16 replies to this topic

[celticheart47]

I am taking my first train tip in 30 years next week. I didn't select a simple trip. Oh no, I had to plan a trip around the United States, and do it as a 50 something female traveling alone. I am going from Seattle to Atlanta on the Empire Builder,Cardinal,and Cresent for the first part of the trip and spend 2 1/2 weeks with my parents in Atlanta and then on the Cresent and Sunset Limited to LA to spend a week with my youngest kidlet. Then it is back to Seattle on the Coast Starlight. My great uncle worked for the railroad in the late 40's and onward and as a child(in the very early 50's) I used to spend time with him. He and his wife lived in a converted car that had a living area and a couple of sleeping compartments for bedrooms. All the meals for all of the people on this worker's train was done in the dining car. My uncle wasn't one of the laborers but was some sort of conductor/surervisor for this crew. Yes, the train move during the night and yes, more than once I was eaten by the upper berth(which I insisted to be allowed to sleep in because I was only about 4-6 years old). I think these must have been old sleeper cars where living areas were made at the two ends and the bedrooms were kept in tact to make an arrangement similar to a dupex. As a pre-teen and teenager I went by train 4 times a year to get me from Atlanta to Wichita. Last time I rode the train was with cars loaded with young men headed to Viet Nam. My brother had just signed up with the Marines and my best friend and I had graduated from high school so they were our age and we spent most of our time with them. My brother was killed in Viet Nam so this trip was has always been a very special memory to me (in a good way since the guys were we met were very special). I think I'm prepared for this trip as I have read all the travelogues submitted to this and all the other train related sites but I would like to know if there are any special tips that I should know as a female traveling alone(especially considering the layovers in Chicago-3 hrs and Charlotteville VA-5hrs. Thanks to All

[KevinKorell]

First of all, welcome to our little corner of the internet.

It sounds like a wonderful trip you have planned, one that many of us would love to take as well. You will see so much of the country this way, and experience different trains along the way.

Although you are not new to trains, you say you have not traveled in three decades. I think you would still benefit from HaRRy Sutton's Amtrak tips, located here.

As to being a woman traveling alone, I think that common sense would dictate staying in public areas, not wandering into unknown places, and keeping an eye on your belongings. Always count the number of items you know you should have with you. As long as you are traveling between major cities, you should take advantage of checked baggage whenever possible, so that you have one less item to worry about. In Chicago, Union Station is a city itself -- there are plenty of places to sit and/or have a snack while you are in between trains. I don't know much about Charlottesville Union Station, but don't expect it to be anything near as busy as Chicago. I would not worry as much about walking around on your own in Charlottesville as I would about Chicago. Surely you'll have to leave the station to find a place to eat during your layover.

Enjoy your trip, and please let us know all about it when you come back! You can put down your thoughts about your trip -- such as how you found the service, the on-time performance of the trains, the friendliness of the crews, the people you meet, etc. and submit it to HaRRy Sutton. We will enjoy reading yours just as you have enjoyed ours!

[bill haithcoat]

Celticheart47, yours is a fascinating entry. Wish you the best on your upcomiing involved trip. I am a lifelong southeasterner myself, with a few years under my belt. Thus, I am interested in this: Do you recall any of the train names you rode in your earlier trips from Atlanta to Wichita? Guess you went via Chicago? Or maybe St.Louis? I would be curious in knowing as I would no doubt be familiar with the trains in question.

[celticheart47]

Thanks for your interest. Actually my last trip was in 1965 so it will be 40 years this May. I was trying to figure the same thing that you asked about. I went from Atlanta to Wichita KS roundtrip twice a year by either flying between KC and Atlanta (prop planes of course) or taking the train. I really don't remember having to change trains and I could swear I went from Atlanta straight to Kansas City. This was from the fifties to the sixties. If I did change trains it was either in KC or St Louis but not Chicago. I may be very wrong but maybe someone out there will remember better than I do. Actually I went to Wichita but the train doesn't go there so you have to get on and off in Hutchinson KS. We used to take the train every year during the fifties to Los Angeles. I do remember the great dome cars. Someone said the parlor cars on the Coast Starlight were refurbished Santa Fe dome coaches from the fifties so maybe I will be riding in a car I 've been on before. We also took the train from Hutchinson to New York to Montreal to catch Cunard's Ascania to the UK. I was only 8 so I really don't remember much about the train trip. Luckily, I had a rich uncle so we alway went first class. We rode the train so much that all the trips seem to run together now. On a lesser note, I have ridden the Yukon-Whites Pass, the Georgetown Loop, the Verde Canyon Railway, and of course the train that goes around Disneyland. I will try to take good notes on this trip but can't promise to get all the engine and car info to pass along. I do like to keep a journal of my trips so hopefully I'll have some good info to pass along. Also I am a very good cook (and love to eat good food) so expect reports on the food. I don't have a digital camera but I'll see if my husband can show me how to download some pictures for y'all. (Sure sign that I'm going home).

[bill haithcoat]

There was a train called the Kansas City Florida Special. It was a Southern Railroad and a Frisco Railroad train, interline. You would have left ATl about 8 a.m. and arrived Kansas City(straight through, though with plenty of stops ) the following morning about the same time. Coming south, the KC-FLa Special left KC about 11 p.m. got to ATl the next night about 10. Your major intermediate stops would have been Birmingham and Memphis. So, I suspect that is what you rode. Guess you got from KC to Wichita some other way, perhaps the Santa Fe. That train was actually going from KC to JAX, with a through sleeper KC to Miami. It definately operated during the time period you speak of. As to remembering the dome cars, You may have encountered them on the Santa Fe betwen KC and Hutchinson, as well as(and more surely), to the west coast.

Edited by bill haithcoat, 22 February 2005 - 09:54 AM.

[bill haithcoat]

To elaborate a little more about the domes. The present day Pacific Parlour car is from the former Santa Fe Hi Level lounge cars. There was a difference betwen a "great dome" and a "hi level" type car. And, fact is, Santa Fe. had BOTH. So it would be kind of hard to know specifically which you are remembering. On a hi level car, the upstairs extends the entire length of the roof (as modern day superliner equipment does); a great dome stops a little short and allows a lookout window at the extreme front and rear. If you recall riding a train called "El Capitan", well, it was originally a single level train but did get a great dome at one time. However, about 1956 it was re-equipped with all hi level lounges, diner and coaches. Still other Santa Fe trains had various kinds of domes. What you are recalling could be either.....but it is the hi-level car, slightly different from a great dome, which has survived today as the Pacific Paflor car, a mighty nice car, I might ad. I had the pleasure of riding in it once.

Edited by bill haithcoat, 22 February 2005 - 09:57 AM.

[celticheart47]

Gee, it's hard getting old and having your memory start to flake out on you. At least I know I'm not going crazy also. You are right about the Fla to KC train and I remember because of the times of arrival and departure. When traveling with an adult we would change trains in KC and then go to Hutchinson. When I went alone someone would pick me up in KC and drive to Wichita. My Grandmother lived in Lawrence so would usually stop to see her when driving. And I do remember having to sleep in coach. The other thing I remember is that this train went in and out of "dry" states so sale of liquor was a rather stop and start situation. I have been trying to remember more about the dome cars. It seems to me that all the cars on the train were single level except for the dome car. I don't remember what was on the lower level but I think there were stairs at each end. I think the seat configuation was 2x2 as on an airplane. I think on one trip the seats actually faced the window but then again I maybe thinking of something else. Were the isles lower the the seat level so that you had to step up to sit in them? For some silly reason I have been thinking that they did. I leave a week from today and am getting really excited about my trip. One thing I'm going to do is stay at a hotel right on Jackson Square in the French Quarter for my overnight stop in New Orleans. Cafe du Monde and 2 Museums are only 1/2 block away so I hope to see a little of the sights before my train leaves at 11:55am. I've never been there before and don't know if I'll ever get back so I wanted to see as much as possible while there. I have a question for anyone who might know the answer. I would like to find transportation from the Los Angeles Union Station to Sherman Oaks so my son doesn't have to pick me up at 6 something in the am. Does anyone know about taxi or shuttle services at this station?

[celticheart47]

As I said, losing your memory is frustrating. I meant to write this earlier but kept forgetting. I did a bit more research and apparently the remodeled Charlottesville, VA station has a restaurant called Wild Wing Cafe right in the station that from the picture looks quite nice so I am feeling a bit better about having to spend 5 hours there (if the train is on time). According to a newspaper review the food is hit and miss but it has become a popular place with the locals.

[bill haithcoat]

I do no know the answer about transportation from LA to Sherman Oaks. Perhaps others can help. However, do keep in mind that that train often runs very very late due to freight interference (Amtrak does not own the tracks). Your son may well have been awake for hours before the train actually gets that there---that train in particular---it is NOT that bad everywhere. The poor Sunset Limited, is, hands down, the worst for punctuality---it gets shafted the most by the owner freight lines.

[KevinKorell]

I have a question for anyone who might know the answer. I would like to find transportation from the Los Angeles Union Station to Sherman Oaks so my son doesn't have to pick me up at 6 something in the am. Does anyone know about taxi or shuttle services at this station?

Celticheart,

A simple trip by mass transit can get you very close to Sherman Oaks.

From Los Angeles Union Station, take the Metro Red Line. Make sure you take a train marked "North Hollywood". Ride this train to the other end of the line. When you get to North Hollywood, you are one town away from Sherman Oaks. It would be much easier for your son to pick you up at the North Hollywood station than having him drive all the way to Union Station. The fare on the Red Line is just $1.25.