Back in 2004, while riding east on the California Zephyr, one of our lunch companions was Lou, a train buff from South Carolina who was traveling on an Amtrak rail pass. (Was that you by any chance?) So far that year, he'd gone from his home in South Carolina to Los Angeles via New Orleans. From L.A., he’d gone north up to Vancouver and had then taken an eastbound Canadian passenger train across Canada. He then went west on the Empire Builder and was now heading east again on the Zephyr. Between trains, he would rest up for a few days, usually staying at the same places the Amtrak crew members stayed.
Although we, too, are railfans, we now just ride the train to go someplace we need to be. (As seniors in their late ‘70’s, we’re no longer up to driving long distances or dealing with the stresses and inconveniences associated with flying.) Most of our long-distance trips are made back to Ohio to visit family members. (It is difficult for them to come to California so we must go to them.)
Although we don’t ride the train “just for the fun of it,” we are now scheduling two trips back to Ohio every year, just so we can get in as many trips as possible while we’re still able to travel.
Our favorite long-distance trains are Southwest Chief Nos. 3 and 4.
In the 36 years we’ve been riding on Amtrak trains, we’ve had our share of adventures: a missed connection in Chicago due to a late arrival, the last-minute cancellation of the train we were expecting to take from Toledo to Chicago in order to make a same day connection, assorted delays caused by the weather or human or structural failure, etc. (Riding on Amtrak is not for the fainthearted!)
From our own experiences and by paying attention to the various comments posted on various AU threads, we’ve picked up enough useful hints and suggestions so that we feel confident that we can handle just about any situation we’re likely to encounter while traveling.
Eric & Pat
Although we, too, are railfans, we now just ride the train to go someplace we need to be. (As seniors in their late ‘70’s, we’re no longer up to driving long distances or dealing with the stresses and inconveniences associated with flying.) Most of our long-distance trips are made back to Ohio to visit family members. (It is difficult for them to come to California so we must go to them.)
Although we don’t ride the train “just for the fun of it,” we are now scheduling two trips back to Ohio every year, just so we can get in as many trips as possible while we’re still able to travel.
Our favorite long-distance trains are Southwest Chief Nos. 3 and 4.
In the 36 years we’ve been riding on Amtrak trains, we’ve had our share of adventures: a missed connection in Chicago due to a late arrival, the last-minute cancellation of the train we were expecting to take from Toledo to Chicago in order to make a same day connection, assorted delays caused by the weather or human or structural failure, etc. (Riding on Amtrak is not for the fainthearted!)
From our own experiences and by paying attention to the various comments posted on various AU threads, we’ve picked up enough useful hints and suggestions so that we feel confident that we can handle just about any situation we’re likely to encounter while traveling.
Eric & Pat
Last edited:
. At Altoona we had time for a quick visit to the Railroaders Memorial museum which was interesting, before getting our trip home. It would have been nice to also see Horseshoe Curve from the train but that would have required an overnight stay due to the schedule.
