small town. I waited until it was the last call for lunch before heading to the dining car. I sat with a nice group who actually met on the eastbound trip last week, and reconnected on this trip back. They were very nice people even though we didn’t have much in common. We actually spoke at great length about Amtrak’s pet policy wondering if/how it would be implemented on the long distance trains. The LSA took my dinner reservation as I was leaving the dining car, so my only “stress” for the afternoon had already been taken care of.
I got off the train in Havre for a few minutes. I was very surprised to see that we were only 3 minutes late. We were now 1370 miles into our trip, which is roughly 2/3 of the way, and we were still on time. I have read so many horror stories about this train and massive delays. I was quite happy that so far we doing very well. I spent the rest of the afternoon just kind of in my thoughts. I had planned on catching up on a TV show, but the views out the window kept me entertained just fine. You could see a noticeable shift in the scenery around 5:00PM as we moved closer and closer toward Glacier National Park. I wasn’t really sure how much daylight we would have to enjoy it all. We left East Glacier right on time, and within a few minutes we started climbing. It was very nice although I think that you can’t beat Denver to Grand Junction on this side of the border at least.
There was still decent enough light at 7:45 when they called for my dinner reservation. I felt kind of bad going to the diner during the most scenic part of the ride with very little day light remaining. I set with a mother and daughter who didn’t say where they were from, and a gentleman who had lived in New York for a 20+ years before retiring to the Pacific Northwest. He started his journey on Sunday as well from New York on the Cardinal. The sun faded as we began eating our meals. I ended up ordering another steak blowing my last chance to shake it up. It was the same as the previous 5 or 6 I’ve had in the last week. Our group had a good dynamic and we chatted until after our departure from West Glacier. I headed back to my room I was pretty tired as my body was still very much on Eastern Time. I stayed up another half an hour to step off in Whitefish. After we departed Whitefish I had my room made up for sleeping. As I was lying there in bed I couldn’t believe that I was already approaching the end of my journey.
I was a little apprehensive that the trip would have dragged on as I was traveling alone, but I found it to go by in almost a flash. I felt that I would have enjoyed another full day on the train before I would get restless. I slept very well I only remember waking up once very briefly while we were sitting still. I can only assume that we were in Spokane at that time. I woke up around 7:30 where I faced a choice of going to breakfast or taking a shower. I elected to skip breakfast and instead take a shower to face the day in Seattle. I showered and began packing everything up for arrival into Seattle. Again I was simply floored that we were still on time, and so close to Seattle. They extended the stop in Everest since we were actually ahead of schedule. Before I knew it my SCA was coming through the car, and letting us know we were 10 minutes out from Seattle. I couldn’t believe how quickly the almost 48 hours had passed. Somehow the decision was made that we would pull straight into Seattle instead of backing in. I got off the train at 9:49 an astonishing 36 minutes early!
I was very impressed with the time keeping on our trip. I had figured we would be about 3 hours late. The crew was also very good, and my SCA James was certainly among the best that I have had. Overall, I found the trip a total success.
I headed out of King Street Station and luckily my memories from previous visits kicked in and I quickly found my way over to the LINK station. I ended up helping a couple of other folks find the station, and in one case help a gentleman purchase the correct ticket from the machine. The timing worked out perfectly as a train heading to the airport arrived about 30 seconds after I got down to the platform. I had an ORCA card, but since I planned to use the light rail a few times during my short 24-hour layover here I simply purchased a paper day pass. The ride was pretty uneventful aside from a visit from a fare enforcement team. I honestly hadn’t planned on being this early, so I knew that the odds of being able to check into my hotel were slim. From the light rail station I couldn’t decide what was the lesser of two evils the walk to the garage to get picked up by the shuttle, or simply just walking to the hotel.
The hotel ended up being about a half a mile walk, which would have been much easier if I wasn’t dragging my luggage behind me. I guess I should have opted for the shuttle. It wasn’t really the end of the world I got to the hotel around 10:45. They told me it would be about a 90-minute wait for a room. No thanks I had them store my bags, and waited a few minutes in the lobby to take the shuttle back to the airport. I was certainly pretty hungry at this point, so thanks to the power of Yelp I found what looked like a good spot. It looked like if I took the light rail to Colombia City there was a main drag with several interesting looking food spots.
I took the hotel shuttle back to the airport, and made my way back over to the light rail. Colombia City was much closer then heading all the way back into downtown, so it was a much easier ride. I fired up Google Maps to give the final set of directions I would need. Now I admit I don’t really know to much about the Seattle area, so I’m not sure if Colombia City is just a neighborhood inside the city limits, or more of its own town. The main drag was about 4 blocks from the light rail station a very easy walk. The vibe was pretty good as I strolled down the main street maybe even a little to cliché. A farmers market being set up, a guy asking me to support green energy, and a Starbucks. Yup, I must be in the Pacific Northwest. I settled on Colombia City Ale House for lunch. They had an excellent selection of local craft beer. I always enjoy getting a chance to try new beers from different parts of the country, so this fit the bill perfectly. I had an excellent steak sandwich, and enjoyed a few different beers. I did put the brakes on since I was feeling rather good for 1PM, and figured I shouldn’t just **** the day away. I walked around a little bit more, and also checked out the farmers market before heading back to the light rail.
I made it back to the hotel pretty easily since I wasn’t weighed down with my bags. They had a room available when I got back, so I checked in and got settled into my room. I spent some time on my computer just kind of catching up with online things. Much easier to do from a hotel room with what was actually some of the best in room Wi-Fi I’ve had recently. I guess I traded pissing away the day at a bar to simply **** it away in front of a computer screen. I also spent a good couple hours working on this report.
I really had hoped to go back into the city for the evening, but my body clock wasn’t quite sold on the idea. Normally I would have just pushed through, but since I was flying out in the morning it just didn’t seem worth fighting it. The hotel restaurant looked somewhat decent from the reviews online, so I took the lazy traveler approach and ordered some room service. The food was okay pretty middle of the road, but it was well worth the convenience. After dinner I pretty much went straight to bed knowing I had a nice day of flying ahead.
I woke up around 6AM well ahead of my alarm set for 9:15. I spent the time organizing my trip for next week. I also got a call from the tour agency handling my trip to North Korea. Who would have every guess that my flight back from Pyongyang was over sold, and she went over some of the alternatives. Which then left me scrambling to put some flights on hold just in case I couldn’t be confirmed on the flight. Ah, not the kind of morning I was planning to have, but thankfully a couple quick phone calls to some excellent agents left me with plenty of options. After that excitement I had to get ready quickly for the 10AM shuttle to the airport.
I made it the check in desk with about 2 hours to go to my flight. I checked in where I was number 2 on the list for an upgrade on this flight, and cleared on my second leg Dallas to Newark. Ah number 2 for 1 seat left nothing like being the first loser. Oh well, I had a nice exit row seat either way. I spent the time waiting for my flight in the Alaska Airlines Boardroom. It was my third visit this year, and while it does get a little crowded the staff are always fantastic. I headed down to the gate to see that I had sunk down to number 3 on the list, which actually made me feel a lot better. The flight left about 10 minutes late for reasons of course unknown. I took advantage of one of my favorite perks of being Executive Platinum, and enjoyed a sandwich courtesy of American Airlines. That to me has been on of the nicer perks that they offer. Even though my upgrade percentage is around 80% I know where ever I end up sitting I can get something to eat and some booze for free. It was a pretty uneventful 3-hour flight to Dallas.
I had about 2 hours to kill between my flights, which thankfully were both leaving out of the A terminal. I am partial to the Admirals Club in terminal A, so this was a nice added bonus. After settling I noticed that I had one of my favorite emails waiting for me an alert to a very good flight deal that had been posted on Flyertalk. It was out of Newark, so I booked myself a ticket knowing I had 24 hours to think about it. I spent pretty much the rest of the layover thinking about the details of the trip, and how I could maximize the miles.
I headed to the gate a couple minutes before boarding got underway. I got settled into my seat, and decided that I would spend the flight catching up on this report. I had fallen behind, and I knew that if I didn’t catch up soon it would end up like 3 or 4 other reports I have sitting on my computer half finished. We pushed back on time, and it wasn’t a meal flight so only a small meat and cheese plate was served. I spent the flight writing. We landed on time, and it was only a couple minute wait for the shuttle to arrive. That ended up being the biggest headache of the trip as they had the main airport exit closed, and the driver refused to take my advice on how to go out a different way. Ended up spending over a half hour in the shuttle. Not where I wanted to be at 1AM. I finally did get home right around 2.
I hope you enjoyed reading my report. Overall it was an excellent trip I didn’t have any major delays on Amtrak or American Airlines. I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy a solo cross-country trip, but I found it to be quite enjoyable. I am looking forward to one last redemption to clean out my AGR balance once and for all. I am honestly not sure how much long distance travel is in my future considering the devaluation, and the overall cost of sleeper travel these days. I know that I will make an effort to get on the Sunset Limited from New Orleans to Los Angeles, so I can “finish” the long distance network. There will still be a few holes, but last October as I pushed myself right off a transatlantic flight to try and ride not only some of the long distance stuff in Sicily but try and finish a local metro system 2 hours from my hotel. I realized I’m the only one who really cares. No one is going to turn up their nose and say, “I can’t believe you didn’t the tram in Messina.” So for me if I get a ride on the Sunset it will be good enough for me. Yes I’d like to say I’ve ridden every single mile of track in the Amtrak system, but I’m starting to think there is no shame in getting only 95% of it.
Anyway thank you so much for reading this. I will have the photos up as soon as I can. Feel free to ask me any questions, and I apologize for any grammatical errors. I didn’t intend for this to end up being nearly 5000 words.
Since I was flying home I decided it would be easiest to leave my car at the airport, and catch Amtrak from there. I had a nice easy Sunday morning drive to the airport that took me about 45 minutes. My preferred long-term lot actually borders the NEC and the New Airport Train Station, but of course even though I could see it I had to backtrack for almost 30 minutes to find myself at the train station. I took their shuttle to terminal C where I caught the Air Train out to the train station. I had about 45 minutes to wait until train #143 arrived. My redemption gave me a seat in business class for the roughly 3-hour ride down to DC. Being Sunday the car wasn’t very crowded, and I was able to get a pair of seats to myself.
The ride itself was pretty uneventful I spent most of the time reading various articles and forums on my laptop. I couldn’t help but think about how much more pleasant my trip over these tracks on Thursday was between having breakfast in the dining car, and then returning to my roomette for the rest of the ride. Somewhere around Baltimore I decided I should eat lunch onboard the train, so I could maximize my time in Washington. I had a chicken Caesar salad and a can of Sierra Mist. After I finished eating we were around we were getting very to close to DC. I was looking forward to the layover, but I didn’t really have anything in particular in mind.
We arrived into Washington Union Station on time, and I made my way off the train and into the Club Acela. Where I could leave my bags behind while I walked around. Part of me wanted to find a sports bar and watch some of the afternoon football games, and part of me wanted to revisit some sights that I had seen many times before. I ended up just sort of walking towards the Capitol Building, and then from there I knew I was pretty close to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. I’ve probably visited there at least a dozen times, but I figured why not visit once more. The streets were practically empty and the weather was fantastic, so it made for a very nice leisurely stroll down to the museum. Once I was inside it felt like I had been there yesterday even though it has certainly been about 4 years. I revisited a few on my favorite exhibits, and looked at some of the new ones. Having scratched that itch I began to head back to the train station.
I got back to the station right around 3 o’clock so I knew I didn’t have much longer to wait. I bought some candy to break up a $20 so I would have some small bills for the dining car. I only had about 10 minutes to wait until they called for boarding from the club, and we ushered to the platform to board the train. I was in car 2909 in room 19 which would mean my first trip in the trans dorm. I have read various opinions on being in this car and how the service can vary wildly. I figured for a one-night trip like this it wouldn’t be too big of deal.
They allowed us to board through the lower level of the trans dorm, which I had never personally seen. After solving the last great remaining mystery for me, about Amtrak Superliner equipment I found my way upstairs to my room. The Superliners’ roomettes are defiantly a little smaller then there Viewliner counterparts. Since I was by myself it was more then enough room to store my bags, and be comfortable. I knew that I would be in these rooms for the next 63 hours and 50 minutes if there were no delays.
We departed Washington on time. Now it was starting to set in that I was in fact on my way West to cross the United States by rail for the third time. This would be the first time I am going alone, but I if its anything like my other trips I know that I won’t really be “alone” as I’m sure I will meet a few memorable passengers along the way. As we rolled out of Washington I fired up my laptop, and began writing this report. My concerns about service quickly faded away as my attendant came along quickly, and asked what time I would like the bed put down, and if I’d like to be woken up in the morning. The LSA was pretty much right behind him taking dinner reservations. I spent the next couple of hours on my computer and just kind of zoning out.
I was hoping to get off and walk around the platform at Cumberland, but in all three of the sleepers I didn’t see an attendant there to open up the door. I didn’t want to walk through the diner while they were serving, so I just returned to my room until my 8pm dinner reservation. I sat with a nice older woman from Haiti who was on the way to California. I had another steak with mashed potatoes, which was cooked perfectly. After a pleasant dinner I went back to my room where I had pretty good success streaming the Yankees game. There were a few spots where it dropped out, but the timing worked out that I didn’t miss any of the major plays. The end of the game coincided with our early arrival into Pittsburgh. I stepped off the train for a couple minutes then went to bed.
I slept so well I ended up missing breakfast. I woke up as we departing Elkhart, Indiana. I guess I could have rushed straight to the dining car, but I wasn’t even that hungry. My priority was more about making sure I got to take a shower so I would feel fresh for the layover in Chicago. I got my things together and headed downstairs to take a shower. We pulled into South Bend on time while I got ready for departure. I spent the rest of the time onboard catching up with this report.
Upon arrival in Chicago I headed straight for the Metropolitan Lounge where I was able to beat the long line of other passengers with the same idea. Very quickly I was given my entry pass, and dropped my bags with the red cap. I had absolutely no plans for the five-hour layover in Chicago I guess if I wasn’t on a trip to burn AGR points I would probably have done a run on the Hiawatha to Glenview. Especially since it was the start of a double points promotion. Instead I decided to simply just take a stroll.
I joined the procession of commuters heading into work down Jackson Street. I was hoping to find a local coffee shop, but as I waked further and further it was quite clear that everything in the area was more of a national chain. I remained hopeful as I passed Dunkin Doughnuts after Dunkin Doughnuts followed by Corner Bakery after Corner Bakery. Ugh, no thanks I’m in a different city I would like to try something different. I ended up walking all the way to Michigan Ave I took a short stroll down “The Magnificent Mile” before I turned back. I walked down Adams to Wacker before walking down Wacker to Lake St. Nothing really caught my eye although I understand I never really got out of the corporate offices and to any authentic neighborhoods, but I was still disappointed with the total domination of just a few franchises basically owning the whole area. I just ended up back at Union Station. I had killed a good chunk of time simply around, so I figured I’d just abandon eating breakfast, and just go for an early lunch. I had a couple glasses of water in the lounge while I caught up on some websites.
Around 11AM I headed over to Giordano’s for some deep-dish pizza. I washed it down with a couple of Goose Island Green Line Pale Ales, and fulfilled that desire to enjoy a couple of things I can’t find at home. I then stopped at the Walgreens to pick up a 6 pack of a hard root beer I’ve heard good things about, but can’t find at home. I then got back to the lounge at about 1. It was a total zoo luckily I found a seat, and watched the Texas Eagle and California Zephyr board. At around 1:35 they called for the Empire Builder where I had nice long walk to my sleeper in the Seattle section.
I settled into room #2 where I was soon greeted by James by far the youngest attendant I have ever had. He was I am guessing pretty close to my age which is a large departure from my previous experiences where most attendants started working for Amtrak before I was even born. He was very quick to come by after our departure from Chicago and explain the room. We rolled through Chicago and eventually it started to thin out into farmland. Pretty soon the LSA came around and took dinner reservations I chose the 8pm seating. I spent the time reading various things online I wasn’t sure how the service would be through out the more rural parts of our journey. I stepped out for a moment in the new Milwaukee station. Then I really kind of got lost in my reading, and before I knew it we were arriving at La Crosse where I again stepped off the train for a moment.
Shortly after leaving La Crosse my dinner reservation was called. I sat with 3 very nice people from Minnesota. They were good company even though they were the same age as my grandparents. The one gentleman had some good stories about riding trains in the area in the 1950s. I think he was very surprised with my knowledge of the former railroads in the area. I had another steak, which made me realize I need to change up my ordering patterns. Our server was very good, and even though she was busy made an effort to spend some time talking with all of her tables.
After dinner I headed back to my room and asked for my room to be made up after Minneapolis. I spent some time after dinner working on this report, and catching up with a friend. We arrived into St. Paul Union Depot a few minutes early. The new platform was very nice. My SCA explained that the biggest issue with the new station was only putting one escalator to both bring passengers up and down to the train. I assumed that this was by design. I know how much Amtrak loves to control the flow from the station down to the platform, so I figured this way Amtrak had pretty much total control. It was kind of a shame though as it meant even though there was plenty of time I wouldn’t be able to at least pop up there and take a quick look. After we left St. Paul my attendant set my bed up for the evening. Now I always sleep well on the train, but this was on a whole different level. I didn’t wake up all during the night, or even hear anything. I opened my eyes about 8 and half hours later to a beautiful sunrise in North Dakota!
I felt fantastic and it was a perfect start to one of the most interesting days I think one can have. I love the second day of a Western long distance train journey. There is nothing on the schedule for the day aside from enjoy three meals in the dining car, and just spending the next 24 hours onboard a train. I guess for some people that would sound terrible, but I was very much looking forward to spending the day being nothing more than a passenger. I went downstairs and took a shower to start my big day off feeling fresh. A couple minutes after getting out of the shower we arrived in Minot. I stepped off the train in shorts, and was greeted with a very brisk 46-degree North Dakota morning. Whoops! I was certainly dressed for a different climate. I only stayed outside for a few minutes sadden to think that in only a few weeks those temperatures would be arriving in my area.
I went to breakfast right after our stop in Minot. I sat with a couple from England and a woman from Minnesota. I branched out and tried the omelet it was decent although I don’t think I would order it again. I ended up having a wonderful conversation with the woman from Minnesota, as she was a flight attendant for a few years when she was my age. She also had spent quite a lot of timing traveling by herself at my age, and it was very interesting to hear her perspective. We lingered in the diner well after the meal talking. Again one of those things that only seems to happen on a train. I’m sure that if I sat next to her on a flight we would have hardly said a word to each other, but here on the train it felt totally natural to spend over an hour talking about a wide range of things. I eventually returned to my room where I was pleasantly surprised to find my cell phone still had an excellent data connection.
I spent the remainder of the morning in the room just taking it easy. We crossed into Montana and into the Mountain Time zone. I was quite content with life as we rolled through fields and the occasional small town. I waited until it was the last call for lunch before heading to the dining car. I sat with a nice group who actually met on the eastbound trip last week, and reconnected on this trip back. They were very nice people even though we didn’t have much in common. We actually spoke at great length about Amtrak’s pet policy wondering if/how it would be implemented on the long distance trains. The LSA took my dinner reservation as I was leaving the dining car, so my only “stress” for the afternoon had already been taken care of.
I got off the train in Havre for a few minutes. I was very surprised to see that we were only 3 minutes late. We were now 1370 miles into our trip, which is roughly 2/3 of the way, and we were still on time. I have read so many horror stories about this train and massive delays. I was quite happy that so far we doing very well. I spent the rest of the afternoon just kind of in my thoughts. I had planned on catching up on a TV show, but the views out the window kept me entertained just fine. You could see a noticeable shift in the scenery around 5:00PM as we moved closer and closer toward Glacier National Park. I wasn’t really sure how much daylight we would have to enjoy it all. We left East Glacier right on time, and within a few minutes we started climbing. It was very nice although I think that you can’t beat Denver to Grand Junction on this side of the border at least.
There was still decent enough light at 7:45 when they called for my dinner reservation. I felt kind of bad going to the diner during the most scenic part of the ride with very little day light remaining. I set with a mother and daughter who didn’t say where they were from, and a gentleman who had lived in New York for a 20+ years before retiring to the Pacific Northwest. He started his journey on Sunday as well from New York on the Cardinal. The sun faded as we began eating our meals. I ended up ordering another steak blowing my last chance to shake it up. It was the same as the previous 5 or 6 I’ve had in the last week. Our group had a good dynamic and we chatted until after our departure from West Glacier. I headed back to my room I was pretty tired as my body was still very much on Eastern Time. I stayed up another half an hour to step off in Whitefish. After we departed Whitefish I had my room made up for sleeping. As I was lying there in bed I couldn’t believe that I was already approaching the end of my journey.
I was a little apprehensive that the trip would have dragged on as I was traveling alone, but I found it to go by in almost a flash. I felt that I would have enjoyed another full day on the train before I would get restless. I slept very well I only remember waking up once very briefly while we were sitting still. I can only assume that we were in Spokane at that time. I woke up around 7:30 where I faced a choice of going to breakfast or taking a shower. I elected to skip breakfast and instead take a shower to face the day in Seattle. I showered and began packing everything up for arrival into Seattle. Again I was simply floored that we were still on time, and so close to Seattle. They extended the stop in Everest since we were actually ahead of schedule. Before I knew it my SCA was coming through the car, and letting us know we were 10 minutes out from Seattle. I couldn’t believe how quickly the almost 48 hours had passed. Somehow the decision was made that we would pull straight into Seattle instead of backing in. I got off the train at 9:49 an astonishing 36 minutes early!
I was very impressed with the time keeping on our trip. I had figured we would be about 3 hours late. The crew was also very good, and my SCA James was certainly among the best that I have had. Overall, I found the trip a total success.
I headed out of King Street Station and luckily my memories from previous visits kicked in and I quickly found my way over to the LINK station. I ended up helping a couple of other folks find the station, and in one case help a gentleman purchase the correct ticket from the machine. The timing worked out perfectly as a train heading to the airport arrived about 30 seconds after I got down to the platform. I had an ORCA card, but since I planned to use the light rail a few times during my short 24-hour layover here I simply purchased a paper day pass. The ride was pretty uneventful aside from a visit from a fare enforcement team. I honestly hadn’t planned on being this early, so I knew that the odds of being able to check into my hotel were slim. From the light rail station I couldn’t decide what was the lesser of two evils the walk to the garage to get picked up by the shuttle, or simply just walking to the hotel.
The hotel ended up being about a half a mile walk, which would have been much easier if I wasn’t dragging my luggage behind me. I guess I should have opted for the shuttle. It wasn’t really the end of the world I got to the hotel around 10:45. They told me it would be about a 90-minute wait for a room. No thanks I had them store my bags, and waited a few minutes in the lobby to take the shuttle back to the airport. I was certainly pretty hungry at this point, so thanks to the power of Yelp I found what looked like a good spot. It looked like if I took the light rail to Colombia City there was a main drag with several interesting looking food spots.
I took the hotel shuttle back to the airport, and made my way back over to the light rail. Colombia City was much closer then heading all the way back into downtown, so it was a much easier ride. I fired up Google Maps to give the final set of directions I would need. Now I admit I don’t really know to much about the Seattle area, so I’m not sure if Colombia City is just a neighborhood inside the city limits, or more of its own town. The main drag was about 4 blocks from the light rail station a very easy walk. The vibe was pretty good as I strolled down the main street maybe even a little to cliché. A farmers market being set up, a guy asking me to support green energy, and a Starbucks. Yup, I must be in the Pacific Northwest. I settled on Colombia City Ale House for lunch. They had an excellent selection of local craft beer. I always enjoy getting a chance to try new beers from different parts of the country, so this fit the bill perfectly. I had an excellent steak sandwich, and enjoyed a few different beers. I did put the brakes on since I was feeling rather good for 1PM, and figured I shouldn’t just **** the day away. I walked around a little bit more, and also checked out the farmers market before heading back to the light rail.
I made it back to the hotel pretty easily since I wasn’t weighed down with my bags. They had a room available when I got back, so I checked in and got settled into my room. I spent some time on my computer just kind of catching up with online things. Much easier to do from a hotel room with what was actually some of the best in room Wi-Fi I’ve had recently. I guess I traded pissing away the day at a bar to simply **** it away in front of a computer screen. I also spent a good couple hours working on this report.
I really had hoped to go back into the city for the evening, but my body clock wasn’t quite sold on the idea. Normally I would have just pushed through, but since I was flying out in the morning it just didn’t seem worth fighting it. The hotel restaurant looked somewhat decent from the reviews online, so I took the lazy traveler approach and ordered some room service. The food was okay pretty middle of the road, but it was well worth the convenience. After dinner I pretty much went straight to bed knowing I had a nice day of flying ahead.
I woke up around 6AM well ahead of my alarm set for 9:15. I spent the time organizing my trip for next week. I also got a call from the tour agency handling my trip to North Korea. Who would have every guess that my flight back from Pyongyang was over sold, and she went over some of the alternatives. Which then left me scrambling to put some flights on hold just in case I couldn’t be confirmed on the flight. Ah, not the kind of morning I was planning to have, but thankfully a couple quick phone calls to some excellent agents left me with plenty of options. After that excitement I had to get ready quickly for the 10AM shuttle to the airport.
I made it the check in desk with about 2 hours to go to my flight. I checked in where I was number 2 on the list for an upgrade on this flight, and cleared on my second leg Dallas to Newark. Ah number 2 for 1 seat left nothing like being the first loser. Oh well, I had a nice exit row seat either way. I spent the time waiting for my flight in the Alaska Airlines Boardroom. It was my third visit this year, and while it does get a little crowded the staff are always fantastic. I headed down to the gate to see that I had sunk down to number 3 on the list, which actually made me feel a lot better. The flight left about 10 minutes late for reasons of course unknown. I took advantage of one of my favorite perks of being Executive Platinum, and enjoyed a sandwich courtesy of American Airlines. That to me has been on of the nicer perks that they offer. Even though my upgrade percentage is around 80% I know where ever I end up sitting I can get something to eat and some booze for free. It was a pretty uneventful 3-hour flight to Dallas.
I had about 2 hours to kill between my flights, which thankfully were both leaving out of the A terminal. I am partial to the Admirals Club in terminal A, so this was a nice added bonus. After settling I noticed that I had one of my favorite emails waiting for me an alert to a very good flight deal that had been posted on Flyertalk. It was out of Newark, so I booked myself a ticket knowing I had 24 hours to think about it. I spent pretty much the rest of the layover thinking about the details of the trip, and how I could maximize the miles.
I headed to the gate a couple minutes before boarding got underway. I got settled into my seat, and decided that I would spend the flight catching up on this report. I had fallen behind, and I knew that if I didn’t catch up soon it would end up like 3 or 4 other reports I have sitting on my computer half finished. We pushed back on time, and it wasn’t a meal flight so only a small meat and cheese plate was served. I spent the flight writing. We landed on time, and it was only a couple minute wait for the shuttle to arrive. That ended up being the biggest headache of the trip as they had the main airport exit closed, and the driver refused to take my advice on how to go out a different way. Ended up spending over a half hour in the shuttle. Not where I wanted to be at 1AM. I finally did get home right around 2.
I hope you enjoyed reading my report. Overall it was an excellent trip I didn’t have any major delays on Amtrak or American Airlines. I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy a solo cross-country trip, but I found it to be quite enjoyable. I am looking forward to one last redemption to clean out my AGR balance once and for all. I am honestly not sure how much long distance travel is in my future considering the devaluation, and the overall cost of sleeper travel these days. I know that I will make an effort to get on the Sunset Limited from New Orleans to Los Angeles, so I can “finish” the long distance network. There will still be a few holes, but last October as I pushed myself right off a transatlantic flight to try and ride not only some of the long distance stuff in Sicily but try and finish a local metro system 2 hours from my hotel. I realized I’m the only one who really cares. No one is going to turn up their nose and say, “I can’t believe you didn’t the tram in Messina.” So for me if I get a ride on the Sunset it will be good enough for me. Yes I’d like to say I’ve ridden every single mile of track in the Amtrak system, but I’m starting to think there is no shame in getting only 95% of it.
Anyway thank you so much for reading this. I will have the photos up as soon as I can. Feel free to ask me any questions, and I apologize for any grammatical errors. I didn’t intend for this to end up being nearly 5000 words.
