Part Two: Coast Starlight North to Portland, Dec. 9rd to Dec. 10th, 2003.
Part 1, St. Paul to Portland | Part 3, Portland to St. Paul
The trip back on the Coast Starlight went without a hitch. I had my sleeper, and we arrived in Portland just in time for me to catch the eastbound Empire Builder. This is nothing short of amazing, as the Coast Starlight is notorious for being late, sometimes by 4 or 5 hours. But we arrived only 45 minutes late, a fact that amazed even my sleeping car attendant.
The quality of the sleeper car on this train was much better than the westbound Empire Builder. It looked as if it had been rehauled sometime within the last couple of years. Plus, this train had a wonderful Parlor car for us first class pigs, with good wine and comfortable furniture. Wish I had taken some shots of that. The whole train seemed a bit cleaner (although the EB wasn't a pig sty by any means). I only wish they had a smoker car so that I wouldn't have had to break my sleep with alarms reminding me of upcoming smoke station breaks (of which there where only four). But all in all, a great trip.
1. Dunsmuir, California, the first smoke stop after Sacramento. About 5:30 am. Once again, the train left Oakland late at night, so there aren't many photos from California. |
2. I snuck a shot of an empty Deluxe sleeper after the stop at Dunsmuir. This photo doesn't show how big these things are. There is a chair off to the right, beyond the sink. The chair on the left is actually a couch. |
3. The station at Klamath Falls, Oregon. This is the first stop in Oregon heading north, and another smoke stop. We arrived about 20 minutes late, not bad for the Coast Starlight. |
4. A good view of the P42 "Genesis" engines on the head end at Klamath Falls. For some reason, I hadn't thought to take many photographs of the power on any of the trips. |
5. Odell Lake, Oregon. We are at the beginning of the Cascade mountains now. This lake appeared out of nowhere, amidst the fog. |
6. Abernathy, Oregon, in the heart of the Cascades. These are the first real mountains I had ever seen in daylight. Not as grand as the Rockies, but impressive nonetheless. |
7. Fields, Oregon. Not really near any town, Fields is merely the name of a siding on the Union Pacific railroad. |
8. Eugene, Oregon. A view of my sleeper car and attendant. We are about 45 minutes late now, and my layover to catch the eastbound Empire Builder is only one hour long. Close shave. |
Next: Amtrak Trip Page Three, Empire Builder Eastbound
about john schilling...
d.o.b.: 12.3.1969
height: 6' 2"
weight: 160 lbs
location: E. Lansing
occupation: IT
height: 6' 2"
weight: 160 lbs
location: E. Lansing
occupation: IT