Take a Bus, a Train or…
Thomas, the train aficionado began his love of trains at an early age. Half of my mom’s family came from Altoona Pennsylvania, a significant shop town for the Pennsylvania railroad. The Altoona Works became one of the most considerable repairs and construction facilities for trains by 1945.
Also, it is the last stop before the Horseshoe Curve. This engineering marvel connects the east and the west through the Allegheny mountains.
Lifesize Lionel Trains
In the 1960s, there were still several passenger trains running in addition to 50+ freight a day. I would go with my uncle to the curve, race up the stairs and watch endless trains going by. Two tracks were going west, and two were going east. It was not unusual to see all four in operation at one time.
Once a visit, my uncle would drop my aunt and me off at the Altoona station. We would ride the train to Johnstown, the first stop after the curve. Yes, I still have Lionel products under my bed.
On the Wabash Cannon Ball
I must confess, the Pennsy wasn’t my only love. The Wabash Railroad’s Cannon Ball, running from Detroit to St. Louis, would stop in my town in Indiana every day at 11:25 AM.
Several times a year my mom would put my brother and me on the train. Around 3:30 that afternoon, her sister would pick us up, two stops short of St Louis. By then, we were reminiscing about our fried chicken and apple pie lunch in the diner. On a white tablecloth, with real china and a carnation in a single but vase.
These were not once-in-a-life adventures like an Orient Express trip would be. But, there was fun in getting there.
They were not “cruises on rails” where the train stops for a site or excursion before moving on. Like on many “epic” train vacations.
They were near the end of “fun” train travel when the railroads were cutting back on everything. So how did it bite me so hard with wanderlust?
When did traveling by train become fun? When did trains become a vacation?
May 10, 1869
Just north of Salt Lake City, the Central Pacific Railroad, heading west, meets the Union Pacific railroad heading east. The floodgates open. There is a train from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
1878 – The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway hires the Fred Harvey Company to set up a string of restaurants and hotels. Trains do not have dining or sleeping cars yet. When the Northern Pacific Railway connects Chicago with Seattle in 1883, there are now five routes to the west coast.
Red Carpet Service.
In 1902, guests would walk the red carpet for the first time. The setting is New York’s Grand Central Terminal. Sitting at the end of the rug is the New York Central’s 20th-Century-Limited. The most famous train in the world, according to their advertising.
There were no coach cars. All the guests had a sleeping accommodation in a Pullman car.
The Pullman Train Car Company was in Southwest Chicago. Their luxury cars had sleeping arrangements ranging from a bed in a shared compartment to a lavish suite.
The train ran from New York City to Chicago and back with few stops. They even had a system for taking on water while moving.
There were three dining/bar cars serving the steak, lobster, and champagne. The train also had a barbershop and secretarial services for their targeted guests, business people.
The first trip took 20 hours, a new record. With the introduction of lighter streamlined cars in 1938, the time dropped to 16 hours. For celebrities and politicians, it was the train of choice. They are the train with the “red-carpet service.”
A Healthy Competition
The Pennsylvania Railroad would launch a strong contender in 1912. The Broadway Limited is as deluxe and decadent as the 20th Century Limited. But it never completely catches up with its rival. Getting there is all the fun!
There were no all-Pullman sleeping car trains west of Chicago until 1926. In that year, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway began the Chief twice a week. It became “The Train of the Stars” because it was the only train running between Chicago and Los Angeles. Other railroads required multiple segments. The west coast trains would have innovations, but none of these were ever as splashy as the NY – CHI trains.
Trains Suffer A Slow Death
After WWII people start buying cars. In 1956 Washington DC., began construction on a series of highways, many of them following train routes.
The railroads start cutting departures, adding coach cars to express trains, and adding stops. By 1967, the last all-Pullman train left the station. The fun is gone.
People are driving to vacation spots. The trains are out of the vacation business.
In 1971 the government took control of the non-profiting passenger trains.
Also in the 1950s, Pan American, Trans World Airlines, Eastern, and Northwest Orient begin replacing their props with jet engines. Steamship lines start to disappear. Cunard runs its most famous ad campaign, “Getting There is Half the Fun.” But the times are changing. Fun isn’t enough.
Get Your Fun On.
Through the last 40 years, Amtrak has slowly rebuilt passenger train travel. Not what it was 100 years ago, but better than what it was 50 years ago.
Plan a train trip.
Amtrak still goes to, or near, some incredible places in the United States of America. They offer several vacation itineraries or you can plan one around them.
National parks include Grand Canyon, Rocky Mountain, Glacier, Yellowstone, Denali, and Yosemite, to name a few in the west.
In the east, use a train to reach Arcadia, Cape Cod, the Revolutionary and Civil Battlefields, Smokie Mountains, the Everglades or others.
Or how about a mid-week dash to New York, Los Angeles or Chicago? A weekend at a grand hotel? Trains still run to resorts like the Homestead and Greenbriar. Some of the great train stations are now hotels.
You can rent a car at a destination, use public transportation or order a ride on your phone. That way, even the driver gets a vacation.
Or cross this great land of ours from sea to shining sea. It takes two trains and about 70 hours to do the quickest route between Boston and Los Angeles. Looking at April, a business class seat is around $400 per person one way. If you can stand up without your body making a noise, go for this option.
If not, get a room. A roomette kicks it up to around $1000 per person but includes three meals a day in the dining car.
On a Slow Train to China Town.
Or break it up.
(Days 1-2) Take the first train to Chicago (21 hours) Remember you get up, walk around, eat sleep. It may go faster than you think.
(Days 2-4) Do a day or two in Chicago.
(Days 4-5) Take the train to Flagstaff (28 hours)
A Step Back in Time
(Days 5-7) Visit the Grand Canyon area for two days. The Grand Canyon Railroad still runs daily from nearby Williams. It is no longer a vacation spur belonging to the Sante Fe Railroad, but it uses an assortment of cars from the golden age.
Several of the hotels at Grand Canyon are the same ones from the early 1900s. There are shuttles from Flagstaff station to the Williams train station.
(Days 7-8) Then 12 hours from Flagstaff to Los Angeles Union Station. Chinatown is a 5-minute taxi ride from the station.
You see the USA, relax and finish those three paperbacks sitting on your bookcase since when? Or catch up on your binge-watching. Another option is to watch America the Beautiful roll by your window.
I end up talking to people. In the lounge car, in the dining car, we start talking as we share an experience.
I Don’t Like Trains. I took a Subway Once.
Trains are not subways or even commuter trains. They are a social (or not if you choose) club traveling the country.
Still not sure? Do an overnight train from somewhere to somewhere. Chicago to Denver, Washington, or Boston. Los Angeles to Albuquerque, Portland or Seattle. New Orleans to Tucson. Go from Miami to Washington. There are several options.
Why overnight? Because you need to experience a train in the day and at night. You need to eat in a dining car and share a glass of wine with a new friend. You need to fall asleep to the gentle rocking.
Rebirth of Luxury Trains
There was an American Orient Express in 1989.
It was a train using restored Pullman streamline cars from 1948 – 1958, including carriages from the 20th Century Limited. The train would travel around the United States and later Mexico. It was a cruise ship on rails that would go from place to place. Depositing guests in this “port” in the morning and heading off somewhere at dinner time. Unfortunately, the economy of 2008 brought an end to that.
The Private Sector
Too many of the railway cars went for scrap or worse, rusted away on forgotten sidings. Luckily, some wonderful transportation museums and private collectors had the foresight to buy the cars they could.
Many now lease out their carriages to individuals, groups and travel companies. Several times a year, train-specific travel companies arrange trains to or for events.
In Indiana, they reenact the Wabash Cannon Ball itinerary from Ft Wayne to Lafayette. Other trips are several days in length and include sleeping cars.
In May of 2019, there will be a special train trip to Golden Spike National Historical Park. They will be reenacting the meeting of trains there 150 years ago — the first railroad link between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
Tragically, in 2019, Amtrak raises its fees to pull these private cars and trains behind their trains. They REALLY raise them. This act of greed will undoubtedly decrease the number of offerings of these special trips.
Several private car owners have already put their cars up for sale.
If they can hold on, there may be a light at the end of the tunnel. Amtrak, a federal company, (not a department,) does not own 95% of the track in America.
The freight companies do. And several freight companies are seeing a growing desire for train travel again.
More Than Just Speed
High-speed trains linking towns are on the rise. They are replacing old rails instead of turning them all into bike paths.
Can classic trains be too far behind? Getting there is fun again.
Other Factors
My state has a toll road running most of its length and more than 50 years old. How long is that mortgage? We are still paying tolls, and they keep going up. There are places on the road where my car shakes when it hits them. The highway is now grossly undersized for the amount of traffic it carries.
It’s pretty much the same on the interstate system, which I pay for differently. Interstate bridges are how old now?
Driving on a highway is as exciting to me as going to the dentist without novocaine or insurance.
Flying is an alternative. Get to the airport early. Go through the TSA obstacle course and all the happy yoga positions that they require.
Then there are the plane seats. Remember when there were only two on either side of the aisle? Now three places are sharing four armrests.
Never mind, flying is not an alternative.
Take The Last Train to…
Is it possible we might have a renaissance of the rail?
Are you ready to ride the little train that is rolling down the tracks?
Please “Leave a Reply” below to this: Have you ever taken a train trip between two cities? Would you like to see trains make a comeback?
“See Aegina Greece” Continued on Page T3 “Taste Milan Italy” Continued on T4
This post was a nice reminder of the FUN to be had by taking the slow train to anywhere. There is something unique about sitting in a comfortable seat and watching as the world slowly passes by and the gentle rocking of the train soothes the soul. Now the wanderlust is in my head, again.