The Great American Train Trip

Here is a map of my trip (from the offical Amtrak website)

Day one:

The following morning I had to wake up at 6.45am which my body was not happy with. I found it hard to fall asleep last night thinking about my grandmother. 

I made it to the Transbay Terminal to catch a bus to Emmeryvale to start my three day train trip. I have booked a sleeper car which is quite small but apparently is suitable for two people. The two seats became a bed and at the top there is a bunk bed for the other passenger. I am really hoping three days of rest will rid my of this cold and give me more perspective as to what I would like to achieve on my holiday without getting so tired (and having sore feet). 

After settling in I went to the lounge car to see some of the sites. The scenery you can see from the photos are breath taking. All I could think of was the thunder mountain ride at Disneyland and how magical it looked there. I then went to have some lunch which was unfortunately not well organised and I was not bought my drink or salad.

There were a few people who got on earlier from a local museum who spoke about the history and facts of the area. 

Going back to the lounge car I took in some more scenery until falling asleep so I headed back to my car. Luckily I discovered the talk was piped over the sound system so didn’t miss anything from my room.

We were leaving the Bay Area and heading East

Heading into the mountains. (The reflections went after I realised you needed to put your

camera directly on the glass.)

This was the Donner Laken, named after the group of people who were heading west but

then became stranded for the winter. Unfortunately many died and apparently had to resort to 

cannabilism to survive.

There was still snow from bad weather a few days before.

Heading into Utah

There were wild mustangs but I didn’t see them as they were on the other side of the train.

Feeling refreshed a few hours dinner was much better organised and I had dinner with a couple from North Carolina who had been travelling for the past few months across the USA. She of Polish ancestry and had told me of all of the places to check out when I visit in a few months. 

When I got back the attendant converted my bed for sleep. I watched a few hours of Call The Midwife and read my book but unfortunately it took me until around 3am-4am, when we reached Salt Lake City, to fall asleep.

Day Two

Unfortunately as you are probably guessing I work up again with my cold, feeling every worse (no sleep didn’t help things). I then decided to start taking my emergency antibiotics the doctor had given me as I was starting cough up phlegm.

I had an a nice pancake breakfast with two ladies, who live in Minneapolis, who had just come back from French Polynesia. Apparently they had only met the year before on a trip through Australia and obviously then decided to start travelling together. After getting off the train for some fresh air I took my concoction of medication and had a reastful sleep. We were going through the Rocky Mountains today and luckily I woke up to see some beautify scenery. Some of the area can only be seen by boats and the train. 

I ended up skipping lunch as I can never eat such a big breakfast knowing I would have dinner and a day of sitting a head of me.

I spent the day reading and watching more Call the Midwife while taking in yet more scenery. 

The desert scenery in my opinion is one of the most magical places on earth.

Today we went through the Rocky Mountins and went past the Colorado River. It was amazing to see the contrast 

between snow then desert landscapes.

We got into Denver Station where I had dinner with a couple who had been visiting their son and family in Colorado and were heading home. As it turns out the husband had worked for NASA and was in charge of the satellites in space.Although there were computers apparently they didn’t trust them yet and in addition there were not that many yet. There was also a guy from Louisiana who had been travelling across the USA with his dad for the past ten days.

I then went to bed again and this time used ear plugs and my ibphroben with a night aid and only work up at 3am when we had stopped in Omaha Nebraska for around an hour.

Day Three

My train ride finished that afternoon and I do have to say I had an amazing time. It was a bit sad that I had to get off that afternoon. However, this has inspired me to go on the Orient Express from London to China in a few years. My final meal was with another couple who were headed to New Jersey after visiting family in San Fransisco and a man who was headed home to Michigan after working for the Singapore government in urban planning. As we were heading towards Chicago we discussed how poor the areas looked and although there was family work many were now forced out by big companies. Then headed back to my room for my final day before arriving into Chicago around 3pm.

The third picture is crossing the Mississippi River. 

Almost in Chicago.

Overall impressions of my train trip: In one word - Amazing! The scenery was so breathtaking and for parts never to be seen unless you are travelling by train or canoe. I met some fascinating people who like me where there for the experience as these days it’s cheaper and quicker to fly. Plus there is a real sense of community on board and I loved the shared seating as you got to know your fellow passengers. If you have been thinking of taking this journey now is the time to do it. With costs going up there train rides might no longer be around in the next 10 years.