Has anyone here done every (current) Amtrak route, end to end?

[Matthew H Fish]

I was just reading the Amtrak subreddit, and someone asked if anyone had ridden every Amtrak route, end to end?

My own guess is that someone has, and that probably someone here has. I base that on the fact that I, personally, have ridden most of the lines, and that there are people with more time and money than I have! I mean, just in a one-month railpass trip in 2014, I did half of the lines (although not all the way), and I wasn't even trying.

So I am sure someone has done it, and probably someone here?

 

[zephyr17]

I have ridden every current long distance route end to end except the Texas Eagle. I have also ridden the Sunset LAX-ORL, the Pioneer and the Desert Wind.

While I rode the Cardinal end to end, it was while it was Superliner and only went CHI-WAS and had not yet been extended to New York.

 

[Cal]

I believe there is someone on this forum who has been on nearly every single route Amtrak has ever operated, including ones that have since ben discontinued.

 

[Sidney]

Close. I have ridden the EB, CZ,SWC and TE/Sunset from end to end many times. Also the CONO, Crescentand CS along with the CL,LSL,Boston and NY sections,Downeaster and Acela from DC to Boston. I have ridden the NE Regionals from Richmond to Boston. I have ridden the Silvers from NY to Fort Lauderdale, The Wolverine Chicago to Detroit and later this month Ill be on the Missouri River Runner from Kansas City to St Louis, a train I have never been on. I did ride the Desert Wind end to end(loved the Vegas stop at the Plaza) and I had plans to ride the Pioneer,but it was discontinued before I had a chance to ride. Hmmm...San Jouquins and Cascades from Portland to Vancouver BC and The Adirondack,Maple Leaf and Vermonter,from Philly to St Johnsbury ,so not end to end. Surfliner from San Diego to SLO. I did ride the Sunset from Fort Lauderdale to LA. Think I covered them all. Only trains I have not ridden are the Auto Train and Oklahoma Flyer.

 

[Sidney]

Forgot the Cardinal. Rode the Superliner version from DC to Chicago.

 

[pennyk]

I believe there is someone on this forum who has been on nearly every single route Amtrak has ever operated, including ones that have since ben discontinued.

I believe @jacorbett70 and/or @saxman have either completed all routes or are extremely close to doing so.

 

[jis]

I have ridden all the current LD trains end to end.

 

[jiml]

I'm missing the Heartland Flyer, Missouri River Runner, Pere Marquette, Downeaster and have not ridden a Silver anything south of Orlando. Technically I should include the Vermonter in its current form, but have done its predecessor The Montrealer several times.

 

[jis]

I have done both the Vermonter and the Montrealer. In fact I have done all Amtrak trains to Canada except the International and anything before mid '80s.

Of the Regional trains I have done all NC service including the Carolinian, the Newport News, Norfolk and Roanoke Regionals. Keystones and Pennsylvanian. Empire Service, and routes including the Ethan Allen and as previously mentioned service to Canada. Downeaster to Brunswick. I did the Atlantic City service when it ran.

In California I have ridden the San Diego service, the San Louis Obispo service, the San Joaquin its entire length both from Emeryville and Sacramento. The Capitol service. I have also been on all of the Cascades services.

Out of Chicago - Hiawatha, Quincy, St. Louis and then onto Kansas City (on the Mule), Carbondale, Grand Rapids, upto Ann Arbor. Incidentally did Port Huron way back on the International when it ran, but not recently on Port Huron terminating service.

Of the discontinued service I have been on the late lamented Broadway Limited its alter-ego Three Rivers, the Desert Wind, the Pioneer in all three incarnations....

I mught have a missed a few that is not coming to my mind right now.

 

[SubwayNut]

I am also farely close to riding every inch of Amtrak, my exceptions are:

-Illinois Zephyr/Carl Sandburg (I have ridden this train betweek Kewanee and Chicago) between Naperville and Quincy
-Sunset Limited between Tucson and Houston
-Blue Water (section beyond Battle Creek, I've ridden this train from Chicago to Niles)
-Northeast Regional Virgina Branches (never to Roanoke, Newport News or Norfolk)
-Crescent south of Charlotte
-Anything on the Silver Star (covered the track north of Cary on the Carolinian)
-Anything on the Piedmont/Silver Meteor between Maimi and Charleston
-Auto Train

Only discontined track I've ridden was the Vermonter in Massachusetts between Palmer (via Amhurst) and Brattleboro, VT. Once of my best train trips was riding the last train via Palmer north to Windsor, VT and returning on the first southbound train via the new Knowlege Corridor/Valley Flyer Route.

To get into commuter trains I've also ridden every inch of (and visited every station of) the Sounder, Coaster, Sprinter, Caltrain, Altamont County Express, Portland WES, Salt Lake City FrontRunner (including the Ogden to Pleasnat View segment that has been discontinued), South Shore Line, and Shore Line East.

I have ridden every inch of Metro-North, and basically the LIRR (except the Belmont Park Branch), and done lots of Metra in Chicago.

There are also many including (the New York City Subway, Chicago L, Boston T and Boston T) subway and light rail systems that I've ridden end to end and visited every station on.

 

[Steve4031]

I have done both the Vermonter and the Montrealer. In fact I have done all Amtrak trains to Canada except the International and anything before mid '80s.

Of the Regional trains I have done all NC service including the Carolinian, the Newport News, Norfolk and Roanoke Regionals. Keystones and Pennsylvanian. Empire Service, and routes including the Ethan Allen and as previously mentioned service to Canada. Downeaster to Brunswick. I did the Atlantic City service when it ran.

In California I have ridden the San Diego service, the San Louis Obispo service, the San Joaquin its entire length both from Emeryville and Sacramento. The Capitol service. I have also been on all of the Cascades services.

Out of Chicago - Hiawatha, Quincy, St. Louis and then onto Kansas City (on the Mule), Carbondale, Grand Rapids, upto Ann Arbor. Incidentally did Port Huron way back on the International when it ran, but not recently on Port Huron terminating service.

Of the discontinued service I have been on the late lamented Broadway Limited its alter-ego Three Rivers, the Desert Wind, the Pioneer in all three incarnations....

I mught have a missed a few that is not coming to my mind right now.

Jishnu’s experiences are very similar to mine. I missed riding the Floridian and the North Coast Hiawatha. I did ride the Denver and Rio Grand Zephyr in 1980.

 

[JayPea]

The trains I've ridden from end to end include the Coast Starlight, Empire Builder (both from Seattle and Portland), the Southwest Chief, the Texas Eagle, the Sunset Limited, the Lake Shore Limited (both from Boston and New York, the Capital Limited, and the Heartland Flyer. I have also ridden the entire length of the Cascades system between Vancouver BC and Eugene but on separate trains, as there have never been trains running between the two. Trains to/from Eugene begin/end in Seattle and the same can be said of Vancouver (or will be once service to Vancouver begins again). I've come close on the California Zephyr, having ridden between Sacramento to Chicago (and, as Yogi Berra might have said, vice reversa ) several times but never to/from Emeryville. Others in the close but no cigar category include the Vermonter, missing only between Washington DC and the BWI station; the Silver Meteor, missing only between Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, and the Wolverine, missing only between Dearborn and Pontiac. I have ridden the City of New Orleans for its full length but not in one trip as I've ridden many round trips between Champaign and Chicago, but in one trip only from Champaign to New Orleans.

 

[brianpmcdonnell17]

After I finish my current trip I will have completed about 97% of Amtrak route miles, although I am still missing a significant number of short segments. The segments I am missing are:

Sacramento, CA-Stockton, CA
Norfolk, VA-Petersburg, VA
Newport News, VA-Richmond, VA
Roanoke, VA-Lynchburg, VA
Buffalo, NY-Toronto, ON
Schenectady, NY-Montreal, QC
Schenectady, NY-Rutland, VT
CC Oakland, CA-Santa Clara, CA
Auto Train terminals

 

[tim49424]

I haven’t as of yet, but it’s one of my goals. I’ve been on each LD route once except the Palmetto and The Silver Star, I believe. The only long distance route I’ve done end to end (several times) is the Empire Builder.…and am doing the Seattle leg again on Friday from Chicago and returning on Sunday out of SEA. That will be my first trip of any kind since a year ago February.

 

[JayPea]

Add to my close but no cigar list the Downeaster, having ridden it from Boston as far as Portland, but not to Brunswick.

 

[toddinde]

I’ve missed some of the short haul routes and some eastern short distance routes. Never rode the NEC north of Washington. Never rode the Cascade route north of Edmonds, Washington. I’ve only ridden the Silvers south of Washington. I missed the Floridian, Lone Star and Niagara Rainbow. Other than that, I think I’ve hit most. I rode all the non-Amtrak’s. Rock Island was better than people give it credit for. Southern Crescent and Rio Grande Zephyr were great. North Coast Hiawatha was a great route.

 

[cassie225]

I’m reading all the posts and just wondering, how many Amtrak trains there are, wow!!!

 

[20th Century Rider]

I was just reading the Amtrak subreddit, and someone asked if anyone had ridden every Amtrak route, end to end?

My own guess is that someone has, and that probably someone here has. I base that on the fact that I, personally, have ridden most of the lines, and that there are people with more time and money than I have! I mean, just in a one-month railpass trip in 2014, I did half of the lines (although not all the way), and I wasn't even trying.

So I am sure someone has done it, and probably someone here?

Soon to be! I have four extensive transcon trips planned... one per month starting in October. My goal is to cover those which are not already listed on my signature below. Although I won't be riding the Auto Train... and will have only covered one of the Silvers.

 

[jis]

A few that I missed mentioning earlier are Auto Train which I have traveled on many times, Heartland Flyer, once upon a time a silly little train called the Kentucky Cardinal and the good old Hilltopper.

I did miss the NCH, the Floridian and the Lone Star, and the San Antonio - Laredo segment of the Eagle.

I rode the EB only after it had been moved over from the Stampede Pass route to the Stevens Pass route, upon the termination of the NCH. I did ride the Portland section of the EB within months of its inauguration as a result of the reorganization of reroutes caused by the termination of the NCH.

 

[SanDiegan]

Have ridden all long-distance trains except Auto Train, City of New Orleans and Texas Eagle from St. Louis to Chicago.

Still missing quite a few corridors:

Downeaster
Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Virginia Service
Empire Service and Maple Leaf
Adirondack
Ethan Allen Express
Carolinian, Palmetto and Piedmont
Wolverine, Blue Water and Pere Marquette
Illini and Saluiki
Lincoln Service (Chicago-St. Louis).
Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg
Heartland Flyer

I need to make a trip to Chicago, the NEC and Fort Worth to knock off the rest of the network !

 

[saxman]

I've ridden every single LD train end to end or some combination thereof multiple times. The only Amtrak trackage I'm missing is the last few miles of the Wolverine from Royal Oak to Pontiac, MI, and Galesburg to Quincy, IL. I covered the Roanoke, VA extension back in July is this year.

If you count the Palmetto and Carolinian as LD trains, which per Amtrak, they are, I haven't ridden those end to end. But I've joined both of them mid-route. They both cover Amtrak track that other lines already cover.

 

[Cal]

I am far away from getting all Amtrak miles, but heres what I got so far.

-Southwest Chief (FUL-CHI)
-Sunset Limited (LAX-NOL)
-Coast Starlight (LAX-SEA)
-Empire Builder (PDX-CHI)
-Texas Eagle (LAX-CHI)
-Pacific Surfliner (SAN-SLO)
-Heartland Flyer (FTW-OKC)
-Northeast Regional (WAS-FBG)
-Empire Service (POU-NYP)
-Acela Express (NYP-BOS)
-Cardinal (NYP-CHI)

 

[jis]

I've ridden every single LD train end to end or some combination thereof multiple times. The only Amtrak trackage I'm missing is the last few miles of the Wolverine from Royal Oak to Pontiac, MI, and Galesburg to Quincy, IL. I covered the Roanoke, VA extension back in July is this year.

If you count the Palmetto and Carolinian as LD trains, which per Amtrak, they are, I haven't ridden those end to end. But I've joined both of them mid-route. They both cover Amtrak track that other lines already cover.

Palmetto is LD. Carolinian is not.

 

[nferr]

I've done them all except the Cardinal. Also I've done the Sunset from Miami to New Orleans and from San Antonio to LA. So I'm missing the NO to SA portion. Also did the Broadway Limited and Montrealer before they were discontinued.

 

[jacorbett70]

I believe @jacorbett70 and/or @saxman have either completed all routes or are extremely close to doing so.

I covered all the current routes end to end by completing Roanoke just before the pandemic. I added the A C E avatar when I "Aced" all current routes.

Not all discontinued routes, those I did do included:
- Atlantic City Express around 1990, one of the first two Amtrak rides I ever took.
- Sunset east of New Orleans to Jacksonville
- Silver Palm route Jax-Tampa
- Diverted Zephyr route DEN-SLC via Wyoming (over discontinued Pioneer section)

John