Chapter 9: Friday, July 18, 2014The seventh day of RRF was our only day in Denver. Our host would be the Regional Transit District (
RTD). We did their entire
light rail system, and also partook of a heritage trolley line known as
Platte Valley Trolley. Finally, Friday would end with us aboard another eastbound Amtrak train.
Chapter 9.0: Meeting in DenverThe plan was for our group to begin our travels for the day at Union Station at 8 AM. Since the first trip was along the
E Line, some of those staying in hotels they had travelled to last night on this same line decided to join us later as we passed by. However, I wanted to store my luggage at Union Station for later, and also wanted to begin the day from the starting point, so I did travel back up to the station. My trip was delayed, and it also included a change of trains since I boarded an
F Line train first so I had to make a transfer on the way. The result was that I got to Union Station later than intended. I ran through the station and succeeded in having my luggage stored, and then ran back two blocks to the light rail platform to join the rest. Amazingly, we still made the intended 8:13 AM train.
Chapter 9.1: RTD E Line, Union Station to LincolnOur first official transit conveyance in Denver began aboard the
E Line, which left Union Station on time at 8:13 AM. Aboard this train were Bill, Dick, Jishnu, Penny, Kim, Mike, Steve, and me. (Marie would join us later in the day.) Chris joined us at the Belleview, and then Grace and Alan got on at Orchard. This brought our travel party up to 11 people.
We rode south on this line, which parallels I-25 most of the way, to the Lincoln station in Lone Tree. We got there a minute early at 8:52 AM, giving us eleven minutes before our vehicle would head back northbound towards the city.
Chapter 9.2: RTD E Line, Lincoln to SouthmoorOur northbound trip left Lincoln at 9:03 AM. We went as far as Southmoor, where we arrived on time at 9:18 AM. Southmoor is located just north of the junction with the I-225 rail line that goes to the Nine Mile station in Aurora, and will within a couple of years run further into that city. There used to be a
G Line that ran over a southeast connection directly from Lincoln to Nine Mile, but it was eventually decommissioned due to lack of ridership, necessitating the transfer at Southmoor. When the I-225 line is extended well into Aurora, the connection will once more be used in revenue service, but it will be known as the
R Line since the new commuter rail Gold Line will get the
G designation.
Chapter 9.3: RTD H Line, Southmoor to Nine MileOur
H Line outbound train came at 9:26 AM, and we were on our way east for a quick seven minute trip to Nine Mile, all within the median of I-225. At Nine Mile we remained on the same vehicle for our inbound trip.
Chapter 9.4: RTD H Line, Nine Mile to I-25/BroadwayWe departed from Nine Mile at 9:49 AM, right on schedule. This segment of our day's journey brought us to I-25/Broadway at 10:09 AM. This is where the Southeast and Southwest Lines diverge. We would now be changing to the
D Line to Mineral station in Littleton.
Chapter 9.5: RTD D Line, I-25/Broadway to MineralOur itinerary had intended for us to wait about 14 minutes until the next outbound
D trip. However, the previous trip was running late, so we only spent about one minute on the platform before boarding the earlier trip. This put us approximately 15 minutes ahead of our itinerary from here until lunchtime. We therefore left I-25/Broadway at 10:10 AM on a more scenic line that runs alongside U.S. 85 and the BNSF-Union Pacific Joint Line for most of its length. We arrived into Littleton's Mineral station at 10:24 AM, at which time we stretched our legs on the platform for what would be a 9-minute layover.
Group pauses at Littleton/Mineral station at the end of the D Line. Photo by Steve Weagant.Chapter 9.6: RTD D Line, Mineral to 30th & DowningAfter our brief time outside, we boarded the same air-conditioned light rail car for an end-to-end ride on the
D Line. After leaving at 10:33 AM, we retraced our path back to I-25/Broadway and continued inbound. After the 10th & Osage station, it was time once more to explore tracks new to us as we veered to the right towards downtown Denver, rather than the branch we had travelled on this morning on the
E Line from Union Station.
Something that I didn't know before getting there in person was that although the main trunk line runs on parallel streets through the downtown area, it runs counter-flow to the traffic. Thus while the light rail runs northbound on California Street, the traffic runs southbound. Conversely on parallel Stout Street, the light rail trains run southbound and the street traffic goes north. This appeared to be working well, though in some cities it could be a recipe for disaster.
After the stop at 18th & California, the tracks split, with all
F and
H cars (as well as some rush hour runs on the
D Line) taking the left track to loop back southbound, while most
D Line trains take the right track to run up Welton Avenue to 30th & Downing. Essentially this segment is a one-track line, so trips are scheduled accordingly. Based on that fact, I figured a three-minute dwell here before our return trip would be easy for us. However, the station itself has two tracks each with side platforms, so the next car out happened to be the one on the other side. Once we arrived at 11:11 AM, we had to walk around the two light rail vehicles in the station on a designated track crossing and we got to our next ride on time.
Chapter 9.7: RTD D Line, 30th & Downing to 16th & StoutBy now we had "aced" all of the RTD light rail system with the exception of the newest line, the
W, which we would ride in the afternoon. Meanwhile, it was time to make our way to lunch. We left 30th & Downing at 11:14 AM, and returned on the
D Line back to downtown. After riding on the southbound split track along Stout Street, we got off at 11:22 AM. Again we had completed our morning's activities 15 minutes earlier than planned giving us plenty of free time for lunch, souvenir shopping, and making our way to the agreed-upon meeting place back near the light rail platform at Union Station.
Chapter 9.8: Lunch in DenverOnce downtown, we essentially were on our own for lunch, although the majority went to another location of Jason's Deli (remember Salt Lake City?). I went on my own, which included riding a small piece of light rail trackage that we would not cover as a group. That was the downtown loop which is open to revenue service. I also ate at a
Subway restaurant on Colfax Avenue near the Colfax at Auraria light rail station, before making my way via two more light rail segments back to Union Station.
Over the course of the lunch break, Bill left us to spend time with Marie, and Dick left us, planning to join us again later for the last light rail round trip. At about 1:15 PM, nine of us reconvened at the Union Station RTD light rail platform to continue our day's rail activities. However our next one would not be light rail, but rather a tourist trolley. To get there, we had to walk about 5 blocks and over the Platte River to the trolley's northern endpoint station near Confluence Park.
Chapter 9.9: Platte Valley TrolleyPlatte Valley trolley is a fun trip along the west bank of the Platte River, passing the Denver Children's Museum, Downtown Aquarium, and Sports Authority Field at Mile High (with a station at each). One can, however, easily see sights of the city on the river's east bank, such as the Elitch Gardens amusement park and the Pepsi Center arena. The trolley ride in an open air car is accompanied by humorous and knowledgeable commentary. The entire round trip is 25 minutes in total, so it only takes about 11 minutes each way plus a few minutes for the operator to change ends by Mile High. The line used to run beyond the stadium, but part of its right-of-way was taken over by the RTD
W Line. There are plans to re-extend it to meet the same light rail line at the Decatur-Federal station.
Fare for the ride is a flat $5.00, payable onboard to the conductor. We were able to buy our tickets at a table set up at our boarding station closest to downtown. The line runs seasonally, during summer Fridays through Sundays, and for home Denver Broncos football games in autumn.
Once we got back to where we began our trip, we made our way back to Union Station for our final rapid transit activity in Denver. At Union Station we met the Magees, who would take the ride out to Golden with us on the
W Line.
Chapter 9.10: RTD W Line, Union Station to Jefferson County Government CenterNow back to twelve people, we boarded the
W Line, leaving Union Station right at our scheduled time of 3:02 PM. The trip was uneventful, but quite scenic as we rode mainly towards the mountains. The line runs basically to the west, but it takes a jog south to serve Federal Center in Lakewood. After that station, the double track line goes down to just one track, a move necessitated by budget cuts to get the line built and opened. There are, however, two tracks at the last two stations, Red Rocks College and Jefferson County Government Center.
Arrival there was on time at 3:40 PM. We had only four minutes before our inbound departure, and unfortunately that departure was represented by another vehicle on the next track. With side platforms, that meant a quick walk across a pedestrian crossing to the opposite side.
Chapter 9.11: RTD W Line, Jefferson County Government Center to Union StationOnce aboard the next light rail vehicle, we were soon on our way. We left Jefferson County Government Center at precisely 3:44 PM, sticking to our itinerary. Our inbound trip was uneventful. Along the way, some detrained at intermediate stations in Denver, in order to transfer to another line to pick up luggage left at their hotels. The rest of us got back to Union Station on time at 4:22 PM. Thus ended our transit experiences in Denver.
Chapter 9.12: More in DenverBack at
Denver Union Station, we split up and went separate ways to have dinner on our own. There was also time to explore this recently renovated gem, which will see much more activity once commuter rail starts in 2016. Fest participants began to reassemble in the station after having dinner and collecting luggage, as we prepared for our last official Amtrak trip of the Fest, which we knew was running close to its schedule, a refreshing change from what we were used to on this trip so far!
Marie and Bill came by on their way to dinner to say goodbye. That left ten of us who would be travelling together on this California Zephyr to Chicago.
Chapter 9.13: Amtrak California Zephyr, Train #6(17), Denver, CO to Chicago, IL The train, whose consist was the same one we had on the westbound segment from Salt Lake City to Reno, backed into the station on time as predicted. We had some confusion at boarding, as there were bad ordered rooms in our train's 631 car. That led to all of us being in either the 630 or 632 car.
California Zephyr, Train #6(17)
165 P-42 locomotive
100 P-42 locomotive
1855 Baggage
39041 Superliner II Transition sleeper
31036 Superliner I coach/baggage
34034 Superliner I coach
34028 Superliner I coach
33022 Superliner I Sightseer Lounge
38061 Superliner II diner
32059 Superliner I sleeper *
32055 Superliner I sleeper **
32049 Superliner I sleeper ***
* 631 car: None from our group
** 632 car: Dick, Penny, Grace, Alan, & I were here DEN-CHI
*** 630 car: Jishnu, Kim, Mike, Chris, & Steve were here DEN-CHI
We left Denver on time at 7:10 PM, which made us all happy. However, it did not result in happiness for one woman who had left the train and didn't make it back in time for the departure. Her family had alerted the crew, and we were informed of the incident. We made a rather long stop at the interlocking a few blocks from the station, and the woman was driven to the train to be reunited with her family. And just like that, so much for being on time!
At our first stop, Fort Morgan, CO, the time was 8:57 PM, and we were 32 minutes behind schedule. After this, we left Colorado and Mountain Time behind and eventually went to sleep expecting to awaken somewhere in Iowa for breakfast.
Chapter 9.14: End of Friday's activitiesFriday night found ten of us on the last official Amtrak segment of our summer Fest.