How do I view the California Zephyr route map on google maps?

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homersimpson101

homersimpson101

Train Attendant
Joined
Jul 16, 2023
Messages
19
Location
SF Bay Area
How do I view the California Zephyr route map on google maps? I want to be able to see a detailed satellite view of the route the California Zephyr travels.
 
Excellent question. Google does show railroad tracks if you zoom in close enough, but it doesn't have any obvious way to see the route of a particular train.

Fortunately, Amtrak has an excellent route map:

https://www.amtrak.com/plan-your-trip.html
You can zoom in really close and see fine detail of the route.

You can switch from a conventional map to a terrain/satellite view in the upper right corner.

Amtrak also has a similar map that shows the location of each train in real time, surprisingly accurately:

https://www.amtrak.com/track-your-train.html
Click on a particular train and you can see its origin station, arrival time at the next station, and even how fast it is moving.

Hope this helps!
 
Last edited:
Brian Battuello said:
Excellent question. Google does show railroad tracks if you zoom in close enough, but it doesn't have any obvious way to see the route of a particular train.

Fortunately, Amtrak has an excellent route map:

https://www.amtrak.com/plan-your-trip.html
You can zoom in really close and see fine detail of the route.

You can switch from a conventional map to a terrain/satellite view in the upper right corner.

Amtrak also has a similar map that shows the location of each train in real time, surprisingly accurately:

https://www.amtrak.com/track-your-train.html
Click on a particular train and you can see its origin station, arrival time at the next station, and even how fast it is moving.

Hope this helps!
Click to expand...
Thanks! I never knew this. Wonderful. I am zooming in on the Zephyr route from Sacramento to Reno and I am amazed that a majority of the track uses concrete ties. Wow!
 
slasher-fun said:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/2qEa2RSyMydzX92Y9
Click to expand...

I sit corrected and updated. Google never fails to surprise. In the past, I just saw Amtrak routes as a straight line, airline style.

Related question: I know that if I'm using a smartphone or tablet, the built-in GPS will show where I am with a blue dot. However, I've never been able to figure out a way to get the info on my Windows laptop Google map, even though I have a perfectly good usb GPS dongle that seems to talk to other Windows applications.

Finally, for the nostalgia folks here, before Amtrak got their map together, we used a piece of lovingly created software from a company/person called Dixielandsoftware:

https://dixielandsoftware.net/Amtrak/status/StatusMaps/
The maps are very primitive by Google standards, but he has an amazing series of train status updates in many highly useable formats. One of my favorites:

Train 5 of 01/28/2024 Map Details Unformatted Data
California Zephyr
StationScheduledActual
Chicago, IL (CHI)Dp 200PDp 251P 51 minutes late.
Naperville, IL (NPV)Dp 234PDp 324P 50 minutes late.
Princeton City, IL (PCT)Dp 344PDp 433P 49 minutes late.
Galesburg, IL (GBB)Dp 438PDp 532P 54 minutes late.
Burlington, IA (BRL)Dp 525PDp 620P 55 minutes late.
Mount Pleasant, IA (MTP)Dp 559PDp 651P 52 minutes late.
Ottumwa, IA (OTM)Ar 653P
Dp 653P		Ar 731P 38 minutes late.
Dp 740P 47 minutes late.
Osceola, IA (OSC)Dp 809PDp 858P 49 minutes late.
Creston, IA (CRN)Dp 841PDp 933P 52 minutes late.
Omaha, NE (OMA)Ar 1055P
Dp 1105P		Ar 1120P 25 minutes late.
Dp 1129P 24 minutes late.
Lincoln, NE (LNK)Ar 1208A
Dp 1214A		Ar 1235A 27 minutes late.
Dp 1241A 27 minutes late.
Hastings, NE (HAS)Dp 147ADp 213A 26 minutes late.
Holdrege, NE (HLD)Dp 234ADp 310A 36 minutes late.
McCook, NE (MCK)Dp 343ADp 417A 34 minutes late.
Fort Morgan, CO (FMG)Dp 505ADp 539A 34 minutes late.
Denver, CO (DEN)Ar 715A
Dp 805A		Ar 704A 11 minutes early.
Dp 805A On time.
Fraser, CO (WIP)Dp 1007ADp 251P 4 hours, 44 minutes late.
Granby, CO (GRA)Dp 1037ADp 316P 4 hours, 39 minutes late.
Glenwood Springs, CO (GSC)Dp 153PDp 640P 4 hours, 47 minutes late.
Grand Junction, CO (GJT)Ar 357P
Dp 410P		Ar 845P 4 hours, 48 minutes late.
Dp 853P 4 hours, 43 minutes late.
Green River, UT (GRI)Dp 558PDp 1056P 4 hours, 58 minutes late.
Helper, UT (HER)Dp 720PDp 1213A 4 hours, 53 minutes late.
Provo, UT (PRO)Dp 926PDp 214A 4 hours, 48 minutes late.
Salt Lake City, UT (SLC)Ar 1105P
Dp 1130P		Ar 309A 4 hours, 4 minutes late.
Dp 338A 4 hours, 8 minutes late.
Elko, NV (ELK)Dp 303ADp 725A 4 hours, 22 minutes late.
Winnemucca, NV (WNN)Dp 540ADp
Reno, NV (RNO)Dp 836ADp
Truckee, CA (TRU)Dp 937ADp
Colfax, CA (COX)Dp 1148ADp
Roseville, CA (RSV)Ar 1255P
Dp 1257P		Ar
Dp
Sacramento, CA (SAC)Ar 213P
Dp 225P		Ar
Dp
Davis, CA (DAV)Ar 244P
Dp 246P		Ar
Dp
Martinez, CA (MTZ)Dp 332PDp
Richmond, CA (RIC)Dp 359PDp
Emeryville, CA (EMY)Ar 410PAr
 
Brian Battuello said:
Related question: I know that if I'm using a smartphone or tablet, the built-in GPS will show where I am with a blue dot.
Click to expand...
It will actually usually use the surrounding WiFi networks for that, as it's much faster and precise enough (Google has over the years built a database of the location of WiFi APs in the world, using both their Google Street Cars when mapping the world and the Android devices of Android users).
Brian Battuello said:
However, I've never been able to figure out a way to get the info on my Windows laptop Google map, even though I have a perfectly good usb GPS dongle that seems to talk to other Windows applications.
Click to expand...
Because your web browser (and the website inside of it) doesn't know how to talk with your GPS dongle.
 
Hmm. I am going to do a Downeaster boondoggle this Thursday, I will see if Google Maps will actually show my moving location on a laptop map. I will turn on "use my current location". Might not be a huge number of Wifi AP's trackside in Maine other than my fellow travellers Androids. Do you actually think Garmin running on a laptop with wifi will ask a nearby Android to check its location via GPS, then have the Android Mobile Hotspot fink on its location to my WiFi enabled laptop running Google Maps? Or will it use my own laptop's wifi to search for nearby trackside hotspots? I will already have the laptop connected to Amtrak Wifi which probably isn't going to help much.

For historical purposes, the old DeLorme Street Atlas laptop mapping service had an excellent set of railroad maps, and happily used my GPS dongle. But they didn't have any info about specific trains. Garmin bought DeLorme and killed off Street Atlas. Now we're still better off with Amtrak's two maps, until they find a way to mess them up.

And in full irony, my Downeaster passes a mile away from the old DeLorme world headquarters in Maine. They still have a giant rotating globe named Eartha in their lobby. You can't see it from the Downeaster but I salute it every time I pass by on I295.

Eartha.png
 
Last edited:
Brian Battuello said:
Hmm. I am going to do a Downeaster boondoggle this Thursday, I will see if Google Maps will actually show my moving location on a laptop map.
Click to expand...
It won't
Brian Battuello said:
I will turn on "use my current location". Might not be a huge number of Wifi AP's trackside in Maine other than my fellow travellers Androids.
Click to expand...
So it will tell you you're somewhere in the US based on your public IP address, and that's about it.
Brian Battuello said:
Do you actually think Garmin running on a laptop with wifi will ask a nearby Android to check its location via GPS, then have the Android Mobile Hotspot fink on its location to my WiFi enabled laptop running Google Maps?
Click to expand...
Are you talking about Garmin Express? If so it won't, it's just there to update the GPS device.
Brian Battuello said:
Or will it use my own laptop's wifi to search for nearby trackside hotspots? I will already have the laptop connected to Amtrak Wifi which probably isn't going to help much.
Click to expand...
Same, it won't.
 
Brian Battuello said:
Amtrak also has a similar map that shows the location of each train in real time, surprisingly accurately:

https://www.amtrak.com/track-your-train.html
Click on a particular train and you can see its origin station, arrival time at the next station, and even how fast it is moving.

Hope this helps!
Click to expand...
I don't see where it indicates the speed of the train. I tried both on my laptop using Chrome and my iPhone using the Amtrak app. I think the display on both is cut off at the very top of the dialogue box that has the other details. Is that where it shows the train speed?

Edit: I found it. I have to toggle the full screen view on Chrome. Never mind.
 
Sorry, meant Google. Most Windows laptops don't have a GPS built in. I bought a $20 GPS USB dongle and it fired right up, installing its own driver. I downloaded a laptop app called Windows Map, and it went right into GPS mode, showing where I am and provides POI and address routing suggestions, including some sort of traffic service. Took it out in the car and it happily followed me around the block, with perfect road alignment. So why doesn't Google Laptop Maps do the same? They already have the POI, routing and traffic software. Are they so sure I'll have a phone or tablet that it isn't worth coding a GPS interface?

I generally work on my laptop enroute. I guess I'll either use the very good Amtrak map or just keep my phone map running nearby. And of course occasionally look out the window :cool:.
 
Brian Battuello said:
I sit corrected and updated. Google never fails to surprise. In the past, I just saw Amtrak routes as a straight line, airline style.

Related question: I know that if I'm using a smartphone or tablet, the built-in GPS will show where I am with a blue dot. However, I've never been able to figure out a way to get the info on my Windows laptop Google map, even though I have a perfectly good usb GPS dongle that seems to talk to other Windows applications.

...
Click to expand...

If that GPS Dongle is talking to the Windows Location Service to share locations that talk to other Windows applications, it has a possibility of working.

- In Google maps try "
  1. On your computer, open Microsoft Edge and go to Google Maps.
  2. At the bottom right, click My location
    My location
    .
    • If you’re asked to share your location, chose Allow.
    • If the blue dot appears and shows your location, then Maps already has location permission in your browser.
    • If there’s a message that says "Google Maps does not have permission to use your location," continue to the next steps.
  3. To the left of the web address, click Lock
    Lock
    .
  4. Click Permissions for this site.
  5. To the right of "Location," choose Allow.
  6. Reload the Google Maps page and click My location
    My location
    ."
In Windows, a setting to look at:
"
  • Go to Start > Settings > Privacy > Location.
  • Do one of the following:
    • To control location for the whole device if you’re an administrator on the device, select Change, and then in the Location for this device message, switch the setting to On or Off.
    • To control location for just your user account, switch the Allow apps to access your location setting to On or Off. If Location for this device is off appears on the settings page, you won’t be able to turn on the Allow apps to access your location setting for an individual user account."
 

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