# The Builder to Essex for Memorial Day



## CHamilton (May 26, 2012)

Just a couple of days ago, the main waiting room at King Street Station in Seattle had been closed for renovation, and replaced by temporary space carved out of the old baggage area at the north end of the station. The result was confusion, and a shortage of places to sit. The Amtrak station agent apologized in her boarding announcement, and asked us to bear with them. Generally, people seemed to be in a good mood at the beginning of a holiday weekend.

It was a bit longer walk than usual to the train, but everyone got aboard okay, and I settled into bedroom D of car 0830. It had been a long time since I had been in a bedroom, but I had gotten quite a reasonable deal when I made the reservation a while back. We were in a nicely-refurbished Superliner I, and everything seemed to work pretty well.

Train 8 left on time at 4:40 pm. We were making our way along Puget Sound when the train stopped unexpectedly. In a series of announcements, we were told that the engineer and conductor couldn't fix the issue, and that someone was coming up from Seattle to work on it. While all of that was going on, SCA Brent was making the rounds and explaining how everything worked to a full car, with a lot of Brits returning from Alaska cruises, and a sprinkling of other folks. LSA bob (who I think i remember as the SCA that traveled with me on a bustitution to Spokane several years ago) on Bob came around with reservations, and I was surprised to find that the first seating wouldn't be until 6:15, which is what I selected.

I discovered why during dinner. It turns out that the whole OBS crew was working overtime or coming off the extra board to work this trip. Not Surprising given the problems 7 and 8 had had a few days ago. Our server Terry was working hard, and I gave her a good tip, but she said that she doesn't usually work the diner. I know I've seen her before, so she's not new to Amtrak, but she managed to miss taking the orders of the table behind us for quite a while. She was very apologetic, and the folks she'd missed we're forgiving, so no harm done.

This was apparently the first trip with the new menu, although the entrees were all items I've had before, so I stuck with the steak, good as usual. Some new desserts, though, including marionberry cake, which I had and was really more like cheesecake. Yummy! Everyone else at my table had chocolate peanut butter torte, which they enjoyed.

I ate with a couple of ladies who were going to Leavenworth for the weekend, and had sprung for a sleeper for the short trip, along with a slightly grumpy guy who was returning to Ohio from a vacation, and was already worrying about missing his connection to the Cap.

We were eating when the conductor announced that they had hopefully fixed the engine problem, and everyone cheered when we got moving again. We stopped at Edmonds and were just finishing dessert at Everett, about two hours late. So we saw the last of daylight west of the Cascade Tunnel.

I rang for Brent after Leavenworth, and settled in. I'm so used to roomettes that sleeping sideways takes getting used to. But I slept pretty well, waking at Spokane while the power was out during coupling with 27. I was up warly enough to see Libby in more daylight than I'm used to. By now, we were just over an hour down.







After the discussion on AU about crab cakes for breakfast, I had to try them when offered, and I was very pleased. They were served on a biscuit with Hollandaise sauce (no eggs though) and they were appropriately spicy -- not too much, not too little -- with enough crabmeat so that I could tell. They wouldn't win awards at a Maryland crab house, but quite good. I ate with a couple from Manchester, England, who probably thought I was crazy for ordering them, but who were too polite to say so. He'd worked on the railroad until becoming a Methodist minister -- going from horizontal to vertical transportation, as he put it.  His wife didn't even crack a smile, so I suspect that she'd heard that one a lot.

We got to Essex about 1:20 late, and I've been relaxing at the Izaak Walton Inn today. It's too early in the season for a red bus tour, and the weather isn't great, so I've been sitting by the fire writing this on my iPad. I'll go downstairs and see whether their wifi actually works in a while.


----------



## CHamilton (May 26, 2012)

Yep, the wifi works. Had an excellent dinner and a nice walk around Essex. More tomorrow, or possibly Monday, when I'm on 27 to Portland.


----------



## Blackwolf (May 27, 2012)

One of these days I'll get around to signing the Guest Book at the Izaak...


----------



## Rail Freak (May 27, 2012)

Is Essex actually a little town? I never noticed from the tracks as we pass.


----------



## JayPea (May 27, 2012)

Rail Freak said:


> Is Essex actually a little town? I never noticed from the tracks as we pass.



It is a little town, with the operative word "little". According to this site, Essex has a population of 219. Good to see your EB wasn't delayed tremendously, CHamilton. Several years ago when my uncle and I went to East Glacier in August, the EB was delayed leaving Spokane just long enough so we could see Libby in full daylight. I will be going to Glacier Park in little under four weeks, and it looks iffy for the complete Going-to-the-Sun road to be open. Right now, 20 of its 50 miles is still closed due to snow. Snow plow crews were shut down Thursday due to high winds and heavy snow. It may be getting close to the official start of summer, and the spring season may have been abnormally warm (except here in the Pacific Northwest, of course  ) but it's still winter in the high country of Montana.


----------



## Bob Dylan (May 27, 2012)

Sounds like a great "get-a-way" Charlie! Youre lucky to be where its cool, it's 95 and humid where I am and the Looooooong Hot Summer is just starting! I havent stayed around Glacier but riding by on the Builder has made me want to plan a trip in July or August to the Great NW!!  Jeff: Hope the snow melts and the Builder runs on time, Go Rangers!


----------



## CHamilton (May 27, 2012)

The wifi at the Izaak Walton Inn is intermittent at best. Mind you, I wasn't entirely sure that I wanted it at all, as for me, one of the attractions of Glacier Park is that there is no cell service. I was able to post my writing, but then it stopped working for me until this morning at breakfast, when I unexpectedly got several emails.

As is traditional here, we all went out on the porch to wave at #8 as it went by a couple minutes early.

Then we went back in to breakfast, which was excellent. The inn has a new chef and a new menu, with dishes that wouldn't be out of place in an upscale restaurant in the big city. Prices are quite reasonable for what you get. Last night, I had a special with some of the tenderest, flakiest fish I've ever had. And this morning, I had cheese blitzes with huckleberry sauce -- excellent! In this part of the world, it's always worth it to get anything with huckleberry. Although I was slightly disappointed by the huckleberry cobbler from last night -- it was too sweet and was rather like eating jam. Of course, it's out of season, so it may get better when the berries are fresh.

It's raining pretty hard, so I'm glad that I walked around yesterday afternoon. The front desk folks say that they'll let me look at their newly-renovated engine accommodation if there's time between guests. From the outside, it looks very cool.

It's early in the season, so it's not too crowded, but I chatted with several guests who are seeing the park. I would have taken a red bus tour, but they don't start for a couple of weeks yet. But I've seen a lot of the park in years past, so I'm happy to relax and watch trains go by!

I'll be leaving on 27 this evening, as I've never done the Portland leg of the EB. Now let's see if the wifi holds out to post this, and maybe some pics.


----------



## caravanman (May 27, 2012)

Nice report, sorry the weather is not so good for you. I must put the I.W. Inn on my "to visit" list, sounds very interesting!

Ed.


----------



## JayPea (May 27, 2012)

jimhudson said:


> Sounds like a great "get-a-way" Charlie! Youre lucky to be where its cool, it's 95 and humid where I am and the Looooooong Hot Summer is just starting! I havent stayed around Glacier but riding by on the Builder has made me want to plan a trip in July or August to the Great NW!!  Jeff: Hope the snow melts and the Builder runs on time, Go Rangers!



I don't know, Jim. I've been checking the Glacier Park website for updates on the plowing situation and in places there is 30 *feet* of snow on the road!!!! :blink: :blink: If all that snow melts immediately, there is going to be some major flooding for sure. I'd just as soon it all gets plowed instead.


----------



## Ryan (May 27, 2012)

That sounds like an awesome way to spend a weekend.



CHamilton said:


> marionberry cake


Marion Barry?


----------



## CHamilton (May 28, 2012)

No, not him! I was amused by the name, too, when I moved from DC to Seattle 20 years ago.


----------



## CHamilton (May 29, 2012)

I had a great time on 27, and was so busy looking out the window and taking pictures that I didn't get a chance to write anything. But I've posted https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3539981533077.146931.1078582262&type=3some pictures of the trip, including some interior shots of the locomotive that is now available as a rental accommodation at the Izaak Walton Inn, which the staff kindly let me look at between guests.

All in all, it was a great, relaxing weekend. Of course, Glacier Park is well worth seeing, but a lot of it isn't open this early in the season, and I've seen it in years past, so I was happy to relax, ride trains, and get away from it all. I did find out, though, that apparently Amtrak is requiring cell service at all stations it serves, so as of next year, Essex will no longer be a cellular-free zone, alas. But it's still a great place to visit.


----------



## CHamilton (May 29, 2012)

A little more. I took 27 to Portland so that I could see the Columbia River scenery (and I had a roomette on the left side, so I sure did!) So after we arrived on time at PDX, I walked around the city for a couple of hours, then headed back to the Metropolitan Lounge. I spent a while chatting with a nice 80-year-old who I had met in the sleeper on 27, who was waiting for 11 to go home to Sacramento. The Starlight she was taking got in an hour early!! and after it had left, I made my way out to Cascades 516.

I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that every seat was filled, due to the holiday. I was surprised, however, that there were a bunch of families with little kids (like maybe 2- to 3-year old kids) in business class. Of course, they behaved as might be expected, and several of the other BC passengers were grumbling. I've been seeing an increasing number of kids in BC in the last year or so, and I suspect that Amtrak is going to have an increasing number of complaints if they don't do something. Are kids showing up on Acelas? Of course, the price differential between coach and business class on the Cascades is minimal.

I was amused, too, that almost every seat in the bistro car was taken up with unaccompanied minors. The bistro is traditionally where the conductors put them, so as to keep an eye on them, but I imagine they'll be getting complaints about passengers having no place to sit in the bistro, too. I actually talked to a couple of the minors -- boys, middle teens -- who were rather disgusted by Amtrak's policy. Can't say that I blame them, as I was riding trains by myself when I was their age.

So on the whole, 516 was a letdown after a super weekend on 8 and 27. But it was worth it to add another train to my list. I think I'm at the point now where the list of Amtrak trains I haven't taken is much shorter than the list of those I have taken. Hmm, I'll have to put that together.


----------



## OBS (May 29, 2012)

Thanks for the reports, and yes you do see a fair number of kids on the Acela's in both Business and FC, on the weekends.


----------



## TraneMan (May 29, 2012)

CHamilton said:


> I had a great time on 27, and was so busy looking out the window and taking pictures that I didn't get a chance to write anything. But I've posted some pictures of the trip, including some interior shots of the locomotive that is now available as a rental accommodation at the Izaak Walton Inn, which the staff kindly let me look at between guests.
> 
> I did find out, though, that apparently Amtrak is requiring cell service at all stations it serves, so as of next year, Essex will no longer be a cellular-free zone, alas. But it's still a great place to visit.


The link did not work, you must have the photos on lock down so guest can't view them.

I am guessing for cell, they want to be able to get in touch with the passengers if the train is delayed or some other reason.


----------



## CHamilton (May 30, 2012)

TraneMan said:


> The link did not work, you must have the photos on lock down so guest can't view them.


Sorry, try this one: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3539981533077.146931.1078582262&type=3&l=620228b94f

I've edited the original post.


----------



## JayPea (May 30, 2012)

Great pictures, Charlie! When I'm at Glacier Park in 3 1/2 weeks, I'm going to check out Essex and the Izaak Walton Inn.


----------

