It is a short trip - just an 18 hr overnighter from Chicago to Washington DC, but in mid October what a terrific way to see the eastern Fall foliage in the Allegheny Mountains. The eastbound schedule (#30) is perfect for seeing the mountain scenery in morning daylight whereas the westbound #29 schedule puts its passengers over the mountains after dark. I've done both. Both rides are great but the eastbound scenery wins hands down.
Hint: try to be on the right side of the train. The CSX track east of Connellsville PA follows the Youghiogheny River most of the way up into the mountains and are on the east side of the river - so the great views of the river valley are from the right side of the train.
#30 couldn't get out of Chicago on time on the 24th; what I later learned was that they had some engine failures and had to replace two of the three units. Once we boarded at approx 7:15pm, we were ushered up to the diner right away to try and catch up the dining schedule. Not much of a problem because this particular train was not at capacity by a pretty wide margin.
Again I need to chide Amtrak dining services - the crab cakes they served were abysmal, especially if one is from Maryland (like me) and knows what a "crab cake" is supposed to be. On the other hand my dining partners said the steak was excellent. It is sad to recall the original B&O Capitol Ltd menu where a traveller could always get a quality meal even when they cooked it all in the dining car's galley. I know first hand - travelled overnight on the B&O several times in the 1950s. Amtrak can do better.
Again, my roomette was in good condition and everything worked fine. I birdbathed on this train since I had done the full shower the previous two nights on the Southwest Chief. I have to say that the downstairs shower in the Superliner sleeper cars is more than adequate to get squeaky clean. Hint: bring flip flops, a good loofah, and soap on a rope. For, those who haven't done an overnight train - it's kind of like a large RV shower. I'm a big guy - over 300 lbs - and still had room to maneuver.
After breakfast you really need to get to the Sightseer Lounge car - scenery is excellent all the way down past Harpers Ferry Md. At that point you are only 1.5 hours from Washington so best to head back to your room and make sure everything is packed and ready to go.
Service on this train was also very good - both my car attendant and the dining car personnel were courteous and attentive. We rolled into DC a wee bit ahead of schedule actually. I bumped up my connection to BWI from 5:30 to the 3:00 train and eliminated my wait. Way to go Amtrak.
I would imagine the scenery through the mountains in the snow would be awesome so keep the eastbound #30 in mind for a winter trip.
Hint: try to be on the right side of the train. The CSX track east of Connellsville PA follows the Youghiogheny River most of the way up into the mountains and are on the east side of the river - so the great views of the river valley are from the right side of the train.
#30 couldn't get out of Chicago on time on the 24th; what I later learned was that they had some engine failures and had to replace two of the three units. Once we boarded at approx 7:15pm, we were ushered up to the diner right away to try and catch up the dining schedule. Not much of a problem because this particular train was not at capacity by a pretty wide margin.
Again I need to chide Amtrak dining services - the crab cakes they served were abysmal, especially if one is from Maryland (like me) and knows what a "crab cake" is supposed to be. On the other hand my dining partners said the steak was excellent. It is sad to recall the original B&O Capitol Ltd menu where a traveller could always get a quality meal even when they cooked it all in the dining car's galley. I know first hand - travelled overnight on the B&O several times in the 1950s. Amtrak can do better.
Again, my roomette was in good condition and everything worked fine. I birdbathed on this train since I had done the full shower the previous two nights on the Southwest Chief. I have to say that the downstairs shower in the Superliner sleeper cars is more than adequate to get squeaky clean. Hint: bring flip flops, a good loofah, and soap on a rope. For, those who haven't done an overnight train - it's kind of like a large RV shower. I'm a big guy - over 300 lbs - and still had room to maneuver.
After breakfast you really need to get to the Sightseer Lounge car - scenery is excellent all the way down past Harpers Ferry Md. At that point you are only 1.5 hours from Washington so best to head back to your room and make sure everything is packed and ready to go.
Service on this train was also very good - both my car attendant and the dining car personnel were courteous and attentive. We rolled into DC a wee bit ahead of schedule actually. I bumped up my connection to BWI from 5:30 to the 3:00 train and eliminated my wait. Way to go Amtrak.
I would imagine the scenery through the mountains in the snow would be awesome so keep the eastbound #30 in mind for a winter trip.
