Long Train Runnin'
Engineer
Thats right the Crescent is only running to Atlanta no alternate provided...
Patrick & Alice RailRiot 2009
- Thread starter WhoozOn1st
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This morning's Crescent train 19 departed ATL for New Orleans - about 45 minutes late, 10 less behind than when we left D.C. (electrical problem after change to diesel) - and yesterday's held 19 was sitting on the other track, just outside the station and pointed north. Private varnish tacked onto our train, but won't know exactly what 'til I review video of its ATL departure.
Out on the platform for pics and the video I was hassled, but not really impeded. I cited the photo policy and received some guff about restricted areas. I pointed out the absence of signage saying the platform was restricted, and noted that anyway I was a ticketed passenger who had just arrived and was therefore in accord with the policy. That was that. I think some of the exchange may be audible on the video, but won't know 'til this evening when I upload the camera. A copy of the photo policy is in a bag that was down the platform with the Executive Assistant, but I didn't have to produce it. A summary of the policy - backing up my points - is clearly posted inside the station.
Steady rain, light wind, not cold, got early check-in at hotel.
Wednesday, 11-11-09, the RailRiot ventured via rental car to Chattanooga, TN, with AU member/historian and Atlanta denizen Bill Haithcoat. Bill was excellent company, a fine guide, and a font of information as we rode the Lookout Mountain incline, lunched and explored at the "Chattanooga choo-choo" restored depot/hotel/museum, and paid a late visit to the Tennesee Valley Railroad Museum (closed, but a couple freights showed up on the adjacent Norfolk Southern main line).
Here's the video of Crescent train 19's Atlanta departure of the previous day, which includes later bits of the platform photography hassle noted above (see video description). Unidentified private varnish and Federal Railroad Administration inspection car are seen tacked to Crescent, as is - briefly - the Amtrak employee doing the hassling and radioing.
Here's the video of Crescent train 19's Atlanta departure of the previous day, which includes later bits of the platform photography hassle noted above (see video description). Unidentified private varnish and Federal Railroad Administration inspection car are seen tacked to Crescent, as is - briefly - the Amtrak employee doing the hassling and radioing.
We have had too much rain in Atlanta lately but it did not bother the trip to Chattanooga and back itself. It rained on Tuesday, the day before, and on Wednesday night when we returned, however.
Patrick and Alice picked me up in front of my apartment as scheduled. We drove straight to Lookout Mountain with a couple of rest stops. It is a two hour drive from center city Atlanta to center city Chattanooga. What we did at the Mountain is ride the Lookout Mountain Incline the one mile stretch up. This railroad was built in 1895 and claims a 72.7% grade near the top. We enjoyed it but all agreed it was colder and windier up there than in the valley, with is usually the case. Being born in Chattanooga, though now living in Atlanta, I have been a lifelong friend of the incline.
We were now hungry and drove to the Chattanooga Choo Choo, an old railroad station converted to a hotel,gift shop etc complex,and had lunch before we did any touring.This was Southern Railroad's Terminal Station. The last train out of that station was in August of 1970.
Chattanooga had another railroad station. It was the Union Station and served the Nashville ,Chattanooga and St. Louis Railroad in my childhood. In 1957 that line was taken over by the the Louisville and Nashville. Its last train left town May 1, 1971, for Atlanta, and I was on it. Nothing remains of this station.
Two other railroads had served the city somewhat before my time. They were the Central of Georgia(which was a much bigger railroad in other cities) and the Tennessee Alabama and Georgia,known as "TAG".
My travel companions graciously took me up on my offer to briefly lend them each a timetable from the mid 50's of the two railroads I grew up with. Nothing heavy, just a little light introduction to the subject. I did not administer a test :lol: . I just wanted them to know that the Royal Palm was not the name of a tree and the Pelican was not the name of a bird, that those were train names instead.
We took a little tour of the place after lunch. Showed them the location of the old ticket office, the old baggage check etc. Told them something about old bulletin boards-- how they were worked with before they became electronic.
Some of the things I talked to them about they may have already known. But better to be thorough, while we are there after all, than too skimpy.I showed them the very nice model railroad layout of the two stations in Chattanooga. Pointed out some inaccuracies while basically praising it.
The hotel has some normal standard rooms and some old railroad cars,both lightweight and heavyweight. A unit of space in the railroad cars is half a car.
At one time from Chattanooga one could take direct service to Atlanta, Florida points, New Orleans,Memphis, Washington, New York, Knoxville, Birmingham, Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago, Nashville,St Louis and more.
In driving out to the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum I suggested we go the intown local roads as a break from the freeway. We saw several things doing that. The height of which was they got to see where I went to junior high school. They were thrilled!! :lol:
On the way out I had us go by a neat railroad bridge and TVA bridge and dam over the Tennessee River. This is something the average visitor to Chattanooga never sees since it is out in the suburbs, nothing here for the tourist.
TVRM was closed, as Patrick said. But we got some glimpse of the fairly nice equipment including several RDC's which are kind of far from home. We saw two long haul freights roaring by as an unexpected treat, one in each direction. They were on the Norfolk Southern main each direction from Jacksonville to Cincinnati, I suppose. At least that is where they would have been going if they were passenger trains on that track many years ago.
Finally, as we got back into Atlanta, Patrick and Alice invited me to have dinner with them at the Varsity, a well known "interesting" hot dog place which I am sure can be googled.
Patrick and Alice picked me up in front of my apartment as scheduled. We drove straight to Lookout Mountain with a couple of rest stops. It is a two hour drive from center city Atlanta to center city Chattanooga. What we did at the Mountain is ride the Lookout Mountain Incline the one mile stretch up. This railroad was built in 1895 and claims a 72.7% grade near the top. We enjoyed it but all agreed it was colder and windier up there than in the valley, with is usually the case. Being born in Chattanooga, though now living in Atlanta, I have been a lifelong friend of the incline.
We were now hungry and drove to the Chattanooga Choo Choo, an old railroad station converted to a hotel,gift shop etc complex,and had lunch before we did any touring.This was Southern Railroad's Terminal Station. The last train out of that station was in August of 1970.
Chattanooga had another railroad station. It was the Union Station and served the Nashville ,Chattanooga and St. Louis Railroad in my childhood. In 1957 that line was taken over by the the Louisville and Nashville. Its last train left town May 1, 1971, for Atlanta, and I was on it. Nothing remains of this station.
Two other railroads had served the city somewhat before my time. They were the Central of Georgia(which was a much bigger railroad in other cities) and the Tennessee Alabama and Georgia,known as "TAG".
My travel companions graciously took me up on my offer to briefly lend them each a timetable from the mid 50's of the two railroads I grew up with. Nothing heavy, just a little light introduction to the subject. I did not administer a test :lol: . I just wanted them to know that the Royal Palm was not the name of a tree and the Pelican was not the name of a bird, that those were train names instead.
We took a little tour of the place after lunch. Showed them the location of the old ticket office, the old baggage check etc. Told them something about old bulletin boards-- how they were worked with before they became electronic.
Some of the things I talked to them about they may have already known. But better to be thorough, while we are there after all, than too skimpy.I showed them the very nice model railroad layout of the two stations in Chattanooga. Pointed out some inaccuracies while basically praising it.
The hotel has some normal standard rooms and some old railroad cars,both lightweight and heavyweight. A unit of space in the railroad cars is half a car.
At one time from Chattanooga one could take direct service to Atlanta, Florida points, New Orleans,Memphis, Washington, New York, Knoxville, Birmingham, Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago, Nashville,St Louis and more.
In driving out to the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum I suggested we go the intown local roads as a break from the freeway. We saw several things doing that. The height of which was they got to see where I went to junior high school. They were thrilled!! :lol:
On the way out I had us go by a neat railroad bridge and TVA bridge and dam over the Tennessee River. This is something the average visitor to Chattanooga never sees since it is out in the suburbs, nothing here for the tourist.
TVRM was closed, as Patrick said. But we got some glimpse of the fairly nice equipment including several RDC's which are kind of far from home. We saw two long haul freights roaring by as an unexpected treat, one in each direction. They were on the Norfolk Southern main each direction from Jacksonville to Cincinnati, I suppose. At least that is where they would have been going if they were passenger trains on that track many years ago.
Finally, as we got back into Atlanta, Patrick and Alice invited me to have dinner with them at the Varsity, a well known "interesting" hot dog place which I am sure can be googled.
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Long Train Runnin'
Engineer
A fine report! Your knowledge about trains in that area might be best anywhere!
The Varsity I remember eating there! A very large yet efficient place. I remember the food being pretty good actually. Did you get a paper hat?
No paper hats this time. The Varsity is more of a local cultural deal than a good eats thing. Located at the edge of the Georgia Tech campus, it's said to handle around 30,000 people on the school's football home game days. Walking in one is immediately greeted by a chorus of the traditional "What'll ya have?" from the folks - a lineup of sharply dressed black girls - behind the long ordering counter and registers. The food - chili dogs a famous specialty - is passable, the place is huge with a large drive-in service area (we walked in), and the experience is pretty fun. The Executive Assistant found the onion rings very much to her liking. Our meal with Bill was the RailRiot's second Varsity visit in as many days. On the first one we spent an hour and a half using the goosechase machine (GPS) to get there for a 15-minute meal. Efficiency!
For a foray into truly good food I'll soon issue a Special Report on the RailRiot's experiences with Philly CHEESESTEAK!!
EDIT: On to New Orleans aboard the Crescent this morning.
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Ryan
Court Jester
We dined at the Varsity before the Virginia Tech/Georgia Tech showdown a few weeks back - despite the game being something I'd rather forget about, the onion rings there were definitely the high point of the trip.
As the Patrick & Alice RailRiot 2009 prepares to depart aboard the Sunset Limited to Los Angeles there's a bit of time for a final report from the road at New Orleans before hitting the rails for the homebound leg. This doesn't mean that RailRiot reporting is finished; far from it. Unfortunately for you, the Valued Reader, there remains a humongous backlog of impressions, images, and memories to be tediously dished out following the not-so-happy return to the land of tiresome neighbors and their barking dogs.
Special Report: CHEESESTEAK!!
On arrival at Philadelphia aboard a Northeast Regional from NYP the RailRiot found itself in the middle of a SEPTA strike. Though there's been no opportunity as yet to read his doubtless fine accounts (looking forward), I believe LA AU member chuljin has had a bit to say on that score in his own reporting.
Despite the strike, and as AlanB had assured us in New York, SEPTA commuter service to the airport was running - something about it being a separate arm of SEPTA and therefore not on strike. We rode an R1 train from 30th Street station, rented a car for the drive to Lancaster, PA, and the Strasburg Rail Road, but before leaving headed for south Philadelphia to locate and sample the famous local food specialty: CHEESESTEAK!!
Threading the maze of narrow and congested streets toward our mouth-watering goal, we arrived at the streetcorner home of a couple of the more famous purveyors of the sandwich, Geno's Steaks and Pat's King of Steaks. Fueling a competition that's likely beneficial to both, the stands are located opposite and facing one another across an X-shaped south Philly intersection.
Salivating anticipation turned to frothing consternation as the RailRiot viewed the scene. On a Saturday evening toward dinnertime, with the driving light waning rapidly, Geno's and Pat's both hosted very long lines. RATS!! A little quick assessment - accompanied by more than a little cursing - resulted in the executive decision to forego the sandwiches for the time being in favor of doing as much driving as possible before dark. So with empty stomachs, hungry hearts, angry brains, and overflowing drool spittle cups the RailRiot dejectedly turned the rental car toward Lancaster.
Along about Downingtown the RailRiot reached the starvation point, and it was clear that further progress would be intolerable without first securing nourishment of some sort. Exiting the main highway for a roughly parallel frontage road the scarcity of fast food joints quickly became apparent. In search of quantity over quality we finally happened on a McDonald's and were resigned to the burger option until the again eagle-eyed Executive Assistant spotted a local pizza joint across the street that also advertised the availability of CHEESESTEAK!! Beside ourselves with excitement and relief at the prospect of a reprieve from the deadly Mickey D's, the rental car was rapidly hauled around illegally and pointed for "The Foster Boys" restaurant.
Several options were on offer, but the "Foster Boys Special" was selected for its closeness to the Geno's and Pat's traditional items: "Whiz wit," i.e. Cheese Whiz with onions on the sandwich.
BINGO, and score one for the Foster Boys, whoever they are (none was on hand - I asked). Piping hot, flavorful meat, generous dollop of Whiz, and great sauteed onions. The RailRiot split a single superlative sandwich and probably coulda killed a couple more if not for the time and daylight factors prodding us back to the highway for the remainder of the run to Lancaster and lodging.
Activities in and around Lancaster and at the Strasburg Rail Road will be reported at length, and probably ad nauseum, elsewhere in the near future. Right now the topic is CHEESESTEAK!!
The return to Philly to dump the rental car and and board the Crescent to Atlanta was made early enough to allow a second shot at Geno's and Pat's before entraining. It was estimated - correctly, as it happened - that on a pre-lunchtime Monday morning long lines wouldn't be an issue.
Navigation through the twisted knots of backstreets was a repeat hassle, but parking was easy. Running late due to inbound traffic bottlenecks there wasn't sufficient time to do a comparison sampling of both stands, so a flipped coin headed us for Geno's.
As may be seen in the companion Picasa album, the Geno's Steaks stand is a pretty gaudy affair. In addition to the loud appearance there's signage noting no indoor dining, no restrooms, no parking in front of 24-hour delivery doors, etc.
Mentally rehearsing the mandatory ordering protocol, the RailRiot sidled up to a window and asked for a "Whiz wit." It appeared and was paid for in under a minute, then carried to a nearby table.
The tables at Geno's warrant some mention. The stand's owner is obviously not shy about demonstrating his virulent pro-cops, anti-immigrant views. Under plastic tops the tables are strewn with vanity photos, pics and apparent memorials to presumably dead police officers, and all manner of anti-immigrant bric-a-brac, such as a fairly offensive driver's license mockup from "Mexifornia."
Mindless pseudopatriotic junk aside, the sandwich - another RailRiot split - was excellent. If the meat was not quite as flavorful as the Downingtown version - and it wasn't - the Whiz and onions were applied more generously. The Geno's sandwich wasn't served as hot as at Foster Boys, but was juicier and made with a tastier bread (Foster Boys offered a $1 bread upgrade which was not tried).
The outcome is something of a draw, with both versions possessing strengths and weaknesses, and both being well worth a second or third or fourth go. Encores for those will have to wait, however, as top of the list for a next visit is the still-untested Pat's King of Steaks.
This has been a RailRiot Special Report. We now go incommunicado for a couple days - lucky for you - while aboard the Sunset Limited on the final leg back to Los Angeles.
Photos:
RailRiot Day Twenty-three: Philly & CHEESESTEAK!!
Video:
Special Report: CHEESESTEAK!!
On arrival at Philadelphia aboard a Northeast Regional from NYP the RailRiot found itself in the middle of a SEPTA strike. Though there's been no opportunity as yet to read his doubtless fine accounts (looking forward), I believe LA AU member chuljin has had a bit to say on that score in his own reporting.
Despite the strike, and as AlanB had assured us in New York, SEPTA commuter service to the airport was running - something about it being a separate arm of SEPTA and therefore not on strike. We rode an R1 train from 30th Street station, rented a car for the drive to Lancaster, PA, and the Strasburg Rail Road, but before leaving headed for south Philadelphia to locate and sample the famous local food specialty: CHEESESTEAK!!
Threading the maze of narrow and congested streets toward our mouth-watering goal, we arrived at the streetcorner home of a couple of the more famous purveyors of the sandwich, Geno's Steaks and Pat's King of Steaks. Fueling a competition that's likely beneficial to both, the stands are located opposite and facing one another across an X-shaped south Philly intersection.
Salivating anticipation turned to frothing consternation as the RailRiot viewed the scene. On a Saturday evening toward dinnertime, with the driving light waning rapidly, Geno's and Pat's both hosted very long lines. RATS!! A little quick assessment - accompanied by more than a little cursing - resulted in the executive decision to forego the sandwiches for the time being in favor of doing as much driving as possible before dark. So with empty stomachs, hungry hearts, angry brains, and overflowing drool spittle cups the RailRiot dejectedly turned the rental car toward Lancaster.
Along about Downingtown the RailRiot reached the starvation point, and it was clear that further progress would be intolerable without first securing nourishment of some sort. Exiting the main highway for a roughly parallel frontage road the scarcity of fast food joints quickly became apparent. In search of quantity over quality we finally happened on a McDonald's and were resigned to the burger option until the again eagle-eyed Executive Assistant spotted a local pizza joint across the street that also advertised the availability of CHEESESTEAK!! Beside ourselves with excitement and relief at the prospect of a reprieve from the deadly Mickey D's, the rental car was rapidly hauled around illegally and pointed for "The Foster Boys" restaurant.
Several options were on offer, but the "Foster Boys Special" was selected for its closeness to the Geno's and Pat's traditional items: "Whiz wit," i.e. Cheese Whiz with onions on the sandwich.
BINGO, and score one for the Foster Boys, whoever they are (none was on hand - I asked). Piping hot, flavorful meat, generous dollop of Whiz, and great sauteed onions. The RailRiot split a single superlative sandwich and probably coulda killed a couple more if not for the time and daylight factors prodding us back to the highway for the remainder of the run to Lancaster and lodging.
Activities in and around Lancaster and at the Strasburg Rail Road will be reported at length, and probably ad nauseum, elsewhere in the near future. Right now the topic is CHEESESTEAK!!
The return to Philly to dump the rental car and and board the Crescent to Atlanta was made early enough to allow a second shot at Geno's and Pat's before entraining. It was estimated - correctly, as it happened - that on a pre-lunchtime Monday morning long lines wouldn't be an issue.
Navigation through the twisted knots of backstreets was a repeat hassle, but parking was easy. Running late due to inbound traffic bottlenecks there wasn't sufficient time to do a comparison sampling of both stands, so a flipped coin headed us for Geno's.
As may be seen in the companion Picasa album, the Geno's Steaks stand is a pretty gaudy affair. In addition to the loud appearance there's signage noting no indoor dining, no restrooms, no parking in front of 24-hour delivery doors, etc.
Mentally rehearsing the mandatory ordering protocol, the RailRiot sidled up to a window and asked for a "Whiz wit." It appeared and was paid for in under a minute, then carried to a nearby table.
The tables at Geno's warrant some mention. The stand's owner is obviously not shy about demonstrating his virulent pro-cops, anti-immigrant views. Under plastic tops the tables are strewn with vanity photos, pics and apparent memorials to presumably dead police officers, and all manner of anti-immigrant bric-a-brac, such as a fairly offensive driver's license mockup from "Mexifornia."
Mindless pseudopatriotic junk aside, the sandwich - another RailRiot split - was excellent. If the meat was not quite as flavorful as the Downingtown version - and it wasn't - the Whiz and onions were applied more generously. The Geno's sandwich wasn't served as hot as at Foster Boys, but was juicier and made with a tastier bread (Foster Boys offered a $1 bread upgrade which was not tried).
The outcome is something of a draw, with both versions possessing strengths and weaknesses, and both being well worth a second or third or fourth go. Encores for those will have to wait, however, as top of the list for a next visit is the still-untested Pat's King of Steaks.
This has been a RailRiot Special Report. We now go incommunicado for a couple days - lucky for you - while aboard the Sunset Limited on the final leg back to Los Angeles.
Photos:
RailRiot Day Twenty-three: Philly & CHEESESTEAK!!
Video:
As always enjoyed the adventures in Cheesteak land! One of my best friends is a South Philly guy and he tells us that neither of those joints is the best, like most towns the natives know the neighborhood joints that are the real places!LOL
That owner with the immigrant hangup must descend from stock that has been here before the Indians,er Native Americans to be PC, wonder if he employes themn in the kitchen? LOL
Hope the ride home on the Sunsets in San Antonio Ltd. is a good one, yall can catch up on youir sleep on the Loooooooong ride across the sandy tundra aka the big no where!
That owner with the immigrant hangup must descend from stock that has been here before the Indians,er Native Americans to be PC, wonder if he employes themn in the kitchen? LOL
Hope the ride home on the Sunsets in San Antonio Ltd. is a good one, yall can catch up on youir sleep on the Loooooooong ride across the sandy tundra aka the big no where!
FrankStar
Train Attendant
Yes, as a Souf Philly naydiv I can confirm that Pat's, Geno's and Jim's (the three most famous ones, with the longest lines) are not anywhere near the best cheesesteaks one can obtain in the area.
Tony Luke's and John's Roast Pork are better, but even better are the corner places that not too many outside the neighborhood know about. And we'd like to keep it that way.
Pat's, Geno's and Jim's are for tourists and suburbanites.
Oh, and Whiz??? Fugeddaboudit! American or Provolone is the way to go.
Tony Luke's and John's Roast Pork are better, but even better are the corner places that not too many outside the neighborhood know about. And we'd like to keep it that way.
Pat's, Geno's and Jim's are for tourists and suburbanites.
Oh, and Whiz??? Fugeddaboudit! American or Provolone is the way to go.
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Looks to me like the great RailRiot ended this morning about three minutes late.
Hope all went well to the end and we see neat reports and photos when they can be done.
Hope all went well to the end and we see neat reports and photos when they can be done.
Ryan
Court Jester
As a lifelong Washingtonian, cheeze whiz on cheesesteaks could possibly be the one thing that Philly does right.
Not yet. They probably just rode on newly extended Gold Line to East LA, bringing new riders an attention with his famous suitcase in tow. :lol:
Aloha
Wow, a whole day since the RailRiot's return, and we haven't heard from them. I hope this signals how much fun they had, What an Adventure, how will the ever equal it again, And they Shared it with us.
Mahalo
Wow, a whole day since the RailRiot's return, and we haven't heard from them. I hope this signals how much fun they had, What an Adventure, how will the ever equal it again, And they Shared it with us.
Mahalo
Video upload difficulties and random laptop lameness have temporarily slowed resumption of reporting, but the situation is now well in hand and the RailRiot's Valued Readers/Viewers may look forward to continued cringeworthy coverage in the near future.
While the RailRiot's return ride to L.A. aboard the Sunset Limited certainly had its moments - including failed sleeper toilets miraculously restored to function by private varnish connection hassles at Houston (Go figure!) - the journey's ultimate leg went quite smoothly overall and will be the subject of the first RailRiot Wrap-up Rant.
No rest for the weirdo - I mean weary - when the Patrick & Alice RailRiot 2009 returned to Los Angeles and the finish line on 11-20-09 (Day Thirty-four). There remained the new L.A. Metro Gold Line Eastside Extension (opened 11-15-09) to be checked out. Baggage carried on for the ride from New Orleans was checked to Oxnard so it didn't have to be lugged around for light rail riding. We did a quick out-and-back trip on the new extension before lunching at Olvera Street, boarding Pacific Surfliner 769 to Oxnard, then taking a city bus back to La Casa de Whooz. The compound's driveway (el cemente por autos del calle) was strewn with baggage for redistribution, a bunch of photos and videos were uploaded to the laptop from the Executive Assistant's camera, and that was the somewhat anticlimactic conclusion of the adventure.
The Valued Reader might well be wondering "So where's all that other reporting junk this Bozo said he was gonna do after the RailRiot?" Patience, Valued Reader, it's just now getting underway.
After a day or so of unpacking, laundering, and comatose decompression in the RailRiot aftermath I was ready to tackle the humongous reporting, photo and video backlog left in the RailRiot's wake. The Executive Assistant however - still lurking about in the Los Angeles area - had other ideas, and it was down to L.A. again (Metrolink from Montalvo to Van Nuys to meet Exec. Asst., then Surfliner 768 to LAX) for a comprehensive, station-by-station, eat & ride survey of the Gold Line Eastside Extension. Another two days basically shot, though eating, riding, and walking/rolling our way along the new route (6 miles, 8 stations) was pretty fun and will be covered elsewhere as a non-RailRiot activity.
Most of 11-24 was squandered on e-mail arguing with my sister over the Thanksgiving feast menu, then on 11-25 la madre de Whooz (my mom) and I rode Surfliner 774 to San Juan Capistrano to do the family holiday thing. At El Rancho de la hermana de Whooz (my sister's house) there was time to make some real progress on the RailRiot backlog. Unfortunately an untimely cable outage (no TV good; no internet bad) prevented posting anything, so headway was restricted to editing photos and cooking up the above litany of lame excuses for lack of movement on the reporting front.
Sunset Limited To Los Angeles
The RailRiot's New Orleans days and nights had been fun-filled and interesting. Highlights included extensive streetcar riding and visits to the St. Charles Line carbarn; an excellent (and very inexpensive) show by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band in the French Quarter; reveling in the local atmosphere and cuisine; and certainly not least a fun and entertaining lunch with AU's local Louisianan and honorary Cajun, the alligator-wrestling - then eating - had8ley (Jay).
Responding in another thread to a question about New Orleans lodging close to the Amtrak station, it was noted that the RailRiot had stupidly forked up a flat rate $15 for a cab ride to the Quality Inn on O'Keefe, which I posted turned out to be about 2 blocks away. It's actually more like 4 blocks, but still not worth 15 bucks, and on leaving New Orleans we easily walked/rolled - with baggage - from the hotel to the station.
Almost two weeks earlier - at NY Penn before boarding a Regional to Philadelphia - we had found that all Amtrak reservations made by the Executive Assistant for the remainder of the RailRiot - Regional to Philly, Crescent to Atlanta, Crescent to New Orleans, Sunset Limited to L.A. - were mysteriously absent from Quik-Trak. I say mysteriously because upon final check before departing L.A. everything had appeared to be in good order. From NYP onward we had to see agents at each stop to get our tickets, so at New Orleans we did so yet again.
Tickets and First Class Lounge entry code in hand, we crossed the waiting area (NOL looks like a bus station, inside and out) to the Magnolia Room, which is nothing to write home about. Sunset Limited boarding commenced while I was out front taking station shots with the Executive Assistant's cell phone (daily pics to friends), and when that was done there was little time left to check out the private varnish parked on the track next to the Sunset - an observation car with Crescent drumhead and another I didn't get to.
Departure was on time. On my previous westbound Sunset ride from New Orleans ('04) I'd made the unwitting mistake of going to lunch almost immediately after leaving the station. That had resulted in being stuck in the dining car during passage over the Huey P. Long bridge across the Mississippi; the bridge approach begins pretty quickly after NOL departure. You see, Valued Reader, back in those dark, ignorant, pre-Amtrak Unlimited days I was not yet the suave, sophisticated, worldly, and astute Amtrak passenger that I am today (no snide remarks!); hadn't even known of the bridge until the train was on it.
Given recollection of the error, and determined to avoid a repeat, lunch could wait 'til after the bridge. After quickly settling into the Superliner H room the Executive Assistant ditched her wheelchair for crutches and we trekked back through the diner to the virtually empty Sightseer Lounge car.
During our stay at New Orleans the RailRiot had stuck to rail-reachable and touristy locales, so we'd not seen - or made any effort to see - anything in the way of Katrina-ravaged areas. Hey, it was a vacation, not a fact-finding mission. On the way outta town aboard the train we viewed neighborhoods that LOOKED like they mighta been hurricane victims, but could also have been just poor and dilapidated. In other places stretches of abandoned homes, dotted with occasional new construction on raised foundations or stilts, made pretty clear that yes, those areas had been inundated as a result of the killer storm.
As our train began the long, slow, climbing approach to the Huey P. Long bridge I left the Executive Assistant and Sightseer Lounge to walk the train for photography from the last coach, which like the Sightseer was almost empty. While busily gazing astern I was approached and greeted by a fellow passenger, who after an exchange of pleasantries returned to walking the train as I returned to shooting.
River and bridge crossing complete, I returned to the Sightseer to find the Executive Assistant happily yapping it up with the guy who'd said hello a few minutes earlier back in the last coach. While I don't quite recall the exact sequence, I think the RailRiot headed for lunch in the diner, was seated, then after a few minutes the guy came along and was seated with us.
In any case his name was (probably still is) Jay, and he was headed for Austin via Texas Eagle connection at San Antonio. Further interrogation revealed that he'd flown to New Orleans on business, then decided on a whim to try the train for his return trip. Good call! Not bad for the RailRiot either, as Jay was (probably still is) a very personable fellow and something of a railfan himself. Unfortunately for Jay, these traits also made him an excellent target for relentless Amtrak Unlimited recruiting propaganda. SO excellent a target, in fact, that I'm able to report that Jay has since become a member of not only Amtrak Unlimited (as JayTexas, IIRC), but also On Track On Line, and has even already participated in AU and OTOL weekly chats. How's THAT for bare-knuckles coercion?
We spent an enjoyable lunch, much of the ensuing afternoon, then an enjoyable dinner in Jay's company, giving the RailRiot a huge window of opportunity to ruthlessly turn the screws on the poor guy viz AU. After dinner the RailRiot returned to the room, while Jay as a Coach passenger was sadly consigned to enduring the remainder of his ride aboard the Sunset Limited among the unwashed masses.
Back in the RailRiot Mobile Command Post (aka Superliner H room) the rest of the run to Houston was passed with sightseeing, uploading, dozing, and downing a couple brewskies (in that order). On arrival at Houston some private varnish was spotted on a adjacent track, and it turned out these cars were to be tacked onto our train during the layover. Speculation among sleeper passengers on the ground was that the cars would be with us through to L.A., but as events transpired they were taken off at San Antonio, possibly to join a northbound Texas Eagle. Who knows?
What WAS known was that there were connection problems with the private cars, and that we could forget about an on time Houston departure. Nicotine cravings sated for the time being, I climbed back aboard in time to hear the PA announcement that UP had been called to help with the connection difficulty.
Days later I learned in an e-mail from Jay that a damaged airhose on the last Amtrak coach had required replacement. He'd been out and about at Houston, and with plenty of time to spare had gotten to go aboard the private varnish and get some interior pictures. Haven't seen the shots, but hopefully he'll post some examples soon, as he said the cars were pretty impressive.
The connection hassle had an interesting and fortunate side effect: Not long before arrival at Houston our sleeping car attendant, Efram, made the rounds with news that the car's toilets had failed. All were instructed to go forward and use the ones in the other sleeper until ours could be repaired at San Antonio. Before any RailRiot need arose, however, and in the course of several (at least 4) train power off/on cycles during coupling problems, our sleeper's toilets miraculously became functional once again. Efram duly made the rounds with this development, also inquiring of the RailRiot (toilet in H room) whether we had "anything left in the bowl." No.
Most of the rest of the run to Los Angeles passed quietly and enjoyably, with perhaps too much time given over to catching up on sleep. Interesting mealtime companions included a couple returning to the San Diego area (at both breakfasts), who planned a Surfliner connection from L.A. to Oceanside, where they would board - first time - the mechanical monstrosity known as Sprinter for their final leg home. Hopefully my usual disparaging remarks on this steel-wheeled bus didn't poison their minds TOO badly. Another couple were cycling enthusiasts making a rare journey without their bikes. As with most folks met over dining car meals during the RailRiot, we loved sharing and comparing experiences while breaking bread together and reveling in the passing panorama.
Photos:
RailRiot Day Thirty-two: New Orleans Departure
RailRiot Day Thirty-two Alice Views
RailRiot Day Thirty-three: Sunset Limited
RailRiot Day Thirty-three Alice Views
RailRiot Day Thirty-four: L.A. Return & Gold Line Eastside Extension
RailRiot Day Thirty-four Alice Views
Please note that RailRiot Executive Assistant Alice was also taking pics and videos along the way, and amassed a pretty significant backlog of her own. With these posts (hosted at my at Picasa and YouTube accounts) we begin to chip away at that one too, and I'm sure she'll have commentary to add as well.
Video:
_______________________
More RailRiot Wrap-up Rants in store and coming soon.
The Valued Reader might well be wondering "So where's all that other reporting junk this Bozo said he was gonna do after the RailRiot?" Patience, Valued Reader, it's just now getting underway.
After a day or so of unpacking, laundering, and comatose decompression in the RailRiot aftermath I was ready to tackle the humongous reporting, photo and video backlog left in the RailRiot's wake. The Executive Assistant however - still lurking about in the Los Angeles area - had other ideas, and it was down to L.A. again (Metrolink from Montalvo to Van Nuys to meet Exec. Asst., then Surfliner 768 to LAX) for a comprehensive, station-by-station, eat & ride survey of the Gold Line Eastside Extension. Another two days basically shot, though eating, riding, and walking/rolling our way along the new route (6 miles, 8 stations) was pretty fun and will be covered elsewhere as a non-RailRiot activity.
Most of 11-24 was squandered on e-mail arguing with my sister over the Thanksgiving feast menu, then on 11-25 la madre de Whooz (my mom) and I rode Surfliner 774 to San Juan Capistrano to do the family holiday thing. At El Rancho de la hermana de Whooz (my sister's house) there was time to make some real progress on the RailRiot backlog. Unfortunately an untimely cable outage (no TV good; no internet bad) prevented posting anything, so headway was restricted to editing photos and cooking up the above litany of lame excuses for lack of movement on the reporting front.
Sunset Limited To Los Angeles
The RailRiot's New Orleans days and nights had been fun-filled and interesting. Highlights included extensive streetcar riding and visits to the St. Charles Line carbarn; an excellent (and very inexpensive) show by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band in the French Quarter; reveling in the local atmosphere and cuisine; and certainly not least a fun and entertaining lunch with AU's local Louisianan and honorary Cajun, the alligator-wrestling - then eating - had8ley (Jay).
Responding in another thread to a question about New Orleans lodging close to the Amtrak station, it was noted that the RailRiot had stupidly forked up a flat rate $15 for a cab ride to the Quality Inn on O'Keefe, which I posted turned out to be about 2 blocks away. It's actually more like 4 blocks, but still not worth 15 bucks, and on leaving New Orleans we easily walked/rolled - with baggage - from the hotel to the station.
Almost two weeks earlier - at NY Penn before boarding a Regional to Philadelphia - we had found that all Amtrak reservations made by the Executive Assistant for the remainder of the RailRiot - Regional to Philly, Crescent to Atlanta, Crescent to New Orleans, Sunset Limited to L.A. - were mysteriously absent from Quik-Trak. I say mysteriously because upon final check before departing L.A. everything had appeared to be in good order. From NYP onward we had to see agents at each stop to get our tickets, so at New Orleans we did so yet again.
Tickets and First Class Lounge entry code in hand, we crossed the waiting area (NOL looks like a bus station, inside and out) to the Magnolia Room, which is nothing to write home about. Sunset Limited boarding commenced while I was out front taking station shots with the Executive Assistant's cell phone (daily pics to friends), and when that was done there was little time left to check out the private varnish parked on the track next to the Sunset - an observation car with Crescent drumhead and another I didn't get to.
Departure was on time. On my previous westbound Sunset ride from New Orleans ('04) I'd made the unwitting mistake of going to lunch almost immediately after leaving the station. That had resulted in being stuck in the dining car during passage over the Huey P. Long bridge across the Mississippi; the bridge approach begins pretty quickly after NOL departure. You see, Valued Reader, back in those dark, ignorant, pre-Amtrak Unlimited days I was not yet the suave, sophisticated, worldly, and astute Amtrak passenger that I am today (no snide remarks!); hadn't even known of the bridge until the train was on it.
Given recollection of the error, and determined to avoid a repeat, lunch could wait 'til after the bridge. After quickly settling into the Superliner H room the Executive Assistant ditched her wheelchair for crutches and we trekked back through the diner to the virtually empty Sightseer Lounge car.
During our stay at New Orleans the RailRiot had stuck to rail-reachable and touristy locales, so we'd not seen - or made any effort to see - anything in the way of Katrina-ravaged areas. Hey, it was a vacation, not a fact-finding mission. On the way outta town aboard the train we viewed neighborhoods that LOOKED like they mighta been hurricane victims, but could also have been just poor and dilapidated. In other places stretches of abandoned homes, dotted with occasional new construction on raised foundations or stilts, made pretty clear that yes, those areas had been inundated as a result of the killer storm.
As our train began the long, slow, climbing approach to the Huey P. Long bridge I left the Executive Assistant and Sightseer Lounge to walk the train for photography from the last coach, which like the Sightseer was almost empty. While busily gazing astern I was approached and greeted by a fellow passenger, who after an exchange of pleasantries returned to walking the train as I returned to shooting.
River and bridge crossing complete, I returned to the Sightseer to find the Executive Assistant happily yapping it up with the guy who'd said hello a few minutes earlier back in the last coach. While I don't quite recall the exact sequence, I think the RailRiot headed for lunch in the diner, was seated, then after a few minutes the guy came along and was seated with us.
In any case his name was (probably still is) Jay, and he was headed for Austin via Texas Eagle connection at San Antonio. Further interrogation revealed that he'd flown to New Orleans on business, then decided on a whim to try the train for his return trip. Good call! Not bad for the RailRiot either, as Jay was (probably still is) a very personable fellow and something of a railfan himself. Unfortunately for Jay, these traits also made him an excellent target for relentless Amtrak Unlimited recruiting propaganda. SO excellent a target, in fact, that I'm able to report that Jay has since become a member of not only Amtrak Unlimited (as JayTexas, IIRC), but also On Track On Line, and has even already participated in AU and OTOL weekly chats. How's THAT for bare-knuckles coercion?
We spent an enjoyable lunch, much of the ensuing afternoon, then an enjoyable dinner in Jay's company, giving the RailRiot a huge window of opportunity to ruthlessly turn the screws on the poor guy viz AU. After dinner the RailRiot returned to the room, while Jay as a Coach passenger was sadly consigned to enduring the remainder of his ride aboard the Sunset Limited among the unwashed masses.
Back in the RailRiot Mobile Command Post (aka Superliner H room) the rest of the run to Houston was passed with sightseeing, uploading, dozing, and downing a couple brewskies (in that order). On arrival at Houston some private varnish was spotted on a adjacent track, and it turned out these cars were to be tacked onto our train during the layover. Speculation among sleeper passengers on the ground was that the cars would be with us through to L.A., but as events transpired they were taken off at San Antonio, possibly to join a northbound Texas Eagle. Who knows?
What WAS known was that there were connection problems with the private cars, and that we could forget about an on time Houston departure. Nicotine cravings sated for the time being, I climbed back aboard in time to hear the PA announcement that UP had been called to help with the connection difficulty.
Days later I learned in an e-mail from Jay that a damaged airhose on the last Amtrak coach had required replacement. He'd been out and about at Houston, and with plenty of time to spare had gotten to go aboard the private varnish and get some interior pictures. Haven't seen the shots, but hopefully he'll post some examples soon, as he said the cars were pretty impressive.
The connection hassle had an interesting and fortunate side effect: Not long before arrival at Houston our sleeping car attendant, Efram, made the rounds with news that the car's toilets had failed. All were instructed to go forward and use the ones in the other sleeper until ours could be repaired at San Antonio. Before any RailRiot need arose, however, and in the course of several (at least 4) train power off/on cycles during coupling problems, our sleeper's toilets miraculously became functional once again. Efram duly made the rounds with this development, also inquiring of the RailRiot (toilet in H room) whether we had "anything left in the bowl." No.
Most of the rest of the run to Los Angeles passed quietly and enjoyably, with perhaps too much time given over to catching up on sleep. Interesting mealtime companions included a couple returning to the San Diego area (at both breakfasts), who planned a Surfliner connection from L.A. to Oceanside, where they would board - first time - the mechanical monstrosity known as Sprinter for their final leg home. Hopefully my usual disparaging remarks on this steel-wheeled bus didn't poison their minds TOO badly. Another couple were cycling enthusiasts making a rare journey without their bikes. As with most folks met over dining car meals during the RailRiot, we loved sharing and comparing experiences while breaking bread together and reveling in the passing panorama.
Photos:
RailRiot Day Thirty-two: New Orleans Departure
RailRiot Day Thirty-two Alice Views
RailRiot Day Thirty-three: Sunset Limited
RailRiot Day Thirty-three Alice Views
RailRiot Day Thirty-four: L.A. Return & Gold Line Eastside Extension
RailRiot Day Thirty-four Alice Views
Please note that RailRiot Executive Assistant Alice was also taking pics and videos along the way, and amassed a pretty significant backlog of her own. With these posts (hosted at my at Picasa and YouTube accounts) we begin to chip away at that one too, and I'm sure she'll have commentary to add as well.
Video:
_______________________
More RailRiot Wrap-up Rants in store and coming soon.
As usual the RailRiot has posted a great trip report and pics! The shots over the Huey Long are great and the Lake Charles pic of the Isle of Capri Casino makes me nostalgic (sort of ) for my gambling trips in the old days when I paid for the place instead of taking train trips! Look forward to more, thanks Patrick and Alice!
The Alpine pics are also nostalgic for me since I was born there and spent many pleasant childhood summers with my grandparents there (my grandfather was a 40 yr. SP hand!)and the Not so Grand Rio pics are a reminder of how dumb the build a wall and round 'em up and ship 'em home ideas are that the paranoid self appointed militia that claim to be guarding our borders blog about! (playing soilder stops about 10 for most guys!)
The Alpine pics are also nostalgic for me since I was born there and spent many pleasant childhood summers with my grandparents there (my grandfather was a 40 yr. SP hand!)and the Not so Grand Rio pics are a reminder of how dumb the build a wall and round 'em up and ship 'em home ideas are that the paranoid self appointed militia that claim to be guarding our borders blog about! (playing soilder stops about 10 for most guys!)
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I really enjoyed the commentary and the photos.
That Huey P. Long bridge is very photogenic and the footage out of the rear of the train was neat.
I was glad to see that you guys found El Paso and its station to be of interest. I agree.
Glad to see that private car Southern RR Observation car. I strongly suspect it was really Southern RR but just possibly from the Southerner rather than from the original Streamlined Crescent. It is a neat car in any case and I am glad to see it is still in some kind of use.
Glad you guys had an over all good trip.Glad I was able to help for one day from Atlanta to Chattanooga.
That Huey P. Long bridge is very photogenic and the footage out of the rear of the train was neat.
I was glad to see that you guys found El Paso and its station to be of interest. I agree.
Glad to see that private car Southern RR Observation car. I strongly suspect it was really Southern RR but just possibly from the Southerner rather than from the original Streamlined Crescent. It is a neat car in any case and I am glad to see it is still in some kind of use.
Glad you guys had an over all good trip.Glad I was able to help for one day from Atlanta to Chattanooga.
Some of my Alpine photos were to document clearly that Alpine would be a good stopover because it has so many "good" motels near the "station."
Thanks Alice, I get it! Actually the Holland Hotel in your pics is a remodeled/refurbished old railroad hotel thats very nice, even has a penthouse suite!
I stayed there last summer and it was really much better than a chain motel which Alpine has on both ends of town on the Highway! (Ramada/Best Western etc. )The good news/bad news is that trains come through all night long and tend to wake you up! :lol:
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the_traveler
Engineer
It's going to be tough - but I'll try!
That photo of Alpine looks familiar! It reminds me of my 1 hour stop there on the TE in March!
Adirondack: Dome Away From Home
Following Day Eighteen's fun transit travels with AlanB and Long Train Runnin', Day Nineteen kicked off with the RailRiot out and about even earlier than usual in order to make the Adirondack's 8:15 a.m. departure from Penn Station. Check out of the hotel, cab to the station at Hicksville, LIRR to Penn, Quik-Trak for tickets, Red Cap for schlepping and boarding (and tipping), pile all the junk and the wheelchair at the accessible seat of an Amfleet coach (no checked baggage on the Adirondack), collapse into seats. Whew.
The Adirondack turn to Rouses Point, NY, had been booked sort of on spec. In recent fall seasons Amtrak's sole remaining dome car has repeatedly been unceremoniously snatched away from its rightful home on the west coast, brutally carted across the continent, held hostage in the northeast, and forced to perform slave labor in service to the peculiar pastime known as "leaf peeping," in which large numbers of itinerant tourists indulge their prurient fascination with the "colorful" biological process that results in naked trees.
Venturing to document this atavistic annual ritual firsthand from the purloined dome car - and book in advance - required researching Amtrak's past practice, then gambling that form would hold for 2009. It did. The dates had been changed to protect the innocent, but the dome was being exploited on a weekly operational schedule identical to the ones used in 2007 and 2008.
Partly in an effort to keep the dome sequestered from the prying eyes of big-city investigators who might ask uncomfortable questions about dome abuse, but mostly because the car exceeds clearances to the south, 10031 is added to and subtracted from the Adirondack consist at Albany/Rensselaer. An engine and Amfleet coach are swapped out and in during these switches.
Riding northbound along the Hudson River was okay, but an ugly overcast prevented this part of the run from being anywhere near as breathtaking as I know it can be in great weather. It was pretty much "Yeah yeah, the river. How much longer to Albany?"
There was plenty of time on the ground at Albany to observe and photograph the swap-out and switching evolution. At Penn the RailRiot had been boarded on the third coach in the righthand accessible seating area at the forward end of the car. With replacement of the original locomotive and first coach by a second engine and 10031 we were a car back from the dome.
Much as I would've liked to immediately race topside in the dome after reboarding, to be up there for Albany departure, everybody - several other folks were chomping at the bit too - had to wait until after departure and ticket collection from passengers boarded at ALB before the dome was opened. Those eager to enter the dome were poised at empty seats - there were many - in the adjacent coach. When the door was finally thrown open the massive throng - all five of us - surged through the vestibule, up the staircase, and claimed territory under the glazing.
As accompanying pics and video show, I staked my claim at the very front. Many dome denizens clearly enjoy the panoramic views available up top, which is all well and good. For me, however, the main attraction of true dome cars (and where they trump the dome wannabe Sightseer Lounges and Pacific Parlour Cars) is the ability to look both directly ahead and directly astern. Some may call it blasphemy, but I maintain that in several respects a dome ride even beats a cab ride.
Overall passenger load was very light, only a couple other folks on the platform at Albany had taken any real notice of of the equipment change, and the dome's presence was not announced over the PA system right away. No surprise, then, that 10031 was at first sparsely populated. It was a stark contrast with my last dome ride - May '09 aboard Surfliner 799, OXN-SBA - on which topside had been packed and I'd had to wheedle forward viewing space.
Passengers under glass did become more numerous later on. At some point a rails & trails contingent came aboard and announced they'd be doing a trip narration up in the dome. Wasn't really paying attention, so not sure exactly when this happened; maybe the RailRiot Executive Assistant recalls. Even with the increase for the rails & trails presentation I don't think the dome's upper level was ever more than about 50% full, and on the southbound return the next day never even got to that. I believe two big factors in play here were A) fall foliage well past its color peak, and B) weekday runs.
Northbound the dome was closed to passengers at Plattsburgh, I suppose as prep for the border crossing. Southbound the dome was opened almost
immediately on RSP departure, then closed at Schenectady. Almost 6 hours of riding high in each direction!
On the whole both rides were highly enjoyable, with absence of crowding serving to ease disappointment with the continued rotten weather. Our layover at the Canadian border burg of Rouses Point, NY, was certainly something completely different, and while I doubt there'll be any repeat visit we wouldn't have missed it. Because it was a RailRiot, not a RousesRiot, reporting on the town itself is confined to a nonrail photo album. The others do include station(s) and other rail aspects encountered at Rouses Point.
Photos:
RailRiot Day Nineteen: Adirondack North
RailRiot Day Nineteen Alice Views
RailRiot Day Twenty: Rouses Point, NY (nonrail)
RailRiot Day Twenty: Adirondack South
RailRiot Day Twenty Alice Views
Video:
Following Day Eighteen's fun transit travels with AlanB and Long Train Runnin', Day Nineteen kicked off with the RailRiot out and about even earlier than usual in order to make the Adirondack's 8:15 a.m. departure from Penn Station. Check out of the hotel, cab to the station at Hicksville, LIRR to Penn, Quik-Trak for tickets, Red Cap for schlepping and boarding (and tipping), pile all the junk and the wheelchair at the accessible seat of an Amfleet coach (no checked baggage on the Adirondack), collapse into seats. Whew.
The Adirondack turn to Rouses Point, NY, had been booked sort of on spec. In recent fall seasons Amtrak's sole remaining dome car has repeatedly been unceremoniously snatched away from its rightful home on the west coast, brutally carted across the continent, held hostage in the northeast, and forced to perform slave labor in service to the peculiar pastime known as "leaf peeping," in which large numbers of itinerant tourists indulge their prurient fascination with the "colorful" biological process that results in naked trees.
Venturing to document this atavistic annual ritual firsthand from the purloined dome car - and book in advance - required researching Amtrak's past practice, then gambling that form would hold for 2009. It did. The dates had been changed to protect the innocent, but the dome was being exploited on a weekly operational schedule identical to the ones used in 2007 and 2008.
Partly in an effort to keep the dome sequestered from the prying eyes of big-city investigators who might ask uncomfortable questions about dome abuse, but mostly because the car exceeds clearances to the south, 10031 is added to and subtracted from the Adirondack consist at Albany/Rensselaer. An engine and Amfleet coach are swapped out and in during these switches.
Riding northbound along the Hudson River was okay, but an ugly overcast prevented this part of the run from being anywhere near as breathtaking as I know it can be in great weather. It was pretty much "Yeah yeah, the river. How much longer to Albany?"
There was plenty of time on the ground at Albany to observe and photograph the swap-out and switching evolution. At Penn the RailRiot had been boarded on the third coach in the righthand accessible seating area at the forward end of the car. With replacement of the original locomotive and first coach by a second engine and 10031 we were a car back from the dome.
Much as I would've liked to immediately race topside in the dome after reboarding, to be up there for Albany departure, everybody - several other folks were chomping at the bit too - had to wait until after departure and ticket collection from passengers boarded at ALB before the dome was opened. Those eager to enter the dome were poised at empty seats - there were many - in the adjacent coach. When the door was finally thrown open the massive throng - all five of us - surged through the vestibule, up the staircase, and claimed territory under the glazing.
As accompanying pics and video show, I staked my claim at the very front. Many dome denizens clearly enjoy the panoramic views available up top, which is all well and good. For me, however, the main attraction of true dome cars (and where they trump the dome wannabe Sightseer Lounges and Pacific Parlour Cars) is the ability to look both directly ahead and directly astern. Some may call it blasphemy, but I maintain that in several respects a dome ride even beats a cab ride.
Overall passenger load was very light, only a couple other folks on the platform at Albany had taken any real notice of of the equipment change, and the dome's presence was not announced over the PA system right away. No surprise, then, that 10031 was at first sparsely populated. It was a stark contrast with my last dome ride - May '09 aboard Surfliner 799, OXN-SBA - on which topside had been packed and I'd had to wheedle forward viewing space.
Passengers under glass did become more numerous later on. At some point a rails & trails contingent came aboard and announced they'd be doing a trip narration up in the dome. Wasn't really paying attention, so not sure exactly when this happened; maybe the RailRiot Executive Assistant recalls. Even with the increase for the rails & trails presentation I don't think the dome's upper level was ever more than about 50% full, and on the southbound return the next day never even got to that. I believe two big factors in play here were A) fall foliage well past its color peak, and B) weekday runs.
Northbound the dome was closed to passengers at Plattsburgh, I suppose as prep for the border crossing. Southbound the dome was opened almost
immediately on RSP departure, then closed at Schenectady. Almost 6 hours of riding high in each direction!
On the whole both rides were highly enjoyable, with absence of crowding serving to ease disappointment with the continued rotten weather. Our layover at the Canadian border burg of Rouses Point, NY, was certainly something completely different, and while I doubt there'll be any repeat visit we wouldn't have missed it. Because it was a RailRiot, not a RousesRiot, reporting on the town itself is confined to a nonrail photo album. The others do include station(s) and other rail aspects encountered at Rouses Point.
Photos:
RailRiot Day Nineteen: Adirondack North
RailRiot Day Nineteen Alice Views
RailRiot Day Twenty: Rouses Point, NY (nonrail)
RailRiot Day Twenty: Adirondack South
RailRiot Day Twenty Alice Views
Video:
Mahalo Alice and Patrick
There is hope
There is hope
the_traveler
Engineer
The river in picture #22 of the 1st series of photos that you say is "some river ... north of Saratoga" is the Hudson River at Ft. Edward. Just on the right (near the bend) was a dam. When they removed that dam, all the PCB's that GE "deposited" in the Hudson were released! (The GE plants at Ft Edward and Hudson Falls are within a few miles upstream!)
I grew up a few miles from here. Now you why I am how I am! :lol:
(The GE plants at Ft Edward and Hudson Falls are within a few miles upstream!)I grew up a few miles from here. Now you why I am how I am! :lol:
And there I was thinking you were just worn out from doing all that Chez Traveler upkeep.
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