It's 2:20 p.m. on Wednesday, February 2, 2000, and I've just
arrived at the Amtrak station in Sacramento to board Capitol
Train #731 to Emeryville.
My stay in Sacramento was devoted almost entirely to
exploring rail-related sights. On the way into Sacramento on the
train yesterday, I noticed a light-rail line running alongside
the ex-SP tracks, and last evening I took a ride on this line,
heading north from downtown. This morning, I took a ride in the
opposite direction. The Sacramento light-rail line features a
combination of shared right-of-way with automobile traffic,
dedicated lanes on streets open to vehicular travel, street
running on streets closed to automobile traffic, and running on
dedicated non-street rights-of-way. What I found most
interesting about this light-rail system was its actual use by
handicapped and disabled people. Two people using wheelchairs
boarded one of the four trains that I took, and the handicapped-
accessible ramps were also used by an elderly woman who walks
with a cane, a woman with a baby stroller, and another woman with
a shopping cart. In each instance, the driver had to assist in
opening the door, but the extra time consumed was minimal. The
trains ran almost precisely on time, and they seemed to be well
patronized by the local population.
This morning, I spent over three hours at the California
State Railroad Museum. The museum's collection includes many
historic locomotives and other rail equipment, all of which have
been meticulously and beautifully restored. (Indeed, at least in
some cases, one could argue that the restoration was too
beautiful, since it's hard to believe that the equipment ever
looked so shiny when in actual operation.) In each case,
information was provided as to the history of the particular
piece of equipment, along with pictures of the equipment in
actual operation. I was particularly fascinated with the
restored Canadian National heavyweight sleeping car, which
clearly showed what section sleepers looked like in the heyday of
rail travel. But I was a little disappointed that the collection
was oriented primarily to the general public and not to railfans.
The exhibits did not really tell the full historical story of
railroading, but merely illustrated certain significant aspects
of it, most of which I already knew. I had thought that the
three hours I had allotted to the visit would barely be
sufficient to see the museum, but at the end of the three hours I
found that I had seen everything that there was to see. In any
event, I was certainly glad that I took the time to visit this
very well known museum. At 2:15 p.m., I returned to the Vagabond
Inn, where I had spent the previous night.
Even though this motel is just across the street from the
Amtrak station, you have to take a slightly roundabout route to
get there, and I had some rather heavy luggage, so the motel
offered to give me a ride to the station in their van. They had
to leave for the airport at 2:30 p.m., so I arranged to come at
2:15 p.m. for the shuttle to the station. As I was boarding the
van, an Amtrak conductor by the name of Robert Ward appeared, and
he joined us for the ride. He would be one of the conductors on
our train, and he assured me that my ticket, which was for a
reserved seat on Train #5, would be honored on this train.
When we arrived at the Sacramento station, I walked into the
large, majestic waiting room, built in 1926 by the Southern
Pacific Railroad. The station features beautiful chandeliers,
the original wooden benches and a mural on one wall commemorating
the ground breaking for the first transcontinental railroad in
1863. Although it has never been "restored," it is in very
attractive condition, marred only by a row of unsightly vending
machines against one wall, where the doors leading to one wing of
the station have been closed off. Indeed, the station walls were
in the process of being painted. After making a phone call, I
sat down in the main waiting room for a few minutes, then walked
out to the platform, where our train was waiting.
Today's Train #731 is made up of California Car equipment,
and includes an engine, three coaches, a cafe/dinette car, and a
coach/cab control car. This will be my first ride on these cars.
Boarding began at 2:50 p.m., so I climbed aboard the train,
stowed my luggage on the lower level, and walked up to the upper
level, where I sat down at a table with facing seats. I then
walked through the train to explore this equipment.
I found the California Car equipment to be the nicest short-
distance rail equipment I have ever seen. Many of the coach
seats face tables, and the decor is very attractive. The
cafe/dinette car is exceptionally nice, with small semi-circular
tables, and other tables that feature decorative lamps. The cars
seem like a really wonderful way to travel by rail! All five of
the cars were open for passengers, although there were very few
passengers in all but one car.
We departed at 3:02 p.m., two minutes late, and proceeded
through flat, agricultural terrain. Our first stop was Davis,
which features a beautifully restored historic stucco station.
Then we stopped at Suisun-Fairfield, with a very nicely restored
frame station. I spent the time at my table (one of those
equipped with an electric outlet), and worked on these memoirs.
I also finished the story of yesterday's trip on the California
Zephyr. I might add that I observed several other people also
using laptop computers on the train. As we approached the Suisun
Bay Bridge, I walked to the back of the train so that I could
best observe our crossing of this landmark bridge, completed only
in the 1930s (before then, trains had to be ferried across Suisun
Bay). It's nice to know that there are no express cars to mar
the view from the back of this train!
Right after we crossed this bridge, we stopped at Martinez.
We got here at 4:02 p.m., two minutes early, so I had time to
step off the train and take a few pictures. Martinez features a
long, narrow yellow-painted frame station. Then I went into the
cafe/dinette car. I attempted to purchase a bagel with cream
cheese, but this being the last run of the day, they were all out
of that selection, so instead I just got a bottle of cranberry
juice and a bag of potato chips. I sat down at a small semi-
circular table facing the bay, which we now paralleled, and
watched the beautiful scenery. Occasionally, the view was
interrupted by some oil tanks or freight cars on a siding, but
for most of the way, you got a very good view of the bay. This
cafe/dinette car was really something special, and I wanted to
spend part of my trip in this car.
Our next stop was Richmond, where we arrived at 4:30 p.m. I
had arranged to meet Laura Balderree, a member of the All-Aboard
List, here. She lives in Emeryville and works in Richmond, and
commutes between the two cities by either Amtrak or BART. Hardly
anyone boards this train in Richmond (although a number of people
do get off the train here), so I alerted the conductor that she
might be boarding here. Sure enough, when we stopped, Laura
boarded the train. The conductor, of course, knew her well, and
figured that she would likely be the passenger boarding at
Richmond. There is nothing but a platform at the Richmond
station. It is, however, immediately adjacent to the BART
station, which provides a convenient means of transportation to
San Francisco.
Laura joined me upstairs, and we spent the remainder of the
ride talking to each other. It was a delightful experience to
meet another member of the All-Aboard List, albeit rather
briefly.
Right after we departed Richmond, a recorded announcement
was broadcast that the next station would be Emeryville. Well,
that is incorrect, and the conductor had to make another
announcement that the first recorded announcement was in error!
Of course, the stop after Richmond is Berkeley. The Southern
Pacific Railroad's historic station in Berkeley still stands
here, but it has been converted to a restaurant, and the Amtrak
station consists of nothing more than a platform.
At 4:45 p.m., we pulled into the Emeryville station, my
destination. My ride on these beautiful California Cars was all
too short! Our connecting bus was waiting for us in front of the
station. After storing my luggage on the bus, I had enough time
to walk back and take some pictures of the large, modern and
attractive Emeryville station, which features a high ceiling with
a slanted roof. The bus soon departed, and after crossing the
Bay Bridge, we arrived at the corner of California and Market
Streets about 5:15 p.m. Although not indicated as a stop in the
Amtrak timetable, it appears that the Amtrak buses regularly stop
here to discharge passengers. This stop was particularly
convenient for me, since I boarded a California Street cable car,
which took me within several blocks of my hotel. This was the
perfect culmination of a very enjoyable ride on the Capitol from
Sacramento.
Coast Starlight OAK-LAX
It's 8:22 a.m. on Thursday, February 3, 2000, and I've just
arrived at the Ferry Building in San Francisco where I will be
boarding an Amtrak Thruway bus to Oakland, to connect with the
Coast Starlight. After arriving at my hotel last night, I
received a call from an on-line friend, Duncan Watry, who is a
transportation planner with the San Francisco Municipal Railway.
We agreed to meet at the corner of Market and Powell at 7:45 p.m.
From there, we took the historic Market Street trolley line down
to its terminus at the Transbay Terminal, a former terminal for
interurban rail lines crossing the Bay Bridge, and now a rather
unattractive bus terminal. Then we went downstairs and took the
light-rail subway for a few stops, got off, and eventually
transferred to a surface light-rail line that took us to Duncan's
neighborhood. After spending some time talking at a nearby bar,
we walked back to the light-rail line, which I took back to the
center of town. Duncan explained to me how all of these light-
rail lines used to go down the center of Market Street into
downtown San Francisco, but this surface line was replaced by a
tunnel about ten years ago. Nevertheless, the surface tracks on
Market Street were retained as an "historic" trolley route, and
today are served largely by PCC cars, which exist elsewhere, as
far as I know, only in Newark (where they are soon to be
replaced) and Boston. At present, the light-rail vehicles are
under the operator's manual control when operating on the
streets, but when in the subway, they are switched to automatic
control. It was interesting to watch the operator press a button
to implement this switch as he entered the subway section on the
way back. I might add, in addition, that I managed to ride on
all four light-rail vehicles for a single fare of $1 (for which I
received a transfer, which was accepted on the other three trains
that I rode).
This morning, following Duncan's advice, I left my hotel at
7:37 a.m. and walked down to Post Street, where I would take the
#2 bus to the Ferry Building. I arrived at the bus stop at 7:42
a.m., and just missed one bus, which was shrink-wrapped in red.
Then a trolley-bus came by, but I didn't take it. Over ten
minutes passed, and no other bus or trolley-bus came by.
Finally, at 7:55 a.m. another trolley-bus approached. But it was
so crowded that it didn't even stop. Two minutes later, two more
trolley-buses came. The first one was also quite full, but the
second one was not, and I decided to take it, since I had to be
at the Ferry Building by 8:35 a.m., when my Amtrak Thruway bus
would depart. Of course, when I boarded, I asked for a transfer.
When I asked the driver how far the trolley-bus would be going,
several passengers said to me that I would have to get off at
Grant Street, the next stop, and take the #2 bus. So I followed
their advice. Of course, once I got off, the #2 bus was nowhere
to be seen.
Well, I had an 8:35 a.m. bus to make. It was now after 8:00
a.m., and I had no idea when -- or whether -- a #2 bus would ever
arrive. I had expected that during rush hour, this bus would run
every 5 or 10 minutes. Over 20 minutes had elapsed, and still no
bus had appeared. So I decided that I better take some
alternative means of transportation. I walked down to Market
Street, where I boarded the light-rail subway at the Montgomery
station, my transfer being accepted as payment for the ride. Of
course, an inbound train came almost immediately, and I took it
one stop to its terminus at Embarcadero. As I walked up the
stairs to Market Street, about 8:15 a.m., I noticed a #2 bus,
shrink-wrapped in blue, going east towards the Ferry Building. I
guess the bus finally came after all! (I was subsequently
informed by Duncan that the #2 bus runs on 20-minute headways,
even during rush hour.) But it was too late for me to take
advantage of it. There were only about another two blocks to
walk until the plaza in front of the Ferry Building, and although
I had some heavy luggage, I could manage to carry it that far.
I finally arrived at the Ferry Building at 8:22 a.m. An
Amtrak Thruway bus, painted in the beautiful yellow-and-black
colors of Amtrak California, was parked in front, but it turned
out to be bound for Emeryville and a connection with a Capitol
train. So I walked inside and checked out the Amtrak station,
which occupies the northerly part of the Ferry Building. It is a
very attractive facility, with the original arches from the
historic building adding to the decor. Two agents were on duty.
I also walked down to the bay, where you get a beautiful view of
the Bay Bridge. The Ferry Building is no longer used for
ferries, since the construction of the various bridges across the
bay has eliminated the need for most ferry service, but a few
commuter ferries still arrive and depart from a pier adjacent to
the building.
At 8:30 a.m., our Thruway bus arrived. After stowing my
luggage beneath the bus, I boarded, and we were soon on our way.
Unlike the previous bus, this one was painted plain white and had
no Amtrak identification other than a small sign in the window.
It took us over ten minutes to get out of San Francisco, due to
traffic congestion, but we arrived at the Amtrak station in Jack
London Square about 9:05 a.m.
Although it is at the fringe of an unattractive light
industrial area, the Amtrak station also borders Jack London
Square, an upscale collection of "unique shops and restaurants"
along the waterfront. It is a new station, having opened just a
few years ago, and it replaced a classic Southern Pacific depot a
few blocks further north that had been damaged in an earthquake.
This station may well be the most attractive modern station that
Amtrak has ever built. It features a high-ceilinged waiting
room, with a steel-arched roof and many windows, reminiscent of
the design of the old Penn Station. It is truly an architectural
masterpiece, and is a welcome change from the "Amshack-type"
architecture that characterizes most new Amtrak stations.
Inside, there are both modern, padded seats and two of the old
wooden benches from the original station. There is a footbridge
of unusual and very attractive design that spans the tracks here,
but it leads only to Jack London Square, and not to any station
platforms.
I walked into the station, where monitors indicated that our
train would be departing on time at 9:30 a.m. Then, at 9:17
a.m., approaching lights indicated that a train was arriving.
But it turned out to be nothing more than a local freight train,
with two Southern Pacific engines and five cars. At 9:20 a.m.,
an announcement was made that our train has just departed from
Emeryville, and that it is expected to arrive at Oakland at 9:22
a.m. and to depart on time at 9:30 a.m. This seemed rather
specious to me; although the distance from Emeryville to Oakland
is only five miles, it includes some street running, and cannot
possibly be covered in only two minutes.
At 9:35 a.m., the video monitor outside the station was
still saying that our train -- which was nowhere in sight --
would be departing on time at 9:30 a.m.! I went back inside the
station, where the agent informed me that our train was sitting
just eight blocks to the north of the station, having been held
there by the dispatcher. But no attempt was made to update the
video monitor or to inform the waiting passengers that our train
would be delayed in arrival.
Then, at 9:44 a.m., an Amtrak train pulled into the station.
But it was not our train. Rather, it was Capitol Train #725 from
Colfax. That train had arrived a few minutes early, but it was
given priority by the dispatcher since it would be pulling in on
the track not adjacent to the station, while our train would be
arriving on the station track. Had the Coast Starlight come in
first, it would have blocked access to the station from the
Capitol train.
I understood all of this, and it was obvious to me that a
four-car train of California cars could not possibly be the Coast
Starlight. But a number of other passengers who are not as
knowledgeable as I am started crossing the station track onto the
far platform, thinking that this was their train! I was
surprised that the station agent did not at least make an
announcement informing the waiting passengers that this was not
the Coast Starlight.
Finally, at 9:48 a.m., the Coast Starlight pulled into the
station. The rear of the train was just opposite the station
itself, so I had to walk down the entire length of the train to
get to my sleeper, which was the first passenger car. On the
way, I was met by the On-Board Chief and then by my attendant,
who assisted me with my luggage. I boarded my car #32076, named
Delaware (although I doubt that it has ever been in its namesake
state), and went up to my Room #3. This is the third consecutive
time on this trip that I've been assigned Room #3 in my sleeper!
I guess the computer likes this number! The folding table in my
room was covered with a white cloth, there was a vase of flowers
on the table, and there was a gift basket with a small bottle of
champagne and a few mints.
This is the first time that I've ever booked a sleeper for
day travel. I chose to do it for this trip primarily because of
the presence on this train of the Pacific Parlour Car, a special
lounge car exclusively for sleeping car passengers. This car is
a special amenity of this train, and I wanted to have the
opportunity of experiencing it once again.
Today's train is pulled by two Genesis P-42 engines, #114
and #120, and includes a baggage car, a transition/crew dorm car,
two sleepers, a Pacific Parlour Car, a dining car, a Sightseer
Lounge car, three coaches (including one with a "kiddie room" in
the lower level), and one express car -- just enough to block the
view from the back of the train! Interestingly, the Pacific
Parlour Car is the same one that was on the Coast Starlight when
I took it for the first time a year ago November. The consist is
not as long as it was on my trip last year -- then, there were
three sleepers and five coaches on the train. But not all the
rooms are occupied today, and there are plenty of empty coach
seats.
As soon as I boarded, my attendant, Ron, asked me to proceed
to the dining car for breakfast. After briefly detraining to
record the numbers of the engines, I did so, and was promptly
served my requested selection of orange juice, cold cereal and
coffee. In fact, I was already eating my breakfast by the time
we departed Oakland at 10:00 a.m., half an hour late. I was just
about the only one in the dining car, and soon an announcement
was made that the dining car was closed. The attendant soon came
around to refill my coffee.
After finishing breakfast, I returned to my room, where I
followed our route on my SPV atlas, and started working on these
memoirs. Soon, we approached the San Jose station, and an
announcement was made that we will be here for five minutes, and
that passengers could get off the train and were welcome to smoke
on the platform. As far as I can tell, the Coast Starlight is
the only Amtrak long-distance train that still prohibits smoking
entirely on board. Every other long-distance train is equipped
with some kind of a smoking lounge, but the Coast Starlight
instead has a "kiddie lounge" on the lower level of one of the
coaches. So on this train, the only opportunity for passengers
to smoke is at the various stops that we make.
We pulled into the beautifully restored Mission-style
station at San Jose at 11:00 a.m. I got off and walked into the
station building, and then reboarded at the rear coach just
before we departed six minutes later. After returning to my
room, I took my computer and went to the Pacific Parlour Car,
where I sat down at a table and continued working on these
memoirs, after taking some fruit from the selection available.
Soon the attendant came by and brought me a cup of herbal tea.
At 11:40 a.m., we passed through Gilroy. The beautifully
restored Mission-style station was visible to our right. Gilroy
is the terminus of CalTrans trains to San Francisco, and the
parking lot adjacent to the station seemed quite full. South of
Gilroy, the route began twisting as we passed through green-
covered hills on which cattle were grazing. Although I had
traversed this area on my last trip on the Coast Starlight, this
would be the first time that I would have the opportunity to see
it in daylight. We crept by a rock quarry that had its own
engine and hopper cars, labeled "Granite Rock." On the scanner,
I heard us being given permission to pass through a work area,
and soon a Union Pacific track crew was visible to our left,
working on the track immediately adjacent to the train. It took
us about 20 minutes to pass through this work area at a very slow
rate of speed.
My computer's batteries began to run low, and there did not
appear to be any outlets next to the tables in the Pacific
Parlour Car, so I moved over to the plush armchair seats at the
end of the car, where there are several plugs. I started talking
to Bill and Mary, a couple from Canton, Ohio who were sitting
opposite me. They had come out to visit the wife's brother in
Seattle, taking the Three Rivers and Empire Builder, and were now
going from Seattle to Los Angeles, and then to Las Vegas. They
enjoyed their trip on the Empire Builder very much, and thought
that the Coast Starlight was even better (they were particularly
pleased that they had been assigned to the sleeper Ohio, named
after their home state!). But they had only negative things to
say about their trip to the Chicago on the Three Rivers, noting
that they had to wait outside the Akron station for two hours in
freezing weather because their train was late.
We soon passed through Castroville, the "artichoke capitol
of the world," with artichoke fields visible on either side of
the train. Then, at 12:47 p.m., we arrived in Salinas. Somewhat
to my surprise, this was announced as a five-minute smoking stop,
so I stepped outside, where I noticed a large number of boxes,
labeled "Salinas Orchids," being driven in a cart down to the
baggage car. Apparently, Amtrak does a good business shipping
these orchids to Los Angeles, and it took quite a while to load
everything on the train. The outside of the station is stucco
and brick, with a rather modern appearance. But inside, the
station is a real gem, with a mural on the wall and a high,
timber-truss ceiling. Our stop here lasted for 14 minutes, and
when we departed at 1:01 p.m., we were nearly an hour late.
We now proceeded south through the Salinas Valley, a flat
valley in between two mountain ranges. This area is ideal for
growing vegetables, and fields were visible on both sides of the
train for the entire valley.
About 1:20 p.m., right before the final call was made for
lunch, I went to the dining car for lunch. After a brief wait, I
was seated at a table opposite a young Chinese man, who was going
to Los Angeles. He did not speak English well, so we hardly
spoke during the meal. I ordered a salad for lunch.
A few minutes later I was served a beautiful and attractive
salad, consisting of lettuce, tomatoes, artichokes, cucumbers and
onions, and garnished with cantaloupe, grapes and strawberries.
It was one of the nicest salads I have ever been served on an
Amtrak train.
When I finished lunch, I returned to my room and then went
back to the Pacific Parlour Car, where I again sat down on one of
the armchairs and continued working on these memoirs. At 2:28
p.m., at the tiny village of Bradley, we came to a stop.
Listening to the scanner, it was apparent that we would be
meeting another train here. We waited here for nine minutes, and
then a local freight train, pulled by two UP and SP engines, and
consisting of only two or three cars, passed us to the left. We
then proceeded ahead, but I was a little surprised that we had
been put onto a siding for this dinky local train. We started
moving again, but soon stopped for another five minutes while the
engineer received clearance from the dispatcher to proceed. All
in all, we probably lost another 15 minutes here.
At 3:00 p.m., the wine tasting was announced. It consisted
of nothing more than the attendant coming around and giving
everyone who requested it complimentary glasses of two kinds of
wine. There were also platters of wine, cheese and fruit put out
for all "guests," and I helped myself to some of the fruit.
Somewhat to my surprise, there were only about a dozen passengers
in the car at this point.
We made a very brief stop at Paso Robles at 3:09 p.m. Last
time, I hadn't been able to catch a glimpse of the station here,
and I was very surprised to see a new but very attractive station
in a classic design recently constructed here. Paso Robles is
not a manned station, and only a handful of passengers boarded
here, so it seemed odd to me that such a beautiful station would
be constructed in this locality. Subsequently, though, I was
informed by a passenger who boarded there that in addition to
being a railroad station, the building is also a bus station and
houses the local chamber of commerce and a rental car agency.
The old yellow-painted frame station just to the south is also
being restored, and a large addition is being constructed. When
we departed Paso Robles, we were an hour and 17 minutes late.
At 3:35 p.m., prior to reaching the scenic Cuesta Grade,
leading down to our next stop, San Luis Obispo, we stopped again,
and then proceeded very slowly onto a siding. From
communications on the scanner and a glance at the timetable, it
was apparent that we would be passing the northbound Coast
Starlight, which we did at 3:54 p.m. From what I could see, the
northbound train had two Genesis P-42 engines, but for some
reason it was headed by an F-40. Even once we passed the
northbound train, we still crawled along for another eight
minutes until we finally crossed back onto the main track.
Now we were approaching the Cuesta Grade, one of the most
scenic features on the route. Here the line goes through several
tunnels, then curves back on two switchbacks, one of which is
particularly spectacular. To best see the views, I went to the
Sightseer Lounge car, whose windows afford the most expansive
views of the scenery. Unfortunately, just at this point it
started raining rather steadily, and although I could still see
the views out the window, the rain made it impossible to get any
pictures. Ironically, it had also just begun to rain when we
approached the Cuesta Grade last year. Hopefully, I'll have
better luck next time!
I sat down in the Sightseer Lounge car next to Ryan, a
college student who had boarded the train early this morning in
Chico and would be getting off at San Luis Obispo. He had done
this trip several times previously. Ryan was also a hiker, and
he gave me his e-mail address so that we could keep in touch.
Across from us sat a woman who worked for the U.S. Forest
Service, and was traveling just from Paso Robles to San Luis
Obispo. She mentioned that this was the first time she's taken
the train on this route, and I replied that she'd have to do it
again on a day with more favorable weather!
We finally arrived at the beautiful San Luis Obispo station
at 4:35 p.m. Ordinarily, I would have gotten off here and walked
into the station, since this was another "smoking stop," but it
was raining out, and I already visited this station on my last
Coast Starlight trip. So, instead, I just briefly stepped off
the train. Our stop here lasted for 12 minutes, and when we
departed at 4:47 p.m., we were still one hour and 17 minutes
late, not having made up any time since our last stop, despite
the fact that there is half an hour of make-up time built into
the schedule.
I returned to the Pacific Parlour Car and, on Ryan's
recommendation, I purchased a bottle of ale made by a small
brewery in Seattle, which was very good. I also got some more
fruit, and continued working on these memoirs. Then I took
another walk through the coaches, where I found that most pairs
of seats were still occupied by at least one person. On the way,
I noticed that a fruit platter had also been placed in the
Sightseer Lounge Car, where coach passengers could take advantage
of it. This seemed to be a very nice touch.
About 5:55 p.m., we came to a stop on a bridge crossing the
Santa Ynez River, right by the ocean. We were at Surf, the
beginning of our 100-mile stretch where we run directly along the
ocean. I joked with one of the passengers that the purpose of
the stop was to permit people to jump off the train into the
river and go swimming, but, of course, the real reason was that
we were about to meet another freight train, which came by about
five minutes later. This time, we pulled into a siding and then
backed out again onto the main line. We started moving again
about 6:07 p.m. This was the third time on this trip that we had
stopped to permit an opposing train to pass, and we had lost
about another 15 minutes as a result.
Not only was it still raining, but it was now almost
completely dark. Unfortunately, our late running meant that we
would be covering this extremely scenic portion of the trip in
the darkness. But I did see this stretch of scenery last time,
when it got dark just north of San Luis Obispo. So the two trips
basically complement each other -- what I didn't see last time, I
saw this time, and vice versa.
I returned to my room, where I had spent very little time
since boarding the train this morning in Oakland. Actually, I
hadn't really expected to spend all that much time there, since
the main reason for my deciding to take the sleeper was to permit
me to spend time in the Pacific Parlour Car.
Precisely at 6:35 p.m., the time for which I had made my
dinner reservation, we were called to the dining car. I was
seated next to a doctor from Klamath Falls who was traveling to
Los Angeles (and who occupied the room across from me), and
opposite a man from Scotland who boarded the train in Eugene and
was also going to Los Angeles. Both of these people were
traveling in sleepers, and the Scottish man had upgraded to a
deluxe bedroom. We were all served salads, and about ten minutes
later, our entrees -- pot roast and fish -- arrived. We all were
quite pleased with the food. I found it remarkable that everyone
desiring dinner could be served in four sittings beginning at
5:00 p.m. and ending at 6:35 p.m. It would seem that this is due
largely to the efficiency of the crew and the fact that, unlike
the situation on the California Zephyr, both sides of the dining
car are being used tonight. (Of course, the speedy dining car
service could also be attributed to the fact that the crew wanted
to get everything cleaned up before our arrival at Los Angeles.
But the important point is that everyone who wanted dinner had
the opportunity to be served a meal at a reasonable and
appropriate hour.)
During dinner, at about 6:50 p.m., we stopped once more for
a meet with a northbound train. This time, it was with the San
Diegan #779, the other Amtrak train that goes as far north as San
Luis Obispo. Train #779 is scheduled to leave Santa Barbara at
5:25 p.m. and to arrive in San Luis Obispo at 8:35 p.m. About
ten minutes later, the train, made up of Amfleet or Horizon
equipment, passed us to the left, and we resumed moving about
five minutes later. This was the fourth meet of the day, and we
had lost another 15 minutes or so as a result.
After dinner, I returned to my room, but stepped off the
train once again when we arrived in Santa Barbara at 7:42 p.m.
Although it was announced that, because of our lateness, we would
be making a short stop here, passengers were permitted to get off
the train if they wished. When I was here last year, the station
was in the process of being restored, and there was a temporary
Amshack, consisting of a trailer to the north of the station.
Now, though, the restoration was complete, so I walked into the
station to check it out. I was quite impressed by the
beautifully restored interior. Santa Barbara is a much smaller
station than some of the other ones along this route. It
contains two relatively small waiting rooms, one with standard
wooden benches, and the other one with an unusual circular wooden
bench. At 7:48 p.m., an "all-aboard" call was made, and we left
a minute later. We were now just over an hour and a half late.
After spending a little more time in my room, I walked back
to the coaches and sat for a while in an empty pair of seats in
the second coach. I did some reading, and before I knew it we
were arriving at our next stop, Oxnard. I stepped off the train
very briefly here, and after a two-minute stop, we departed at
8:37 p.m.
On the way back to my room, I stopped at the Pacific Parlour
Car, where I purchased a green Coast Starlight cap, obtained a
cup of herb tea, and sat down at the semi-circular couch in the
middle of the car. The car was nearly deserted, and I started
talking to the couple sitting opposite me. They had started
their trip in Seattle on Monday, then spent two nights in San
Francisco, and reboarded the train this morning in Oakland. This
was their first train trip, and they were traveling in an economy
bedroom for the entire trip -- including today's Oakland-Los
Angeles segment. The husband related to me how, this morning,
they had missed the connecting bus from San Francisco to Oakland
(it seems that they didn't know where to go to get the bus), and
had to take a cab instead. Then I returned to my room.
Soon the attendant in my car announced that we would be
arriving in Los Angeles in about 45 minutes, and that he would be
coming by to collect pillows and used towels. I starting packing
up my belongings. When I went downstairs to stow away some items
in the two pieces of luggage that I had left downstairs, I
noticed that the attendant had already taken all the luggage out
the storage area and stacked it up in the vestibule, against one
of the doors.
We arrived at our next-to-last stop, Glendale, which
features an historic stucco station, at 9:38 p.m., and left two
minutes later. It took only ten minutes to get from Glendale to
Los Angeles, a distance of six miles, although the timetable
allows 45 minutes for this trip. Before I knew it, we had
arrived on Track 10 of Los Angeles Union Station. It was 9:50
p.m., and we were only 35 minutes late, having made up nearly an
hour since we left Santa Barbara -- much more time than I thought
was possible. The connecting train to San Diego, scheduled to
depart at 9:50 p.m., was across the platform on Track 9, and it
was, of course, held for a few minutes so that passengers on our
train could transfer to it.
After putting away the rest of my belongings, I detrained,
and gave a minimal tip to my attendant, Ron, commensurate with
the minimal services that he had provided to me. I then walked
down to the station and made my way out to the open courtyard
where the buses and vans arrive. My online friend Matt Meltzer
had recommended that I take the Metropolitan Express van, which
meets all trains, to my hotel, and I found the van in its
assigned location. There ended up being seven of us in the van,
and the first stop was Pasadena -- completely out of the way for
me.
The couple traveling to Pasadena, like everyone else in the
van, had arrived on the Coast Starlight. They were from
Cleveland, and were coming to Los Angeles to attend a music store
owner's convention. They flew to Seattle earlier in the week,
took the Coast Starlight to Sacramento, spent a few days there,
and now were taking the train to Los Angeles. They mentioned
that although they had an economy bedroom for the Seattle-Los
Angeles leg of the trip, they traveled by coach for today's
daytime trip from Sacramento to Los Angeles, and they were
surprised to find that the coach seats were far more comfortable
than the seats in their sleeping car room. I pointed out the
fact that sleeping car passengers always have the option of
sitting for part of the trip in coach seats if they prefer (as
long as empty seats are available), and remarked that if I were
traveling with another person in an economy bedroom, I would
probably spend relatively little time in my room during daytime
hours, since these small rooms barely have enough room for two
people to sit.
We finally arrived at my hotel in Beverly Hills at about
10:45 p.m. The fare for the trip was $19, which did not seem
unreasonable, despite the out-of-the-way detour that I had to
endure.
Conclusion
This concluded my week-long transcontinental rail trip. For
seven out of the last eight days, I've been on an Amtrak train
for at least part of the day. And much of the remaining time has
been spent traveling on commuter and light-rail trains and
visiting a railroad museum. It's been a pretty intense rail
week, but I've enjoyed it very much. Everything went just about
as planned and, amazingly, every train I took arrived at my
destination reasonably on time. Indeed, today's Coast Starlight,
which arrived 35 minutes late, had the latest arrival of all five
Amtrak trains that I took. I did not meet a single obnoxious or
disagreeable Amtrak crew member on any leg of the trip, and
several conductors and attendants were particularly nice and
helpful. It's been a really wonderful experience, and today's
ride on the Coast Starlight was a fitting climax to the trip.
