This trip was an unexpected one, but one of my more enjoyable ones. Spring break plans fell through when my girl friend got sick. After determining that she was going to be ok we agreed that i probably should go on a train ride to preserve my sanity after a somehwat hectic weekend of changed plans and then canceled plans. Plan A was a trip from Chicago to Washington, D.C. on the Cardinal with a return to Chicago via New York City on an Acela and on the Lake Shore Limited. However, sleepers were not availabable on the Cardinal at that point. So I checked on my second choice, Chicago to Grand Junction. Success. I secured a round trip departing on April 13(Thursday) and returning from Grand Junction on Apirl 15 (Saturday). I had room 14 in the 531 car going out, and room 4 in the 632 car coming back.
On April 13th, I got to Union Station early and checked in at the Metropolitan Lounge. I spent an hour reading, and then ventured out for lunch at a restaurant near Union Station. I returned about 12:30, and the Zephyr was boarded about 1:30. I was expecting the sleepers to be at the back of the train, but we were sent to the front. At first glance, 531 was a superliner 1. As I boarded, I saw that I would be riding in a totally refurbished car. I was pleased at this, having not had a chance to ride in one on an overnight trip.
The attendant, Sandy, introduced herself and gave me a complete rundown on how my room functioned. She cheerfully ignored me when I stated that I had ridden many times. She finished with a warning about not leaving my room wihtout my shoes. "I hear bare feet in my sleep" she promised as a conclusion to her introduction. At first, i thought she was too authoritative, but she worked hard to ensure that we had a great trip.
The AC was not functioning properly, and on a day when the temperature hit triple digits on a thermometer in Galesburg, this was not pleasant. However, she made a consistent effort to alleviate the discomfort. She encouraged us to drink ice water, and checked on us frequently. At some stops, she helped a disabled passenger by walking his service dog. This was quite a site watching her walk the dog at Galesburg and Ottumwa.
Dinner in the diner was enjoyable. I ate dinner with a couple from Cleveland, and man from Buffalo. The conversation was relaxed. The food was good too. I had the steak. The crew was somewhat defensive and sarcastic at times, but they tried to provide good service. Breakfast and lunch the next day were also enjoyable. At lunch I shared the table with a couple from England and a man from Denmark who was an engineer on their rail system. That was a great conversation. The british couple were delighted by Amtrak, and stated that Amtrak was much better than the trains in England. I guess the grass is always greener on the other side of the ocean. LOL.
The scnenery was fabulous. The timekeeping was OK. We were about an hour late into Denver, with a freight breakdown being the main cause. At Radium, a UP freight broke down and nailed us for another 90 minutes. Overall delay was about 2 hours 30 minutes into Glenwood springs. However, the train made up 40 minutes by Grand Junction where I got off.
Grand Junction is a good place to do a turn around on the CZ. In either direction, you get a solid layover even if the train is late. Plus you get to see most of the good scenery too. I stayed in a double tree that was 4 miles from the station. The hotel proived a shuttle for pick up. This is a nice property. The rooms were refurbished, and I was able to hook up my Ipod to the clock radio with a connection that was provided by the hotel. A nice touch. There a several restaurants within walking distance, or the shuttle can take you to one that is farther away. I ate at a steak house that was OK.
The next morning, I called and Julie told me that 6 was about 2 hours late. I expected that it ccould make up about 40 minutes, and planned accordingly. I had a nice breakfast and then watched the movie "Are we There yet?" staring Ice Cube. The movie was entertaining enough, with a few trains scenes. Most notabley, Ice cube and company boarded a VIA train in Portland Oregon to ride to Vancouver, BC to take his girlfriends children to her for New Years after their father stood tthem up. I could see that the whole thing was shot at the Vancouver station. I could see the Canadian's equipment in the background.
I arrived at Grand Junction about 90 minutes before the anticipated arrival of 6. The gift shop was intersting. Most noticeabley, there were elaborate home made route guides for the Zephyr. The set included 3 books for the entire route. Book 1 is for chicago to Denver, 2 Denver-Salt Lake, and 3 for Salt Lake to Emeryville. I got the set for 35 bucks. These are pretty good, with lots a detailed infor about the towns that the train travel through. There is some railfan info. but it is not very technical. The Denver Salt Lake guide matches sights to mile markers along the route, a nice touch.
6 arrived about 12 pm about 90 minutes late. The sleepers were on the back, along with one freight car. I was in the 632 car, room 4. I was surprised to see that this was a superliner 1 refurb too. However, it was not done to the same level as the cars for the Empire Builder. The bathrooms did not have the nicer layout with the fancy sinks. The shower did have a glass door, but it was not totally rebuilt either. The surfances on the sinks did have the same material as on the EB rebuilds. Overall, it was a decent effort. The rooms seemed to be identical.
The crew was laid back but pleasant. I think they were kind of tired since they were on the return leg. But no one was crabby or oppositional. The diner was slow, but the food was good. Again I had enjoyable table companions for all meals.
The sky was overcast for much of the day, with the sun coming out in late afternoon. This made the canyons specataculr. Earlier, clounds provided a nice backdrop to distant mountains and buttes.
The train made up 30 more minutes by Denver, and then contiued to be an hour late for the remainder of the trip.
I was sitting in the diner while the train was stopped in Denver. Then I heard this frantic announcement over the PA from the attendent in my car. "I need help . . . I cant get this guy UP!!. I thought she meant somebody who needed wheelchair assitance up the ramp. Others speculated about someone being sick in their room with door locked, etc. Later, I found out that she was refering to a passenger in one of the roomettes who needed to get off in Denver. They did eventually get the door open, and roused him. He told the attendant he had not slept in 4 days. Wow! He must have really been out. The attendant was really shaken by the expereince, and I could understand that. OF course crewmebers came by to visit, and she noisily demonstrated her efforts to wake up the exhaused passenger each time.
Overall, I really enjoyed the trip. Everything was relaxed and pleasant. I took pictures, and I am making a DVD to share with my students. That should be kind of interesting to see how they react.
On April 13th, I got to Union Station early and checked in at the Metropolitan Lounge. I spent an hour reading, and then ventured out for lunch at a restaurant near Union Station. I returned about 12:30, and the Zephyr was boarded about 1:30. I was expecting the sleepers to be at the back of the train, but we were sent to the front. At first glance, 531 was a superliner 1. As I boarded, I saw that I would be riding in a totally refurbished car. I was pleased at this, having not had a chance to ride in one on an overnight trip.
The attendant, Sandy, introduced herself and gave me a complete rundown on how my room functioned. She cheerfully ignored me when I stated that I had ridden many times. She finished with a warning about not leaving my room wihtout my shoes. "I hear bare feet in my sleep" she promised as a conclusion to her introduction. At first, i thought she was too authoritative, but she worked hard to ensure that we had a great trip.
The AC was not functioning properly, and on a day when the temperature hit triple digits on a thermometer in Galesburg, this was not pleasant. However, she made a consistent effort to alleviate the discomfort. She encouraged us to drink ice water, and checked on us frequently. At some stops, she helped a disabled passenger by walking his service dog. This was quite a site watching her walk the dog at Galesburg and Ottumwa.
Dinner in the diner was enjoyable. I ate dinner with a couple from Cleveland, and man from Buffalo. The conversation was relaxed. The food was good too. I had the steak. The crew was somewhat defensive and sarcastic at times, but they tried to provide good service. Breakfast and lunch the next day were also enjoyable. At lunch I shared the table with a couple from England and a man from Denmark who was an engineer on their rail system. That was a great conversation. The british couple were delighted by Amtrak, and stated that Amtrak was much better than the trains in England. I guess the grass is always greener on the other side of the ocean. LOL.
The scnenery was fabulous. The timekeeping was OK. We were about an hour late into Denver, with a freight breakdown being the main cause. At Radium, a UP freight broke down and nailed us for another 90 minutes. Overall delay was about 2 hours 30 minutes into Glenwood springs. However, the train made up 40 minutes by Grand Junction where I got off.
Grand Junction is a good place to do a turn around on the CZ. In either direction, you get a solid layover even if the train is late. Plus you get to see most of the good scenery too. I stayed in a double tree that was 4 miles from the station. The hotel proived a shuttle for pick up. This is a nice property. The rooms were refurbished, and I was able to hook up my Ipod to the clock radio with a connection that was provided by the hotel. A nice touch. There a several restaurants within walking distance, or the shuttle can take you to one that is farther away. I ate at a steak house that was OK.
The next morning, I called and Julie told me that 6 was about 2 hours late. I expected that it ccould make up about 40 minutes, and planned accordingly. I had a nice breakfast and then watched the movie "Are we There yet?" staring Ice Cube. The movie was entertaining enough, with a few trains scenes. Most notabley, Ice cube and company boarded a VIA train in Portland Oregon to ride to Vancouver, BC to take his girlfriends children to her for New Years after their father stood tthem up. I could see that the whole thing was shot at the Vancouver station. I could see the Canadian's equipment in the background.
I arrived at Grand Junction about 90 minutes before the anticipated arrival of 6. The gift shop was intersting. Most noticeabley, there were elaborate home made route guides for the Zephyr. The set included 3 books for the entire route. Book 1 is for chicago to Denver, 2 Denver-Salt Lake, and 3 for Salt Lake to Emeryville. I got the set for 35 bucks. These are pretty good, with lots a detailed infor about the towns that the train travel through. There is some railfan info. but it is not very technical. The Denver Salt Lake guide matches sights to mile markers along the route, a nice touch.
6 arrived about 12 pm about 90 minutes late. The sleepers were on the back, along with one freight car. I was in the 632 car, room 4. I was surprised to see that this was a superliner 1 refurb too. However, it was not done to the same level as the cars for the Empire Builder. The bathrooms did not have the nicer layout with the fancy sinks. The shower did have a glass door, but it was not totally rebuilt either. The surfances on the sinks did have the same material as on the EB rebuilds. Overall, it was a decent effort. The rooms seemed to be identical.
The crew was laid back but pleasant. I think they were kind of tired since they were on the return leg. But no one was crabby or oppositional. The diner was slow, but the food was good. Again I had enjoyable table companions for all meals.
The sky was overcast for much of the day, with the sun coming out in late afternoon. This made the canyons specataculr. Earlier, clounds provided a nice backdrop to distant mountains and buttes.
The train made up 30 more minutes by Denver, and then contiued to be an hour late for the remainder of the trip.
I was sitting in the diner while the train was stopped in Denver. Then I heard this frantic announcement over the PA from the attendent in my car. "I need help . . . I cant get this guy UP!!. I thought she meant somebody who needed wheelchair assitance up the ramp. Others speculated about someone being sick in their room with door locked, etc. Later, I found out that she was refering to a passenger in one of the roomettes who needed to get off in Denver. They did eventually get the door open, and roused him. He told the attendant he had not slept in 4 days. Wow! He must have really been out. The attendant was really shaken by the expereince, and I could understand that. OF course crewmebers came by to visit, and she noisily demonstrated her efforts to wake up the exhaused passenger each time.
Overall, I really enjoyed the trip. Everything was relaxed and pleasant. I took pictures, and I am making a DVD to share with my students. That should be kind of interesting to see how they react.
