50 replies to this topic

[KevinKorell]

Time for a fresh Future Fests thread now that we are back in business and actively planning our Roanoke excursion in a few weeks.  One customary activity during our trips is to discuss what we do next.  It can also be discussed here, but you can be thinking of ideas to talk about during our roughly 5 hours on the rails in each direction between Washington and Roanoke.

 

The world has changed, and as of this writing while things slowly return to normal, Amtrak has returned to daily long distance service (except its usual holdouts the Cardinal and Sunset Limited), but some corridors are not yet up to full pre-pandemic frequency.

 

In the world of commuter rail and rail transit (including light rail, heavy rail, streetcars, etc.), in most locations things are still not at the levels of service that existed before March 2020.  Some local streetcars that were suspended have not yet resumed.

 

That all said, in 2019 we achieved 3 RailFests, which took place in March (New York-Massachusetts), July (Toronto), and September (Denver).  While everyone is welcome to join and partake, what was found that year is that some dates are good for some and other dates are good for others -- which results in smaller groups of people.  So with Roanoke for July, planning something for September of this year puts us back on that schedule.

 

What can we do?    While it looks like the Roanoke trip will be successful (and relatively popular) if we enjoy that type of activity then we could do another weekend-only excursion.   The Vermonter might be a good idea in September, although maybe a little early for fall foliage.   Going all the way to St. Albans, there is a Hampton Inn very close to the station, and a LaQuinta outside downtown by a freeway.    The Ethan Allen is another idea, but for a group trip I would wait until it is extended beyond Rutland to Burlington before doing it.

 

Or, we could take a longer trip.  If the group is ready for long distance trains, we could maybe travel between the east coast and Chicago.  Or, another idea is to revisit Tidewater Virginia and North Carolina.  Since our 2013 Fest, Charlotte's light rail Blue Line has doubled in length, and its streetcar Gold Line has already opened its first phase, then it closed for work on extensions, and the longer version should be open and ready by August.  Also in North Carolina, I would do a visit to Raleigh to see that city's relatively new Amtrak station.   In Virginia, a stop in Richmond Main Street might be interesting, as well as a day in Virginia Beach via Newport News and the Thruway bus, and then returning on the Norfolk Amtrak train. Optional riding TIDE LRT but not necessary since it apparently won't be growing in length anytime soon.

 

I've spent my downtime planning potential trips for myself, and many of those could be turned into Excursions or Fests.  See my personal trip itineraries page for some more ideas.

[steve4031]

The Vermonter might work for me in September. Columbus Day is a 3 day weekend for me.

[KevinKorell]

The Vermonter might work for me in September. Columbus Day is a 3 day weekend for me.

Last time I checked, Columbus Day was in October.

[pennyk]

I think the Vermonter would work for me in September, as would Raleigh. as would Richmond.

[jebr]

With a number of other trips planned, it's quite unlikely that I'll be able to make a Fest work this fall. There is a small chance that I'd be able to make a weekend trip work, though that's dependent on flight times and costs from MSP, and right now nothing's looking like an obvious favorite there (other than perhaps meeting up with people in Chicago if a trip was done from the east coast to Chicago.) That said, I'd probably recommend not worrying about what might work for me and I'll just see if I can make a portion of whatever is decided work for me.

[KevinKorell]

So now that the Roanoke weekend is in the past, we can look forward to whatever comes next.    The idea of another similar weekend excursion to St. Albans, VT on the Verrmonter was a nice one, and in discussions with others it appeared popular.

 

Having already ruled out the first 2 weekends of September (the first being a busy holiday weekend and the second being the 20th anniversary of 9/11/01), that leaves just the 18th and 25th.   I checked the hotel close to the Amtrak station in St. Albans, and it is already very expensive with only one type of room left on the 18th, and totally sold out on the 25th.

 

I looked at other cities (such as Richmond and Raleigh) for a possible 2-day trip with a hotel stay, and came to the realization that we are in a period of economic inflation, as well as travel getting back to normal after people were unable to do so.  Therefore even though schools are in session travel appears busy in many places all month.

 

Another option I considered was Boston, which was the Fest that had to be postponed from March 2020.   While it's penciled in for March 2022, I explored moving it 6 months earlier.  Problem is, we need to get the Fitchburg-Wachusett segment of the MBTA Fitchburg Line that is relatively new, and that line is partially closed for PTC work on weekends until the end of 2021.    Also that newer line to Foxboro by the stadium has not yet returned.

 

So we are at Square One.   I'll take suggestions as to what anyone who would like to participate in a Fest or Excursion wants to do.   If longer distance trips are preferred, I'm game (just as we went to Denver in September of 2019).    It might be easier in September to snag sleepers on certain days than it is during the summer.  But remember too we have to sleep somewhere too at whatever the destination is.

 

I can always take a solo trip and if anyone chooses to join me on any portion, they can.

 

Open for ideas....

[pennyk]

After looking at the "through the roof" bedroom fares on the Silvers, I am not sure if I can manage a September trip (since I already have a booked trip in October).  For me, getting to Raleigh is easier than Richmond Main Street.  Vermont would be nice, but it appears that many others think the same and the hotels are virtually sold out.  If an excursion is planned, I will see if I have enough points (after subtracting for a possible December cross country trip).

[jebr]

I haven't done the McHenry branch of METRA's UP-NW line yet. Megabus hasn't released their schedules yet past Labor Day, but they just did a bit of a shakeup and there's an overnight bus from MSP that arrives early enough to make that early morning run. That would be one run that I'd be interested in if schedules allow, but not sure if that'd be interesting to anyone else (and I'm not sure when they'll release the Megabus schedule past Labor Day - hopefully within the next week.)

 

Other than that, my fall schedule is pretty full - not sure if I could squeeze in another weekend away from home, both timing-wise and finances-wise.

[saxman]

I would swing something like the Vermonter, but I agree that the St. Albans hotel is pretty pricey. I'd use points for it. But doing that in the fall would be nice.

 

Doesn't Charlotte have a couple of new lines to ride? Of course that might require a whole Saturday. And I'm not sure the group is ready for transit rides or not. Just figured I'd throw that in there since its not much further than Raleigh. Raleigh has a nice new station to check out.

[KevinKorell]

Chris,

 

North Carolina is definitely an option.   Since our group rode the CATS Lynx Blue Line in Charlotte in 2013, it has doubled in length.  Back then it started Uptown and went to the south.  Now it runs north about the same distance to UNC.  Also since then, the CityLynx Gold Line, a streetcar, began running on an east-west route.  Phase I of that streetcar closed 2 years ago for reconstruction to tie it in with the Phase II extensions on both ends, and the whole expanded thing is scheduled to reopen next month (with modern streetcars instead of the heritage ones that Phase I used).  If it goes back into service in line with the latest goal, then a trip there in September would be perfect.

 

Raleigh has no transit, but yes I also want to see the relatively new Amtrak station.

 

Again the deal killer may be the hotel rates.  We probably would prefer travelling to any of those places involving a weekend. However those prices seem to soar on weekends, particularly in college towns where there may be sports events that draw a lot of visitors.