Zephyr Trip: Day 1

California Zephyr: Naperville-->Denver overnight route

It's been a long time since my last vacation... unless you call unemployment a vacation. But now back in the working world, it's easier to appreciate time off. A-niiiiice. It's also the first week away with Cas... which will coincide nicely with Day 6.

All Aboard!

Our trip began in Naperville, IL, conveniently the first stop for Amtrak's California Zephyr, its 2,438-mile route between Chicago and Emeryville, CA [on the east side of San Francisco Bay]. Looking back, I can't believe I hadn't taken a long-distance rail ride in the States before now. I love the trains of Europe when abroad... TrenItalia, the German ICE, the French TGV... so easy to get where you need to go, and not have to worry about busing it into town from a distant airport. Then again, I was also praying for the train to be relatively on time, and avoid any horror stories of my own.

Our Coach seats...

Waiting for the train in Naperville, the weather was a seasonal 35 degrees with a light sleet blowing in our faces. We couldn't wait for California. The westbound Amtrak Train #5 arrived on schedule, so far so good, and we went from conductor to conductor, being referred to a coach car with our 'reserved' seats. We walked up to the second floor of the car, and chose a pair of seats with a 'D/2' posted over them [to Denver, party of 2, simple enough...].

Lounge car

The California Zephyr route is described as 'the most beautiful railroad trip in America'... however, almost all of the scenery takes place post-Denver. So after getting settled in coach, we had a lot of Great Plains to see. Weather cleared up as we rode west, and other than a 'smoke stop' in Galesburg, IL, which allows 10-or-so minutes outside the train at select stations, we explored the Coach car [our overnight seats], the Lounge car [with its many windows] and the Dining car [made reservations for the 5pm dinner].

Dinner & a river

It was during dinner that we crossed the Mighty Mississippi; that's about the only landmark on Day 1. Since Cas and I only filled half a table in the Dining car, we were paired with a retired couple from Ontario, Canada. We swapped travel stories [including a hearty endorsement of Malta from them] over salad and breadrolls, then the entrées [tonight we had steak & trout]. The food was a pleasant surprise, but a little pricey [~$25 per person with a beer or glass of wine]. But how often can you dine while looking out on the freshly-planted cornfields of Iowa at 70 miles per hour?

Got a lot of reading done after the sun had set, and tried to get as comfy as we could in our coach seats. If you were to do this trip in one go [2 nights in a row] I'd highly suggest reserving the more expensive Sleeping berths [which also include all meals]. But one-night-at-a-time is doable, and although we had much more legroom than in a plane, I still woke up several times with a stiff neck. But after traveling through Nebraska overnight, you're promised views of the Rockies!

Boxcar says where we're headed

Liked the lines in this one

The Great Plains

Sunset over Iowa