# Empire Builder, August-September 2008, Part 1



## Ispolkom (Sep 19, 2008)

My wife and I left St. Paul on August 22 on the Empire Builder. Earlier in the day I had stopped by the station to pick up our tickets and check a suitcase. This turned out to be a good idea as they take that 50 lb. limit seriously, and it would have been annoying to other passengers to be repacking our baggage while others waited.

The train was on time and in the station when we arrived that evening, so we spent no time in St. Paul’s Metropolitan Lounge, but gave our tickets to the conductor and walked to the end of the train to the Portland sleeper.

When I booked this trip back in October, I had been surprised to find that the family bedroom was significantly cheaper than a roomette. I'm always happy to try something new, so we had selected the family bedroom. Now we were interested to see how we would take two days in it. William, the SCA, had already made up our beds, but the compartment is so big that there were still two seats (albeit with little leg room) facing each other. We quickly decided that we loved the family bedroom and would prefer in the future always to travel in it. The advantages include windows on both sides of the car, a couch long enough for both of us to nap on during the day, quick access to restrooms and shower, and quiet and privacy. Since the family bedroom is at the end of the lower level, no one goes by.

The train left St. Paul on time. We had a celebratory cocktail and soon went to bed.

We're both early risers, so were up by 6 a.m. I looked out the window and was glad to see that we were west of Grand Forks, proof that the EB was keeping good time. We lingered over coffee too long, and found that we had missed the first call for breakfast. We put my name on the waiting list and returned to the lounge car to wait for my name to be called. The train was packed, with many older travelers who were part of at least three tour groups (at least I saw three different types of name tag). Many seemed to be new to train travel, and had not learned that it's best to walk quickly, that one's momentum helps with balance. This meant that it was a very long way shuffling from our sleeper to the diner. No matter, we chatted with a tour guide until our table was ready. After all, we had nowhere to go, and I had already had that essential first cup of coffee.

My wife and I belong to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), where we pay a flat rate at the beginning of the season and get a bag of organic produce from the farmer every week. It's an interesting way to learn about different vegetables, and helps keep me from over-buying at the farmers' market. Unfortunately, we were traveling at peak harvest season, and our farmer had given us two weeks worth of produce the day before we left. Rather than let it go to waste, we had brought the veggies along in a cooler, and asked my mother to meet the train when it stopped in Minot, where she lives. We were happy to see her and traded the vegetables for a bag of ice she had brought. This would keep the bottle of prosecco we also had in the cooler chilled during the day. We had a nice visit while the train refueled and had to walk quickly when William warned us that the train was about to leave.

The rest of the day we lazed about, reading trashy novels, listening to our MP3 players, watching the scenery (I like the big skies!), and napping. We both enjoyed the wine and cheese tasting, with Washington wines and cheeses from Faribault, Minnesota. It was nice to talk other travelers at the tasting, at meals, and occasionally in the lounge car, but I was happy also to be able to go to our spacious compartment and shut the door. After the wine and cheese tasting we opened our bottle of prosecco and even my wife (who describes eastern Montana and western North Dakota as an endless procession of brown field-yellow field-brown field-yellow field) had to admit that the landscape was remarkably green and attractive. Maybe it was the wine talking.

We were into Marias Pass by the time we ate dinner, and ready for bed by the time we reached Whitefish. SHMBO had taken the upper bunk the previous night, so I ascended this night.

Boy, do people sleep through the Spokane stop? I'm not a light sleeper, but I woke up grabbing the wall as the car lurched as the Portland section was separated. The power was out, naturally enough, so I went back to sleep, only to wake again as the car lurched when the locomotives were attached. I was glad for the cargo net holding me into the bunk, even though I know I really wasn't at any risk of falling out.

The last morning we trooped up the lounge car for our cold breakfast (a ham and cheese croissant, yoghurt, cut up fruit), and then enjoyed the Columbia River Valley. If you like basalt, this is the place for you. The train arrived in Portland 20 minutes early. All, in all, this first leg was another great Amtrak trip.


----------



## MrFSS (Sep 19, 2008)

Ispolkom said:


> The train was on time and in the station when we arrived that evening, so we spent no time in St. Paul's Metropolitan Lounge . . .


St Paul station has a Metropolitan Lounge? I didn't know they did? Where, in the station is it located???

Thanks for the nice report!


----------



## Ispolkom (Sep 19, 2008)

MrFSS said:


> Ispolkom said:
> 
> 
> > The train was on time and in the station when we arrived that evening, so we spent no time in St. Paul's Metropolitan Lounge . . .
> ...



You're welcome.

As you enter the station from the parking lot, the door to the Metropolitan Lounge is across the waiting room, to the right. It's quite compact, but quieter than the main waiting room. You get the door code when pick up your tickets.


----------



## ALC Rail Writer (Sep 19, 2008)

> Boy, do people sleep through the Spokane stop? I'm not a light sleeper, but I woke up grabbing the wall as the car lurched as the Portland section was separated. The power was out, naturally enough, so I went back to sleep, only to wake again as the car lurched when the locomotives were attached. I was glad for the cargo net holding me into the bunk, even though I know I really wasn't at any risk of falling out.


When you're in a crowded coach, Spokane can be the only spot where you can fall asleep for several reasons:

1. Your seat partner might get up

2. The bright lights go out

3. You're in the middle of the train (generally) so the jolts aren't as bad.


----------



## the_traveler (Sep 19, 2008)

ALC_Rail_Writer said:


> 3. You're in the middle of the train (generally) so the jolts aren't as bad.


But if you're in the sleeper, you are in the last car - which is the first car from the switcher!


----------



## Cascadia (Sep 19, 2008)

I always like to read Empire Builder trip reports as that is the line I am most experienced with outside of the Cascades, and the one I hope to be riding the most in the future. Interesting that you got the bedroom at the lower price than the roomette. I'll have to always make a point to try my reservations so many different ways before booking!


----------



## Brahmama (Sep 19, 2008)

I really enjoyed your trip report - thanks for taking the time. It helped get me pumped for our trip which is finally coming next Wednesday! I hope that one of the trains we are on offers wine tasting - that really sounds nice, but it's probably just on the western trains.

And I'll look into that Family Bedroom too for our next trips - sounds great.


----------



## hello (Sep 20, 2008)

Great trip report! I was also amazed to find the family bedroom so inexpensive, when pricing a trip for next winter. We usually have 2 roomettes, as neither one of us can sleep in the top bunk -- so the idea of 1 room certainly was appealing -- thinking that we might both be able to sleep on the lower beds.


----------



## AlanB (Sep 20, 2008)

hello said:


> Great trip report! I was also amazed to find the family bedroom so inexpensive, when pricing a trip for next winter. We usually have 2 roomettes, as neither one of us can sleep in the top bunk -- so the idea of 1 room certainly was appealing -- thinking that we might both be able to sleep on the lower beds.


Remember that one lower bunk is adult sized, the other is child sized. So unless one of you can fit into a 4'9" bunk, you both won't be sleeper on lower beds.

And lets not forget that the family room is really designed for a "family" traveling with kids. That's why it has two child sized bunks. On most trains there are only two family rooms, so they are already hard enough to get.


----------



## Ispolkom (Sep 21, 2008)

AlanB said:


> And lets not forget that the family room is really designed for a "family" traveling with kids. That's why it has two child sized bunks. On most trains there are only two family rooms, so they are already hard enough to get.


Going to Portland it's even worse, as there is one family bedroom in the one sleeper in the Portland section. My wife felt guilty about us luxuriating in the family bedroom when she saw a mother traveling with 3 boys in two roomettes. Me, I justified our hogging this scarce resource on three grounds:

1) We weren't breaking any rules, and had bought the tickets fair and square. I could claim that this was no difference than a singleton booking a roomette, or a couple booking two bedrooms, for that bedroom suite.

2) The family bedroom was significantly cheaper than a roomette, which was a signal to me that it was less desirable to most people (plus, as a very cheap man I'm always interested in saving money). I now think that the low price for the family bedroom is an artifact of tour groups that book only roomettes and bedrooms, ignoring the family bedroom.

3) If we had forgone the family bedroom and paid the extra $130 for the much less spacious roomette, how could we know that a family would actually book the compartment? It might just go to another couple with fewer scruples.

Maybe the family bedroom should be limited to parties of 3 or more, but as long as it is freely available, I imagine that I'll be able to swallow my scruples on longer, multinight trips. Let's see if my wife lets me.



Brahmama said:


> I really enjoyed your trip report - thanks for taking the time. It helped get me pumped for our trip which is finally coming next Wednesday! I hope that one of the trains we are on offers wine tasting - that really sounds nice, but it's probably just on the western trains.


Do it yourself. Bring a nice bottle of wine, some plastic cups, some cheese and crackers and you're set. Having seen much this country through a car's windshield, drinking watery coffee or coffee-tasting water, I really appreciate being able to sit back, relax, and watch the scenery while enjoying an adult beverage.


----------



## zoltan (Sep 24, 2008)

Ispolkom said:


> Do it yourself. Bring a nice bottle of wine, some plastic cups, some cheese and crackers and you're set.


Advice for booze-loving Chicago commuters, perhaps?


----------

