Last year, we had a JerseyFest on the first weekend of October, mostly to celebrate the opening of the HBLRT to Hoboken just one week earlier. This particular weekend works well for me, because it's the last weekend I have off from work before my schedule changes for the quarter and I then work on weekends for the remainder of the year.
So, where to go, what to do?
Option 1
First of all, the same weekend is traditionally the Altoona Rail Fest. I attended two such events in 1997 and 1999, and they were worthwhile, although the bus shuttles between the venues around town were not handled well. Soon after the 1999 event they built a pedestrian bridge over the Norfolk Southern tracks, which eliminated the need for many to take the shuttle bus in that area, although it is still needed to access the Juniata Shops. I thought that if enough people were interested, it might be fun to travel there together, staying over on Saturday night in Altoona. Those from the east coast could take the PENNSYLVANIAN from New York City, New Jersey, or Philadelphia on Saturday morning, and take the THREE RIVERS back to those points on Sunday afternoon. Most hotels are outside of downtown near the major highways, but they offer shuttles to/from the train station. In numbers it would not be too difficult to share the cost of cabs either. Anyhow that is just one option. More on the Altoona Railfest is here.
Option 2
Option 2 is to be known as the Metro New York RailFest 2003. It would be different from the AppleFests of the past three years, in that we would not need to use any subways, other than getting to the various rail terminals in the city. It would encompass two days.
Day One would involve 100% Metro North. We would begin and end our day at Grand Central Terminal. We would make use of the New Haven Line as far as Bridgeport, as well as all three branches to New Canaan, Danbury, and Waterbury, connecting to them respectively at Stamford, South Norwalk, and Bridgeport. ( I think Ellis Simon did this years ago and called his trip the "Bury Hop"
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Day Two would start out in Hoboken, NJ. We would ride an NJ TRANSIT commuter train a short distance to the newly-opened Secaucus Junction (formerly Secaucus Transfer). After some time exploring the new station, we would board an NJ TRANSIT Northeast Corridor train into New York's Penn Station. After a break there for an early lunch, we would then board the Long Island Railroad for an excursion out to Montauk and back. The trip to Montauk would require a change of trains at Jamaica Station in both directions. The round trip between New York and Montauk is almost 7 hours!
Keep in mind that many schools are closed on Monday, October 6 in observance of a religious holiday, so if you wish to bring your kids along on Sunday there is no reason to rush home.
A rough itinerary for this event is here. Keep in mind that until NJ TRANSIT publishes new timetables for all its routes effective September 6th, the Sunday morning times cannot be filled in.
So let's hear what you would rather do -- a group trip to Altoona, PA, or spending the two days in the New York area ?? Either way, this is only five weeks away, so it's time to begin the planning process.
And what about January?
I am almost certain that we will be going to Philadelphia for a winter event the third week of January. This past week I already rode some lines to preview walking distances and possible places to eat, and I will be going back there sometime in September to do more.