Not meant to confuse anyone, I made a second trip west from Denver to Portland this June/July. The previous April trip was for the memorial service for my father. The June/July trip was booked prior to that, hoping to visit him for one more time. I'll provide a few notes and pictures here.
First, some remarkable facts: no unexpected delays occurred, and the weather was good at all points. Expected delays on Trains 5/6 were within the recent typical range. Recent years have included fires, derailments, floods and slides.
Almost every train had sold-out segments. That resulted in troublesome seating issues and airline-type misbehavior in some cases.
Itinerary for 2023 Summer
Sat 17 Jun 2023 - Dep Denver Union Station @ 0805
ATK 05 - coach - Lower Level confirmed
Sun 18 Jun 2023 - Arr Sacramento @ 1413
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In the late afternoon, the new cafe in the Sacramento Station is still open. It will fail if it doesn't stay open for more realistic hours. Enjoy nice food there while you can. Passengers making the Trains 5 > 14 connection banded together to watch luggage while taking turns walking around.
A rare sight:
Sun 18 Jun 2023 - Dep Sacramento @ 2349
ATK 14 - coach - confirmed
Mon 19 Jun 2023 - Arr Portland Union Station @ 1540
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Stay with family
Thu 22 Jun 2023 to campus for 55th year reunion.
Lewis & Clark College
615 S Palatine Hill Rd
Portland OR 97219
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Sun 25 Jun 2023 - Dep Portland Union Station @ 1200
ATK 504 - coach - confirmed
Sun 25 Jun 2023 - Arr Seattle King Street Stn @ 1525
Olympia Lacey Station volunteer at this outstanding community effort.
Cascades train was the usual post-pandemic Horizon fleet without enough capacity.
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Belltown Inn
2301 3rd Avenue
Seattle WA 98121
Was hard to reach due to parade breaking and contradictory traffic policing. Under normal circumstances it has good transit access through downtown for King Street Station. My favorite B&B on Capitol Hill is not in business.
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Mon 26 Jun 2023 - Dep Seattle King Street Stn @ 0950
ATK 11 - Lower Level coach confirmed
Mon 26 Jun 2023 - Arr Portland Union Station @ 1350
I was able to retain my seat through the PDX stop. My Seattle extension was a last-minute add-on.
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Mon 26 Jun 2023 - Dep Portland Union Station @ 1422
ATK 11 - Lower Level coach confirmed
Tue 27 Jun 2023 - Arr Oakland Jack London Square @ 0854
Busy KFS, no Greyhound, no Trailways.
===========================================================
Waterfront Inn
10 Washington Street
Oakland CA 94607
Jack himself:
Was pleased to find my favorite Oakland restaurants still in business in the produce district. Pricier, like everything. Within sight of the Western Pacific station, the Buttercup and the Oakland Grill.
Ferried into SF and hunted for the new subway segment of the T-Line. Typical California Balkanization - - - other's system maps were outdated. Some did show the T-Line extension in half-tone as under construction. People doing passenger counts in BART elevators had never heard of the new subway segment. Luckily, I had a native guide with me, and I knew the surface layout and so we eventually entered the beautiful new world under Chinatown. Everything was up to date, including the bi-lingual Muni customer service rep answering questions in Chinese.
The Murdoch media forget to tell Chinatown that San Francisco is dying. We crowded into one of the many bustling bakeries for tea and pastries. At the other end of the long table an Anglo guy our age looked and talked politics like it was SF 1964 (I was there.). A younger Chinese man listened politely. Outside, Rte 30-Stockton trolleys pushed through busy intersections, as they had in my father's young days visiting.
A new world beneath central SF:
Next day we rode the ferry to Vallejo for brunch and an hour each way of waves and spray. Vallejo is a blue-collar shipyard town struggling to find new purposes. The 9:50 a.m. trip from the SF Ferry Building had about a half-dozen passengers. We spoke with a medical student who gets a lot of studying done on her reverse commute from SF.
We joined a handful of visitors to the Naval & Historical Museum. Mare Island, adjacent to Vallejo, was the first U.S. Naval base on the Pacific. It still does some contract work for the Navy.
Someone should tell Vallejo's Momo's Cafe that waffle batter, not pancake batter, is needed for their generous offering. The place was busy, however.
Peak direction ridership is stronger. The onboard bar is open in the afternoon.
And then home. Between Reno and Salt Lake City I shared seats with a fellow Army veteran of the same era as mine. I did have breakfast in the dining car on Train 6 and enjoyed the omelet and conversation. Yes, I shaved first and threw some water on my sleepy coach face. For a change, I tipped the coach attendant, who did everything right. Sad that is unusual.
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Sun 2 Jul 2023 - Dep Oakland Jack London Square @ 0736
ATK 710 - coach confirmed
Sun 2 Jul 2023 - Arr Emeryville @ 0744
===========================================================
Sun 2 Jul 2023 - Dep Emeryville @ 0910
ATK 06 - Lower Level coach confirmned
Mon 3 Jul 2023 - Arr Denver Union Station @ 1838
First, some remarkable facts: no unexpected delays occurred, and the weather was good at all points. Expected delays on Trains 5/6 were within the recent typical range. Recent years have included fires, derailments, floods and slides.
Almost every train had sold-out segments. That resulted in troublesome seating issues and airline-type misbehavior in some cases.
Itinerary for 2023 Summer
Sat 17 Jun 2023 - Dep Denver Union Station @ 0805
ATK 05 - coach - Lower Level confirmed
Sun 18 Jun 2023 - Arr Sacramento @ 1413
-----------------------------------------------------------
In the late afternoon, the new cafe in the Sacramento Station is still open. It will fail if it doesn't stay open for more realistic hours. Enjoy nice food there while you can. Passengers making the Trains 5 > 14 connection banded together to watch luggage while taking turns walking around.
A rare sight:
Sun 18 Jun 2023 - Dep Sacramento @ 2349
ATK 14 - coach - confirmed
Mon 19 Jun 2023 - Arr Portland Union Station @ 1540
===========================================================
Stay with family
Thu 22 Jun 2023 to campus for 55th year reunion.
Lewis & Clark College
615 S Palatine Hill Rd
Portland OR 97219
===========================================================
Sun 25 Jun 2023 - Dep Portland Union Station @ 1200
ATK 504 - coach - confirmed
Sun 25 Jun 2023 - Arr Seattle King Street Stn @ 1525
Olympia Lacey Station volunteer at this outstanding community effort.
Cascades train was the usual post-pandemic Horizon fleet without enough capacity.
===========================================================
Belltown Inn
2301 3rd Avenue
Seattle WA 98121
Was hard to reach due to parade breaking and contradictory traffic policing. Under normal circumstances it has good transit access through downtown for King Street Station. My favorite B&B on Capitol Hill is not in business.
===========================================================
Mon 26 Jun 2023 - Dep Seattle King Street Stn @ 0950
ATK 11 - Lower Level coach confirmed
Mon 26 Jun 2023 - Arr Portland Union Station @ 1350
I was able to retain my seat through the PDX stop. My Seattle extension was a last-minute add-on.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Mon 26 Jun 2023 - Dep Portland Union Station @ 1422
ATK 11 - Lower Level coach confirmed
Tue 27 Jun 2023 - Arr Oakland Jack London Square @ 0854
Busy KFS, no Greyhound, no Trailways.
===========================================================
Waterfront Inn
10 Washington Street
Oakland CA 94607
Jack himself:
Was pleased to find my favorite Oakland restaurants still in business in the produce district. Pricier, like everything. Within sight of the Western Pacific station, the Buttercup and the Oakland Grill.
Ferried into SF and hunted for the new subway segment of the T-Line. Typical California Balkanization - - - other's system maps were outdated. Some did show the T-Line extension in half-tone as under construction. People doing passenger counts in BART elevators had never heard of the new subway segment. Luckily, I had a native guide with me, and I knew the surface layout and so we eventually entered the beautiful new world under Chinatown. Everything was up to date, including the bi-lingual Muni customer service rep answering questions in Chinese.
The Murdoch media forget to tell Chinatown that San Francisco is dying. We crowded into one of the many bustling bakeries for tea and pastries. At the other end of the long table an Anglo guy our age looked and talked politics like it was SF 1964 (I was there.). A younger Chinese man listened politely. Outside, Rte 30-Stockton trolleys pushed through busy intersections, as they had in my father's young days visiting.
A new world beneath central SF:
Next day we rode the ferry to Vallejo for brunch and an hour each way of waves and spray. Vallejo is a blue-collar shipyard town struggling to find new purposes. The 9:50 a.m. trip from the SF Ferry Building had about a half-dozen passengers. We spoke with a medical student who gets a lot of studying done on her reverse commute from SF.
We joined a handful of visitors to the Naval & Historical Museum. Mare Island, adjacent to Vallejo, was the first U.S. Naval base on the Pacific. It still does some contract work for the Navy.
Someone should tell Vallejo's Momo's Cafe that waffle batter, not pancake batter, is needed for their generous offering. The place was busy, however.
Peak direction ridership is stronger. The onboard bar is open in the afternoon.
And then home. Between Reno and Salt Lake City I shared seats with a fellow Army veteran of the same era as mine. I did have breakfast in the dining car on Train 6 and enjoyed the omelet and conversation. Yes, I shaved first and threw some water on my sleepy coach face. For a change, I tipped the coach attendant, who did everything right. Sad that is unusual.
===========================================================
Sun 2 Jul 2023 - Dep Oakland Jack London Square @ 0736
ATK 710 - coach confirmed
Sun 2 Jul 2023 - Arr Emeryville @ 0744
===========================================================
Sun 2 Jul 2023 - Dep Emeryville @ 0910
ATK 06 - Lower Level coach confirmned
Mon 3 Jul 2023 - Arr Denver Union Station @ 1838
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