MIA-NYP-CHI-LAX-PDX-SEA

[chrsjrcj]

Just got back home from my first cross country rail trip. This was my first time on a long distance train that wasn't a Silver Meteor or Star. I must say, I'm really impressed by the quality of service on the West Coast trains.

Monday, October 26

I took Tri-Rail from the Lake Worth station to the Metrorail transfer station in Hialeah. Yes, I could've gotten on the Meteor in West Palm Beach, but then I would've missed out on a "free" breakfast, and yes, I could've just gone down to Fort Lauderdale (the stop where meal service starts on the Silver trains) where Tri-Rail and Amtrak share the same station, but I wanted to do a first stop to last stop ride.

I got to the Tri-Rail station a little before 5 am, intending to catch the 5:36 am departure. As I was purchasing my ticket, the 4:56 am train was just about to depart. Me and two other guys just got their ticket when the train started leaving, but the conductor was nice enough to stop the train for us. I could've gotten away with missing that one, since it wasn't even the train I intended to take, but it was nice to have the extra 40 minute cushion. Arrived at the Metrorail station right on time, and had about 1 hour 45 minutes to make the 10 minute walk over to the Amtrak station. I actually hung around the Tri-Rail station for about 30 minutes, so there would be some sunlight when I made the walk (and the Amtrak station wasn't open yet).

The Meteor departed right on time, and breakfast was soon being served after Fort Lauderdale. I ordered the scrambled egg breakfast, which was probably the worst meal I ever had on Amtrak. Normally this is pretty good, but the eggs were awful and the bacon was small. Fortunately, the crew was attentive and friendly. The meals on this train did get better as well.

We lost a little over an hour before arriving in Kissimmee, thanks to waiting on a very late 91 for almost 1/2 hour, then having to wait for 97. I guess we lost another hour in South Carolina, which we were unable to make up, and we arrived in New York Penn station 2 hours late. This was my first time in New York outside of Penn Station. A little overwhelming at first, but once I got the hang of the subway system, it was pretty easy to get around and see the sights.

Wednesday, October 28

I spent the night at a hotel, and woke up at 4 am to get ready to head back into Penn Station to catch the Cardinal. Yes, I could've taken the Meteor on Tuesday and changed trains in DC, but I wanted to ride from the first stop to the last stop, and I figured I would appreciate a night in a stationary bed. We left Penn Station on time and breakfast was served after leaving Trenton. I knew the Cardinal didn't have a full diner, but I was still shocked at how big of an impact it had at meal time. There was only one attendant responsible for the diner part of the cafe car. He had to take orders, cook and prepare the meals, clean tables, take care of payments from the coach passengers. The service was slow, which was understandable, but I think the attendant did a great job considering the circumstance. If Amtrak isn't going to run a full diner on this train, they need to at least have a second person to help in the diner part.

We were on time for most of the trip, until after leaving Staunton, VA. We sat in the siding for a good 1/2 hour waiting on a late 50. Then, just before the Clifton Forge stop, we stopped for another 40 minutes waiting on a freight train. With us now 2 hours late, and the sun setting earlier, I did miss the Gorge. I wasn't too upset. I knew it would probably be too dark anyway, and the best chance to see it is going eastbound or at least travel during the summer. What I did see of Virginia and West Virginia was quite nice though, and I'll likely make the eastbound trip in the future.

TBC...

 

[chrsjrcj]

Thursday, October 29

Thanks to schedule padding, we were able to make up an hour by the time we got to Indy, where I woke up. Shortly after arriving our Indy stop, I see a train pass by us with 2-3 engines (one being the Veterans unit), a few Superliner cars, a Pacific Surfliner car, a heritage baggage car (that had "Buffet Car" written on the side) and a viewliner sleeper. I first thought that this train would run ahead of us, but I soon felt a bump and realized that they (more logically) added it to the front of our train. Kind of funny, because they didn't even move our original locomotive from DC to the beginning of the train. I hope someone got it on video in action.

We arrived in Union Station only 50 minutes late. After a little bit of walking around, I soon found the Metropolitan lounge. Like the Club Acela lounges I've visited in DC and New York, there is a space to leave your luggage so you can explore the city. I guess because of the large number of people that change trains in Chicago, they do have a Red Cap that guards your bag, which is nice. I walked around Chicago for a couple hours (including a lunch at Giordano's which did not disappoint!), before returning to the station for the last 2 hours of my layover...it was too cold! I was impressed by the architecture of Chicago, and Union Station. The boarding process is kind of weird though. They took us out the emergency exit, then directed us back into the station then back outside to our platform.

The Chief left Chicago right on time. It was my first time in a Superliner, and I prefer it so much more to the single level equipment. The Sightseer Lounge is awesome! Not long after leaving Chicago, the LSA came around taking dinner reservations. I can't remember her exact name (Jeanette or something like that...quite sure it started with a J), but she was AMAZING. After the first round of reservations, she knew every single person's name on that train. When lunch and dinner reservations were called (something that I've never seen on the East Coast trains...it's always been show up when your reservation is), she would greet every single person by their name. She'd also greet me by name each time I walked through the dining car going from my sleeping car to the lounge. Not a bad meal on that train, and it was like night and day compared to the Cardinal.

My first night on the Chief, I asked for the top bunk to be made. I do this on the single level trains, because there is still a window, and you have more floor space. There is no windows with the top bunks on the Superliners, and there is a lot less head space. While I didn't care much about the window, the head space was a bit of a pain when crawling in and out of the bunk. I opted for the bottom bunk for the rest of my trip.

Saturday, October 31

We were on time for the most part, but lost an hour overnight in Arizona. We were able to arrive 30 minutes early into LA, though. I'm sure most of that is thanks to schedule padding, but BNSF really knows how to keep this train moving. It was also a bit of a thrill passing freight trains at 90 mph in the New Mexico desert. CSX should take notes.

I now had a 2.5 hour layover in LA. Not long enough for me to explore the city, but I did check out the area around the station. What really stood out to me was the amount of homeless people inside the station. I used the bathroom in the general area (before finding the Metropolitan lounge), and it was a mess. Trash everywhere, doors missing from the stalls, and quite a few homeless people. The odor was awful. While the station itself was impressive, the facilities were not kept clean. I was glad to spend most of my time in the Metropolitan lounge.

We boarded the train about 30 minutes before departure. I'm guessing Amtrak uses the same tracks for their long distance trains everyday, based off the signage advertising the three long distance routes that serve LA. Onboard, I found that the Superliner car I was in, was different than the one on the Chief. This one seemed a bit older. It had an actual small closet instead of just an open area. The shower was much bigger though, and I thought the bathrooms were nicer as well. My SCA, Carl, did a great job keeping the restrooms clean for the entire trip.

Not long after leaving LA, the LSA, Nancy, took reservations for the dining car and Parlour car. I decided to have my first lunch in the Parlour car. The offerings were greek salad or Italian sub. I took the Italian sub. The food wasn't bad, but I prefer the dining car. I also didn't care much for the seating arrangements in the Parlour car, and stayed in the Sightseeing car with its bigger windows for most of the trip. Nancy did a great job locating all sleeping car passengers in the Parlour car and the lounge car, before getting dinner reservations from coach passengers. I was also impressed at the amount of people working the dining car. There appeared to be the LSA, 2 waiters, and 2 cooks. I believe the Silver trains typically have 1 LSA, 1 waiter, and 1 cook.

The trip up the California coast did not disappoint, and I called it a day after we departed San Jose right on time.

TBC...

 

[chrsjrcj]

Sunday, November 1

We lost an hour while I was asleep between Oakland and Emryville. We did have a PV that was no longer there when I got off the train at the Klamath Falls stop, so I wonder if it was taken off then? It didn't really matter, since the clocks went back an hour (which is full circle for me, since I was on the Silver Meteor when the clocks moved up an hour during spring of this year), and we could make the time up that way. We did arrive Klamath Falls 44 minutes early, which was the earliest arrival time I think I've ever experienced on an Amtrak train...or any mode of transportation for that matter.

Shortly before 7 am, I made my way to the dining car for breakfast. I was actually planing on eating in the Parlour Car, but I guess it didn't open until 7 am. After leaving Klamath Falls, I noticed some unsavory people had boarded there. One kid was in the sightseeing lounge car, and quite frankly smelt awful. I was able to find an empty seat away from him, and I noticed I wasn't the only one that moved. A woman across from me also complained to the conductor and coach attendant that her car smelt awful. After eating lunch in the dining car (the Parlour car had the same lunch offerings as the day before), I went back to the sightseer car. Unfortunately, the car was a mess. While there were plenty of empty seats, most had trash left on them. I stayed in the Parlour car for the rest of my trip. Not long after leaving the sightseer car, I heard the conductor make an announcement asking passengers to clean up after themselves in that car. Kind of a shame, considering this is one of Amtrak's premier long distance trains. The Southwest Chief did not have this problem, and it is a much longer run. Of course, the Chief was also no where close to full either.

We finally arrived in Portland, about 30 minutes late. I walked a short distance to the MAX light rail stop and waited for the train to take me to my hotel. I found that a large amount of the city's homeless liked to hang out here. I understand that every major city will unfortunately have a large homeless population, but it was a bit disconcerting to not see much other foot traffic through there.

Monday, November 2

I took an early morning MAX train back to Union Station to catch Amtrak Cascades 500. I found the boarding process here to be a bit weird. Even though the train originates further south, in Eugene, the conductor will give you a seat assignment well before the train's arrival time. When I heard the check in process start for coach, I was a bit confused as I had a business class ticket. After sitting around for a few minutes, I decided to go up to the ticket counter to see what I was supposed to do. I guess they give you your seat assignment if you're in business class in addition to the $3 off coupon for the cafe car. I was seat 7A, which was a seat by itself in the back of the car. The doors between cars is annoying as it makes a loud noise every time it opens and closes. This was my first time in a Talgo, and I was impressed. The ride was smooth and quiet, even at 79 mph. Probably one of the most comfortable train rides in my opinion. The conductor, AC, and cafe attendant were friendly and helpful. The conductor went out of her way, and I believe went above and beyond to make sure everyone had a good trip.

We arrived in Seattle a few minutes late. King Street Station is very nice. After wondering around a bit, I finally found the light rail station in the downtown tunnel. What a cool/crazy transit tunnel. I decided to go ahead and buy an ORCA card loaded with a day pass. Even though I'd be leaving the next day, I figured I'll probably be back to Seattle in the future. I boarded the light rail, along with 3 fare enforcement officers. As soon as the doors closed and the train departed, they announced that they would be checking for tickets. The way they announced it made it feel like a train robbery from 100 years ago, but they were friendly. Kind of funny, when I was taking the light rail back from my hotel to downtown, the same 3 agents boarded my train and did the same thing. I imagine those were the only 3 agents working at that time, and they just ride from stop to stop on different trains. No fare enforcement during 5 pm rush though when the train was beyond standing room only. They probably wouldn't be able to walk throughout the train, let alone check everyone's ticket.

Tuesday, November 3

I booked a hotel right across the street from the airport. It was very convenient as I did not have to rely on a taxi or shuttle to take me to the airport, I could just walk on over. The light rail also has a stop at the airport too. I didn't use any vehicles at all during this trip. All Amtrak, commuter rail, subway, light rail, or walking.

The flight back was uneventful, and meh. Flying isn't nearly as comfortable as taking the train, even though it is a lot faster.

Overall, I had an amazing time, and will do a x-country trip again in a heartbeat. In fact, I'm already planning a few for next year.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Nice trip, thanks for sharing!

 

[benale]

Nice trip report. I understand you wanting to take the train from start to finish. The Western Superliners are so much better than the Eastern trains. The Sightseer lounge makes all the difference in the world. I just wish the Silver trains and The Cardinal had some place to hang out other than the cafe/lounge car, like a dome car, It would make the trip much more pleasant. I did a similar trip a few years ago from Seattle to New York taking the longest way possible. Coast Starlight to LA, Sunset Limited to New Orleans and The Crescent to New York. Full week on the train all in sleepers., One of the best weeks I ever spent.

Glad you had a nice trip. I've taken many long distance trips. It never gets old!

 

[shelzp]

I really enjoyed reading your report. Actually read it twice! Thanks for sharing your trip and observations with us!

 

[Sauve850]

Impressed you took Tri-Rail south to grab breakfast!