Thomas ConnorMay 6, 2022
Do people on here want #train content? Because, boy-oh do I have some good ones after the past week! #Amtrak #Railroads
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 6, 2022

So a week ago I decided to check off a bucket list item and took the #CoastStarlight all the way from Los Angeles to Seattle.

For those of you with better things to do than to keep track of #Amtrak routes, the Coast Starlight is the West Coast's only long N-S route; starting in LA, it steps north to Burbank before cutting to the coast at Oxnard. It then hugs the coast to San Luis Obispo, cuts inland into the Salinas Valley, and heads north before joining the Santa Clara Valley near Gilroy. Then the East Bay through Oakland, over the Carquinez Strait to Sacramento, north past Mt. Shasta and into Oregon, over the Cascade Range to Eugene, and then up the Willamette Valley to Portland. Finally, the train shadows I-5 toward Olympia, then to Tacoma and Seattle.

In short: it's a grand tour of the Pacific Coast of the US! And this full ride takes about 36 hours, so there's plenty of time to appreciate the sights.

Show threadThomas ConnorMay 6, 2022
The Coast Starlight is, to my reckoning at least, one of the Big Five Amtrak routes for long distance travel, along with the #SouthwestChief (Chicago -- Albuquerque -- LA), #CaliforniaZephyr (Chicago -- Denver -- Oakland), #EmpireBuilder (Chicago -- Spokane -- Portland | Seattle), and #SunsetLimited (New Orleans -- Houston -- Los Angeles). The Starlight also covers some of the same ground as the #PacificSurfliner (San Diego -- LA -- San Luis Obispo), the #CapitolCorridor (Auburn -- Sacramento -- Oakland -- San Jose) and the Amtrak Cascades (Vancouver Canada -- Seattle -- Portland -- Eugene).
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 6, 2022
The train consists of several sleeper cars (~$1k per room, at least when I bought tickets), a business class car (~$170/ticket for the whole line), several coach class cars (~$100/ticket), a dining car, and a lounge / viewing car. These are all two-level cars, with most of the excitement on the second level. Second level is where you transit between carriages, where seats are, and where the dining room is. Bottom levels have bathrooms, a limited number of accessible seats, luggage holds, the cafe, and the dining room kitchen. I, being rich enough to afford things but far too poor to afford a house, opted for the business class seat. A little more room, a free bottle of water, and -- most importantly -- fewer people to interact with.
Show threadThomas Connor
The LA stretch really isn't that exciting. Highlights include passing near the new Taylor Yard bridge over the river (pedestrian infrastructure!), past the Burbank airport (#RIPFrys), up into the hills right next to Stoney Point (no climbers were out when I went through), and down into the unexciting plains leading to Oxnard, Ventura, and the sea.
May 6, 2022 at 11:26pmWeb
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 6, 2022
But then you get several hours of just running along the coast. It's the #PacificSurfliner experience; bluffs, views, a little bit of speed, and the California coast just zipping by. #RailJourney
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 6, 2022
A few more photos from the coastal section. All of these are south of San Luis Obispo, so, if you're in LA, you can get this view on the Pacific Surfliner as well -- which should have more times available than the 9:50 AM departure of the Coast Starlight. I was doing a little work during this time, which the spacious Amtrak seats gave me ample room for.
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022
After SLO, the route cuts over the hills and into the Salinas Valley (John Steinbeck land). Things aren't as pretty here, but, being done with work, I headed to the viewing car. With floor-into-ceiling (ish) windows, and the ability to quickly look in both directions, these are a great way to see what's going on on the journey. Or, in my case, to read. The cafe is below, with snacks, drinks, and food.
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022
Swinging into Garlic-famous Gilroy, the sun starts to hit the horizon (in late April; experiences will differ depending on time of year and if the train is on time). It was at this time that my dinner reservation came up; I had booked the last possible slot, both because I like to eat late and because I wanted as few people as possible around. Dinner is a fixed price selection right now ($45!) from three appetizers, entrees, and desserts, plus a complimentary drink. Meals are in the dining car, which, let's be honest, is straight up classy.
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022

One of the standard features of Amtrak dining is that they sit you with whoever shows up when you show up, and you eat with strangers. Luckily, they still have limited services (coach class couldn't hit the dining room yet), and I was able to ask for my own booth.

While I'm a vegetarian ~95% of the time, I make exceptions -- basically when I'd be an inconvenience, when I'm traveling somewhere known for their meat cuisine, or when it's a meaningful opportunity. I decided that it was worth having a steak, being an Amtrak signature and all. Also the lobster crab cake + the cheesecake, with a glass of wine and some bubbly water, as darkness descended over the Bay. I chewed on some meat as we passed the Oakland Coliseum.

Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022

Now, at this point, some of you may be grumbling: you said you'd talk about trains, and this is just a travelogue! Well, don't worry -- because we're about to talk shop.

After Oakland, there's a problem. The route is being pinched by the San Francisco Bay to the west and the Berkley Hills to the east. The best way out of this mess is to cross the Carquinez Strait at Benicia to skip the hills east of Vallejo.

And so, there is a rail bridge there -- supposedly the second-longest in North America, the Benicia-Martinez Railroad Drawbridge. Here's the problem, though: unlike the road bridges that flank it, the drawbridge isn't high enough to permit ship traffic, and so it needs raised whenever ships request it. As such, we have a potentially significant choke point in western rail traffic, as both freight and passenger rail can be delayed at any time.

Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022

This corridor is part of the Capitol Corridor route. In a dream future, with frequent SF-Sac high-speed trains, this choke point needs dealt with. But Amtrak's usage of freight rail is an issue here.

Let's try to build a new bridge. It needs to be 160 feet above the water to enable continuous ship traffic. If we want a 0.5% grade to get to this bridge (to make it easy for freight to handle), that's, uh, what, about 6 miles? Oh boy. If we make it passenger only, we can get a much steeper grade, but then things get more complicated with maintenance and funding. Combined with the roughly one mile long crossing here, that's a lot of bridge to build either way.

So, anyway, I guess that's why I was the only one in the lounge excitedly taking pictures as we came to this bridge. View from the shore and then mid-crossing, of poor quality due to lack of light.

(Note: StreetsBlog did a better rundown than this last year: https://sf.streetsblog.org/2021/06/16/new-bridge-proposed-to-eliminate-rail-choke-point/).

New Bridge Proposed to Eliminate Rail Choke Point

A 90-year-old draw bridge is the source of major delays on trains in the Bay Area–the push is on to replace it

Streetsblog San Francisco
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022

After the Bay, it gets dark, and even in summer I don't expect you'll see much past Sacramento, especially since the lounge car windows are tinted. On the way up, Shasta loses out to sleep.

Around 8 AM the following morning, the train rolls into Klamath Falls, Oregon. It's the closest stop to Crater Lake, too, but first the train passes along the shore of Upper Klamath Lake, with views of Mt. McLoughlin in the distance. Then into the Fremont-Winema National Forest with some excellent views of the Williamson River. Finally, before reaching the mountains, you get a view to Crater Lake National Park; although you can't see the lake, Mt. Scott is clearly visible, as are some of the ridges forming the crater's bowl. (Reminder: There are alt text captions on these images if you want any more context)

Show threadThomas ConnorMay 8, 2022

The train then cuts back across the Cascades (having slipped over them once before at night) toward Eugene. As wonderful as the trip up the coast was, I think this is the most impressive part of the journey. We're taking the Pengra Pass route here -- following along the coast of Odell Lake, reaching Cascade Summit at 4,852 feet, and then heading downhill toward Eugene via the Salt Creek.

There are gorgeous views here. The train runs through Douglas Fir forests, over streams, under snow sheds, along lakes, and into canyons. Even in late April, there's still abundant snow to be seen. #Oregon

Show threadThomas ConnorMay 8, 2022

A brief aside here: if you look at the population density of Oregon, you'd realize how silly this route is. Going N/S from Portland to Ashland--Medford (metro pop ~ 300k) instead of Klamath Falls (pop ~ 70k) would serve more people, and, if you're going to cut over the Cascades from Eugene, why not hit up Bend (metro pop ~ 200k)?

Well, it all comes down to the needs of freight rail in 1905. Amtrak is the result of 1970's Rail Passenger Service Act, taking over the passenger service of the major railroads. The Southern Pacific's Cascade (Oakland - Portland) and Coast Daylight (LA - SF) were merged into the Coast Starlight, which meant the route of the still-operating route follows SP (now Union Pacific) trackage. And in the early 1900's, the SP (among others -- I'm simplifying) needed a way to speed up operations. The current route is what was built back then, allowing for faster movements between OR and CA. But it's certainly not optimized for passenger connections...

Show threadbkprbobMay 7, 2022
@thomasconnor Looks delicious. I've never dined on a train.
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022
@bkprbob Recommended, at least once. It's a little expensive, but, well, you're a captive audience at that point. Probably comparable in price to a similar meal at a stadium.
Show threadbkprbobMay 7, 2022
@thomasconnor My wife and I are taking a bus trip from St. Louis to Maine in October. We have watched a few videos about train trips and I think we would enjoy one going through the Rockies.
Show threadJohn GuthrieMay 7, 2022
@bkprbob @thomasconnor I was stationed at a place called Winter Harbor many years ago when I was in the Navy. You picked a good time to visit with the change of seasons 🍁🍁
Show threadDoug TabaccoMay 7, 2022
@bkprbob @thomasconnor worth noting that if you’re in a sleeper dining car meals are included in the price.
Show threadBlue HeronMay 7, 2022
@thomasconnor I'll have the lobster crab cake, the Atlantic salmon (can I get it raw?), and as a beverage I would like pond water with a duckweed garnish.
Show threadScott FeeneyMay 7, 2022
@thomasconnor Beautiful. The lack of mask wearing makes me nervous.
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022
@graue ... Yeah.... I booked the ticket before the mask mandate was pulled, but pushed through anyway. There were a few of us who had masks on the entire time, at least, but not many. I was able to play a decent enough game of keep away and didn't get COVID from *this* trip.
Show threadchristaMay 7, 2022
@thomasconnor I did the California Zephyr last year from Emeryville to Chicago right in between vaccination and Delta and it was so dreamy. I want to do all the routes! and when they have better food (when I rode it was still microwave pandemic meal fare, but also roomette was cheaper and there were mandatory masks, so worth tradeoff)
Show threadchristaMay 7, 2022
@thomasconnor we did lose the observation car on day two through end of trip though! which was a bummer. one of the coach cars lost ac so they moved all those folks to the obs car. so many things went wrong by time we rolled into chicago, including the fridges breaking 😅 would 100% do again tho
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022
@christa Ooof! That's rough. Hopefully you at least got through the most interesting scenery by then...
Show threadchristaMay 7, 2022
@thomasconnor I had a roommette to myself so it didn't bother me! though it was cool to have the open top during sunset in the desert
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022
@christa The dining car is open again, but only to sleeper / business passengers. Coach class needs to settle for the microwave fare still. But, yeah, masks are rare now.
Show threadSeth Is Podcasting 🌻May 7, 2022
@thomasconnor where you traveling to?
Show threadRob FahrniMay 7, 2022

@thomasconnor We lived in San Luis Obispo for a couple years. I miss it so much.

Thanks for sharing this trip.

Show threadstux⚡️May 6, 2022
@thomasconnor Wow, thank you for this! 😻 most interesting! So much prettier than anything over here.. One day... 💭
Show threadThomas ConnorMay 7, 2022
@stux Are you not in the Netherlands? While you might not have as pretty of routes, you have more -- and Switzerland isn't that far by train!
Show threadsuldrew 🚲🏳️‍🌈May 7, 2022
@thomasconnor that part is so great!!