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Future Fests as of Summer & Fall 2012


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#1 KevinKorell

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Posted 26 July 2012 - 12:32 PM

It's hard to get the whole core gang together to discuss what's next, but there were some such talks about it aboard the Southwest Chiefs (or is it Chieves), and in Albuquerque. And I filled in Mike Hammond later since he was only able to attend the Chicago/Kenosha portion of the Fest. Looking over our notes from LAST year's discussion during the Southeast RailFest 2011 (SERF), the two leading candidates for this summer were the CRF just completed, and another idea for the east involving light rail in Charlotte and Norfolk. More interest was generated for what eventually evolved into CRF, because of the then-volatile nature of RailRunner (our main reason for being in ABQ) and the fact it included two overnight Amtrak trips on the Chief. Well this year, we agreed that the venue should be within several Southeastern states. Not only would we visit Charlotte and Norfolk (and use parts of the Carolinian, Piedmont, and Silver Service to move to, from, and between them), but we also would visit Jacksonville, FL. This gives us opportunity to ride the Skyway, which also by some accounts could be endangered. It also will provide the only overnight Amtrak experiences so many people crave as a part of the Fests. The only negative in including Jacksonville is that a very long day has to be spent in the area doing nothing beyond the Skyway rides. There is an opportunity to maybe visit museums, walk along the Riverwalk, or perhaps take a bus over to Jacksonville Beach and walk in the ocean. If one looks at Amtrak schedules, the later of the 2 possible trains arrives from the north at 9:23 AM. In order to travel towards Raleigh the evening of the same day, we would have to leave at 10:57 PM. So that's 13-1/2 hours in town, of course allowing time for the bus trips between Amtrak and downtown. Doing it this way involves no hotel stay in Jacksonville, and it also involves no hotels in Raleigh, which are scarce in the vicinity of the Amtrak station. Looking at Amtrak's reservations site, we might have to change in Cary instead of Raleigh, but we'll look more into that. And finally, to top it off we would spend a final night in the Washington, DC area, and then do a Fredericksburg trip on VRE, and then take an Amtrak train north from there to our points of origin for those of us in the Northeast. The addition of travels in Florida and northern Virginia turned this into the Atlantic Coast RailFest 2013, or ACRF. But before anyone begins booking hotels or travel, let's wait a while. There are a few things to keep in mind. Possible dates could change, Amtrak trains could change or be cancelled for trackwork (as is the case in Virginia right now). Hopefully the Jacksonville Skyway survives until then, or we have nothing at all to do there. In that event it might make more sense to just remain on air conditioned Amtrak into Florida to a point where we could easily turn back the same day. Another factor is the new Norfolk Amtrak train, which is set to begin by this December. We don't know its schedule yet, but when that is published it may be possible to use it in at least one direction. I do forsee us however using the train/Thruway bus combo in at least one direction via Newport News. For the Winter, serious consideration is being given to Boston. There's the Wickford Junction service, which some would not consider new trackage since it follows the same route as Amtrak. Some would like to re-ride the Kingston/Plymouth line, on which several trains now run to both branches for an interesting round trip. We also would take a trip up to Lowell, to complete all of the commuter lines as a group. The Downeaster is another Amtrak train whose schedule we need to await before making any solid plans. We would only ride it if a same-day round trip is possible between Boston and Brunswick over the newly extended route. Again, pickings are poor for hotels in both Brunswick, ME and Portland, ME. Doing Boston would allow some to get a good start on their 2013 AGR tier qualifying points with potential Acela trips by using this year's leftover upgrade coupons that are good until the end of February. I forsee a Friday-Saturday scenario, since some of the above no longer run on weekends. Sunday may be optional if anyone wants to or has time to remain in town. More details on both, including specific dates will be forthcoming.


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#2 MistyOLR

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Posted 26 July 2012 - 04:44 PM

I like the sound of Boston this winter, if only for the chance to work on my own coverage during down time :)

Technicalities suck and legal name changes are a mess after it happens.

#3 amtrakwolverine

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Posted 26 July 2012 - 05:06 PM

boston sounds fun also I been there once during the AU gathering.

#4 steve4031

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Posted 26 July 2012 - 07:31 PM

I like both. If Boston is only Friday- Saturday I will look at the itinerary to see if I want to go. A rt involving new trackage on the downeaster sounds enticing.

#5 KevinKorell

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Posted 03 September 2012 - 08:51 PM

This thread was moved from the CRF forums to a new general topic, pinned, and renamed so that we can find it in the same place as previous Future Fest discussions.


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#6 KevinKorell

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Posted 03 September 2012 - 08:56 PM

At the present time, Boston/Rhode Island still is foremost in my mind for January. Please do not, however, assume that the current itinerary is going to be followed. Without the Downeaster timetable available at the present time, it's impossible to know whether a round trip will be possible, especially since even the current times between Boston and Portland will more than likely change. Maybe a short turn to an intermediate point would be possible. However if we do proceed with Friday-Saturday and there isn't enough to do to extend the weekend, I'm all for going home on Sunday. Two days is plenty given the possibility of cold or snowy weather.

If an all day round trip on the Downeaster does become possible, we could pencil that in for Saturday, and move the Lowell trip to Friday in place of the Old Colony trip, something we've already covered.

And now moving to the summer, we DO know the schedule for the Norfolk train. The original plan has been to arrive into Richmond, VA on #80, have a 2 hour 40 minute layover, then #95 to Newport News, and the Thruway bus to Norfolk, arriving there 7:50 PM. With the new direct train #125, we would have to wait in Richmond until 6:26 (making the total wait 4 hours 21 minutes, rather long). The direct train gets to Norfolk 8:50 PM, an hour later than the Ambus from Newport News. But consideration has to be given to the fact that there are not many hotels in downtown Norfolk, so some will still need to ride the light rail to get where they have to go. It will make for a late night after a very early morning start. The return trip from Norfolk to Washington still will be done by Amtrak Thruway bus leaving Norfolk 3 PM, and Train #66 from Newport News to Washington. But do share your thoughts on the two waiting periods in Richmond, and whether you feel it's worth waiting so long to ride over the newer route.

Here is another issue to consider, and this one deals with our transfer between the Silver Star and the Piedmont. I figured on doing so in Raleigh, given it's a big city, state capitol, etc. and the Piedmont (#75) begins there which increases the possibility of everyone getting the seats they want. It's about a 3-hour layover. If you book trips separately, you can still do this. The two trains run concurrently between Cary and Raleigh, so in an emergency if we were three hours late one could still short-turn in Cary. However if you book Jacksonville to Charlotte and let the system book the transfer, it will force the switch to happen at Cary instead of Raleigh. It's a safer connection, but the layover time now increases to 3 hours 42 minutes. So we need to decide before booking where this change of trains should take place. This might be a case of different sub-groups within the Fest group doing different things depending on their budgets and how they ticket themselves throughout the Fest. For now, the itinerary shows times in both Cary and Raleigh.


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#7 KevinKorell

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Posted 07 September 2012 - 03:44 PM

Summer ACRF itinerary updated with alternative Wednesday plan, to use Regional #125 Richmond to Norfolk instead of #95 Richmond to Newport News plus the Thruway bus. We will decide in time which would be better or which the majority prefers.


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#8 steve4031

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Posted 07 September 2012 - 05:55 PM

Looks like a fun trip.

#9 Peter J. Lyden IV

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Posted 13 September 2012 - 08:11 PM

What are the costs in terms of going about these trips? Does everybody have to pay individually or does the group take a collaborative roll in the payments of the trip? Please let me know. Thanks!

#10 KevinKorell

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Posted 13 September 2012 - 09:34 PM

Peter,

Generally, it's a vacation that you're taking for yourself, only you're doing it with other fellow railfans. So it's on your own with the travel (Amtrak, various transit costs in the cities we visit) and the necessary hotels where you would be staying. There are a few cases where people have gotten together and shared accommodations to save money, but for the most part everyone has their own tastes with hotels, often going to the places where they belong to loyalty programs. Because of this, we have never qualified for any group rates.

Everyone's welcome to join us, but the core of our group has been doing this since 2001 (a few even sooner). You can see the history of our OTOL Rail Fests here. The last 35 Fests we've had each have their own homepages, here.

So to determine your costs, when a Fest is officially announced, I'll provide the number of nights you would need to make hotel reservations for yourself in each city, and I also give the estimated transit costs (excluding your travel to & from the venue of the Fest) so you can plan on purchasing the correct fare for your needs. Remember that in some cities, you will probably need to ride that city's transit system to get to & from your hotel, which would increase your transit costs from those incurred on the "official" part of the Fest where we ride as a group. We also often ride Amtrak between our host cities, or take a round trip Amtrak excursion out of a particular city. In that case, with fares so varied you would need to check Amtrak's website to see what you would need to pay.

Furthermore, like on any vacation trip, you have to eat. We often opt for food court type meals, which allows everyone to get what they want, or we might hit a particular fast food restaurant. We do try to have one or two larger meals together, such as in a reasonably priced steak house or an Italian restaurant.


Kevin Korell


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