Chicago to Wenatchee WA on the Empire Builder

[JayPea]

Since they are Traveling in Coach a Hundred Dollars is a Hundred Dollars! Id think that this Money could Better be Spent on Food and Drink during the Trip, hence changing Coaches (only a Couple of Cars difference between the SEA and PDX Coaches) in SPK may Well be Worth It! But i'm a Retired Government Hand on a Small Pension and Social Security and Medicare! YMMV

Good Point! Would they make them detrain & wait in the station to reboard the #7 consist?

Don't think so -- no -

The way the 7-27-8-28 evolution works at Spokane at about zero-dark-something - is --

(apologies for any confusion this attempt at an explanation might lead to)

First - just to make it clear - the westbound EB #7 splits into the #7 to Seattle and the #27 to Portland.

Second - at about the same time - and with delays and power problems - hwatever - the eastbound parts of the EB from Seattle #8 and Portland #28 - join and run together all the way to Chicago.

There is one very long island platform. The Amtrak station tracks are next to the island platform. There are at least two BNSF mainline tracks and a few more minor tracks outside of those - To get to the actual "station" - meaning "place with waiting room and ticket vending and baggage service - etc -etc" it's down a couple flights or an escalator or elevator and through a tunnel to such a place, if there is any such place, because to be honest, in all the midnight stops of the EB at Spokane that I have ever been on, which is maybe a dozen or two, I have never taken that up-down-over-across visit to the "station:"

The complicated eastbound-westbound zero-dark-something evolution at Spokane is chilly to observe.

Stay in your railcar and sleep.

There is in fact such a place. Compared to many Amtrak stations I've been in the Spokane station is actually quite roomy.

While in the midst of our Slidell Loophole trip in 2009, my uncle and I observed the splitting of the EB. It's an interesting process, at least to me. Keep in mind it doesn't take much to fascinate me. :lol: Even in the summer, at that hour, Spokane is not exactly hot. Great sleeping weather in the summer, though, as average low temps even in the hottest part of what passes for summer in Spokane drop below 60F.

 

[tomfuller]

If you wanted to sleep the whole night in coach, price taking the sleeper only to Whitefish and then switching to coach. You will have at least 10-15 minutes to make the switch about 9PM.

This beats getting rousted out of the sleeper in SPK to switch to coach.

I like the Whitefish station a whole lot more than the Spokane station.