September 21 through October 13, 2024
Los Angeles to Alexandria, VA and return – Amtrak’s Southwest Chief and Cardinal.
Visiting family in Southern Maryland and sightseeing Civil War sites in Eastern Virginia was the purpose of this trip. This was our third rail trip to Southern Maryland. This trip was booked in February, is all sleeper bedrooms, and was paid entirely by an AGR points redemption – about 240,000 points total.
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PART 2 – The trip west and back home.
Tuesday, October 8. Our days In Southern Maryland and Eastern Virgina ended as we drove back up to Alexandria and the Hilton Mark Center where we turned in our rental car and checked in to the hotel for the night. The westbound Cardinal #51 is scheduled to depart Alexandria at 11:19 AM the next morning.
Wednesday morning, October 9 we took a taxi to Alexandria station for our departure on the westbound Cardinal #51. The station at Alexandria is nice, busy with lots of Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express (VRE) traffic. The station is fully staffed with helpful employees and with checked baggage service available. ALX is one stop south (west) of Washington, DC.
We requested a lift for my wife to get on the train. Well, the train stopped with the door next to a column for the platform canopy. They moved the train forward a bit which was too much and the door was once again blocked. Another move was made and again the door was blocked. A third time worked! By the way, the, easy way would have been to back up the train up several feet but, you can’t do a reverse move without notifying the dispatcher.
Our train departed 9 minutes late at 11:28 AM. We were in Room “H” in the 5100 car #62524. The locomotive was AMTK #103, a P42. When I first booked this trip in February, no bedrooms were available, so I booked a roomette. I kept checking but could not find availability for a bedroom (there are only two). The night before departure I called AGR and found that the Handicap room was available so I “upgraded” to that. We do not care for the handicap rooms but thought it would be better than a roomette. Our SCA was not worth mentioning and received my lowest ever tip!
At Staunton (STA), VA a passenger wasn’t paying attention and failed to detrain! This is where having a scanner is nice as this situation wasn’t announced on the train’s PA system. Well, as luck (for the passenger) would have it, the late eastbound #50 had not yet passed us. Our train radioed the approaching east bound and set up a meet on a section of double track. The trains stopped with café cars side by side at a grade crossing and the passenger was able to move to the other train and head back east bound to Staunton. As for the passenger’s luck. The Cardinal is a three-times a week train. The east bound Cardinal was more than an hour late and had not yet passed us. Had that train not been late, the passenger would have wound up at another station trying to find his way back to Staunton!
We entered New River Gorge at dusk so didn’t see much traveling west.
We stopped at Connersville (CON), Indiana on time at 3:36 AM. I mention that because that is my parent’s home town. I was awake long enough to look out the window!
We arrived in Indianapolis 26 minutes early. While there, P42 AMTK 113, two coaches and a baggage car were coupled to the head end of our train for movement from Beech Grove to Chicago. We departed on time at 6:00 AM.
Thursday, October 10. Arrival in Chicago was 12 minutes early at 9:48 AM. As I had previously texted our arrival info to Brittany, there she was on the platform waiting for us to detrain! Brittany retrieved our checked baggage and got us out to the taxi area on Jackson Street, We caught a cab and headed to the Palmer House for the night.
Friday afternoon, October 11 we were back in the Metropolitan lounge waiting for the westbound Southwest Chief #3. I went to Jersey Mikes and got a couple of sandwiches and brought back to the lounge to hold us over until dinner was served on the train.
Train #3 is scheduled to depart Chicago at 2:25 PM. Some of us in the lounge started receiving alerts and text messages that departure would be delayed 45 minutes to an hour waiting for incoming crew. I believe that was the engineer on the inbound #4. At the published time, the lounge started announcing boarding the train (for the 2:25 departure) and the monitor with arrivals and departures monitor still showed the published time of 2:25. Puzzled?
Well, the train was at the platform ready for boarding and the passengers would wait on the train until the engineer arrive. With the train loaded, this would allow the engineer to immediately depart. There was no explanation to that effect in the lounge; just a bunch of confused passengers! One couple had to make a mad dash to the train because of the delay alerts and text messages. The train departed 55 minutes late at 3:20 PM. We were in sleeper #32086 Room E. We were on the right side of the train. Our SCA was Mike. Friendly and courteous.
Power on the point was AMTK 142 and 180. The remainder of the consist was baggage, transition sleeper, regular sleeper, diner, Sightseer Lounge, and three coaches.
Saturday, October 12. The trip west went smooth making up all but 18 minutes of delay by the time we got to Raton, NM. While on New Mexico Rail Runner Express (NMRX) territory (Lamy to Isleta) the train encountered an unexpected red signal and had to stop until the dispatcher could “flag” us past the signal. Again, this is where having a scanner is nice. We had to move at restricted speed (15 MPH) until the next clear (green) signal was encountered. Well, before that green signal was encountered, we passed three restricting (flashing red) signals! We went from 19 minutes late at Raton to 1 hour 10 minutes late at Albuquerque. We would remain more than an hour late until we reached Fullerton.
Sunday, October 13. We arrived at LA Union Station 35 minutes late at 8:32AM. Red Cap Ernie got our checked bags off the baggage car so we didn’t have to go to the baggage claim to retrieve them. With our baggage in hand, we headed to our car in the garage on the east side of the station. We loaded up the car, paid the parking fee (which is $8 per day) and headed out.
A 40 minute drive on the freeway (US 101) and we were home!
Los Angeles to Alexandria, VA and return – Amtrak’s Southwest Chief and Cardinal.
Visiting family in Southern Maryland and sightseeing Civil War sites in Eastern Virginia was the purpose of this trip. This was our third rail trip to Southern Maryland. This trip was booked in February, is all sleeper bedrooms, and was paid entirely by an AGR points redemption – about 240,000 points total.
-----
PART 2 – The trip west and back home.
Tuesday, October 8. Our days In Southern Maryland and Eastern Virgina ended as we drove back up to Alexandria and the Hilton Mark Center where we turned in our rental car and checked in to the hotel for the night. The westbound Cardinal #51 is scheduled to depart Alexandria at 11:19 AM the next morning.
Wednesday morning, October 9 we took a taxi to Alexandria station for our departure on the westbound Cardinal #51. The station at Alexandria is nice, busy with lots of Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express (VRE) traffic. The station is fully staffed with helpful employees and with checked baggage service available. ALX is one stop south (west) of Washington, DC.
We requested a lift for my wife to get on the train. Well, the train stopped with the door next to a column for the platform canopy. They moved the train forward a bit which was too much and the door was once again blocked. Another move was made and again the door was blocked. A third time worked! By the way, the, easy way would have been to back up the train up several feet but, you can’t do a reverse move without notifying the dispatcher.
Our train departed 9 minutes late at 11:28 AM. We were in Room “H” in the 5100 car #62524. The locomotive was AMTK #103, a P42. When I first booked this trip in February, no bedrooms were available, so I booked a roomette. I kept checking but could not find availability for a bedroom (there are only two). The night before departure I called AGR and found that the Handicap room was available so I “upgraded” to that. We do not care for the handicap rooms but thought it would be better than a roomette. Our SCA was not worth mentioning and received my lowest ever tip!
At Staunton (STA), VA a passenger wasn’t paying attention and failed to detrain! This is where having a scanner is nice as this situation wasn’t announced on the train’s PA system. Well, as luck (for the passenger) would have it, the late eastbound #50 had not yet passed us. Our train radioed the approaching east bound and set up a meet on a section of double track. The trains stopped with café cars side by side at a grade crossing and the passenger was able to move to the other train and head back east bound to Staunton. As for the passenger’s luck. The Cardinal is a three-times a week train. The east bound Cardinal was more than an hour late and had not yet passed us. Had that train not been late, the passenger would have wound up at another station trying to find his way back to Staunton!
We entered New River Gorge at dusk so didn’t see much traveling west.
We stopped at Connersville (CON), Indiana on time at 3:36 AM. I mention that because that is my parent’s home town. I was awake long enough to look out the window!
We arrived in Indianapolis 26 minutes early. While there, P42 AMTK 113, two coaches and a baggage car were coupled to the head end of our train for movement from Beech Grove to Chicago. We departed on time at 6:00 AM.
Thursday, October 10. Arrival in Chicago was 12 minutes early at 9:48 AM. As I had previously texted our arrival info to Brittany, there she was on the platform waiting for us to detrain! Brittany retrieved our checked baggage and got us out to the taxi area on Jackson Street, We caught a cab and headed to the Palmer House for the night.
Friday afternoon, October 11 we were back in the Metropolitan lounge waiting for the westbound Southwest Chief #3. I went to Jersey Mikes and got a couple of sandwiches and brought back to the lounge to hold us over until dinner was served on the train.
Train #3 is scheduled to depart Chicago at 2:25 PM. Some of us in the lounge started receiving alerts and text messages that departure would be delayed 45 minutes to an hour waiting for incoming crew. I believe that was the engineer on the inbound #4. At the published time, the lounge started announcing boarding the train (for the 2:25 departure) and the monitor with arrivals and departures monitor still showed the published time of 2:25. Puzzled?
Well, the train was at the platform ready for boarding and the passengers would wait on the train until the engineer arrive. With the train loaded, this would allow the engineer to immediately depart. There was no explanation to that effect in the lounge; just a bunch of confused passengers! One couple had to make a mad dash to the train because of the delay alerts and text messages. The train departed 55 minutes late at 3:20 PM. We were in sleeper #32086 Room E. We were on the right side of the train. Our SCA was Mike. Friendly and courteous.
Power on the point was AMTK 142 and 180. The remainder of the consist was baggage, transition sleeper, regular sleeper, diner, Sightseer Lounge, and three coaches.
Saturday, October 12. The trip west went smooth making up all but 18 minutes of delay by the time we got to Raton, NM. While on New Mexico Rail Runner Express (NMRX) territory (Lamy to Isleta) the train encountered an unexpected red signal and had to stop until the dispatcher could “flag” us past the signal. Again, this is where having a scanner is nice. We had to move at restricted speed (15 MPH) until the next clear (green) signal was encountered. Well, before that green signal was encountered, we passed three restricting (flashing red) signals! We went from 19 minutes late at Raton to 1 hour 10 minutes late at Albuquerque. We would remain more than an hour late until we reached Fullerton.
Sunday, October 13. We arrived at LA Union Station 35 minutes late at 8:32AM. Red Cap Ernie got our checked bags off the baggage car so we didn’t have to go to the baggage claim to retrieve them. With our baggage in hand, we headed to our car in the garage on the east side of the station. We loaded up the car, paid the parking fee (which is $8 per day) and headed out.
A 40 minute drive on the freeway (US 101) and we were home!
