The California Zephyr takes a route through the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains. Most passengers agree it’s the most scenic of all Amtrak routes.
The Zephyr makes a number of stops: in Richmond, Martinez, Davis and Sacramento, CA.
The remainder of the first day on California Zephyr was a climb through the Sierra Nevadas and out into the Nevada and Utah desert.
(click any photo in the grid for full gallery.)
We traversed much of Nevada and most of Utah overnight, but I understand it largely looks like this:
Around 10 am we pulled in to Grand Junction, Colorado, where there was a trackside general store. Here, I finally purchased a pair of bluetooth earbuds.
The remainder of day 2 would find the California Zephyr climbing ever higher into the Colorado Rockies.
(click any photo in the grid for full gallery.)
There’s more videos. A few more pictures. American flatland. The back two-thirds of the roller coaster. Sure, there are thrills; but you’re still in shock from the BIG DROP. Sometimes, it’s the quieter, simpler things that catch your attention.
Two more days of train travel, including a 5-hour wait in Chicago due to “equipment issues” and a subsequent missed connection to Philadelphia resulting in a 6 hour bus ride across Pennsylvania…
… if I was a better documentarian, I’d have more to show from that last day. But mostly, it was just anxiety over getting home at all.
The bus got us in to Harrisburg around 5pm, only for us to learn that the 5:20 Keystone to Philadelphia was canceled for some unexplained reason. So a fellow passenger and I ventured out to find a bar for a quick drink and bite to eat.
Around 7, we were finally introduced to the commuter rocket known as The Keystone. Harrisburg to Lancaster in 30 minutes. Lancaster to Philly in under 90 minutes. It’s all coach and the doors were barely on, but what a wild ride!
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