Our train dropped into the San Joaquin Valley and crossed the waters of the California Aqueduct.
We left the hills of the Coast Line behind.
The rear lounge area of "Silver Solarium".
View from the rear.
The dome-lounge car has a GPS screen that shows the train's location at all times.
The bar underneath the dome features an always-friendly bartender ready to serve you.
At Tracy, we took the siding to meet a westbound Altamomt Commuter Express train.
We then crossed the former Southern Pacific West Valley Line, now operated by California Northern Railroad.
Crossing the San Joaquin River.
Passing through the ACE station at Manteca.
Our train swung on to the former Southern Pacific Valley Line for our trip through Stockton.
At Lathrop, we turned north.
In Stockton, we crossed the BNSF mainline to Richmond.
The former Western Pacific Stockton station.
The Southern Pacific Stockton station, built in 1913, is used by the Altamont Commuter Express trains.
The dispatcher had us on the wrong track at El Pinal to return to the former Western Pacific.
At El Pinal, we had to make a reverse move through a crossover in order to reach our planned route.
The interior of "Silver Lariat".
A hard-working attendant folding serviettes in preparation for lunch. Most of California Zephyr Railcars Charters onboard staff are professional railroaders who have been in the passenger business for many years and give first class service.
The bar beneath the dome area of "Silver Lariat".
The dome.
Our train was now back on the former Western Pacific line for the trip to Portola.
A table setting for lunch in "Silver Lariat".
Upon departure from Oakland, Chris Skow distributed the souvenir booklets to all passengers, as well as packets of original Western Pacific/California Zephyr tickets, Western Pacific forms and timetables, all of which came from the Oroville Depot basement in 1975.
We crossed the fields on our way to Sacramento.
Mokelumne River (Miwok for "People of the Fish Net") is a 95-mile-long river which flows west from a rugged portion of the central Sierra Nevada into the Central Valley and ultimately the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta, where it empties into the San Joaquin River-Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel. Together with its main tributary, the Cosumnes River, the Mokelumne drains 2,143 square miles in parts of five California counties.
Cosumnes River, which rises on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada and flows approximately 52.5 miles into the Central Valley, emptying into the Mokelumne River in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The Cosumnes is one of very few rivers in the western Sierra without major dams. The Nature Conservancy's Cosumnes River Preserve is located just upstream from the Delta. Towns and cities along the Cosumnes River include Plymouth, Rancho Murieta, Sloughhouse, Wilton, Elk Grove and Galt.
Our train played cat-and-mouse with a Sacramento Light Rail train.
The location of the former Western Pacific Jeffrey Shops in South Sacramento.
Passengers at their tables for lunch in "Silver Lariat". At the right is Eugene Vicknair, Secretary & Director of the Feather River Rail Society and Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola. He was invited onboard to provide history of the Western Pacific and Feather River Rail Society, as well as answer any questions.
The former Western Pacific Sacramento station, built in 1910, is an Old Spaghetti Factory restaurant.
Lunch today was chicken salad.
Crossing under the former Southern Pacific CalP line.
The excellent waiterr serving lunch.
Happy passengers enjoying their meal.
A crew change at Haggin.
The American River, a 30-mile-long river that runs from the Sierra Nevada mountain range to its confluence with the Sacramento River in downtown Sacramento. Via the Sacramento River, it is part of the San Francisco Bay watershed. This river is fed by the melting snowpack of the Sierra Nevada and its many headwaters and tributaries, including the North Fork American River, the Middle Fork American River and the South Fork American River.
The American River is known for the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in Coloma in 1848 that started the California Gold Rush and contributed to the initial large-scale settlement of California by European immigrants. Today, the river still has high quality water and it is the main source of drinking water for Sacramento. This river is dammed extensively for irrigation, flood control and hydroelectric power. The American River watershed supports Mediterranean, temperate and montane ecosystems, and is the home of a diverse array of fish and wildlife.
Dome of "Silver Solarium".
Looking down into the lounge.
View from the dome.
The lounge.
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The GPS in the "Silver Solarium" gave me an update on our exact location. I sat back and enjoyed the lounge while everyone else was eating lunch.
The Yuba River, a tributary of the Feather River in the Sierra Nevada and eastern Sacramento Valley. The main stem of the river is about 40 miles long and its headwaters are split into three major forks. The Yuba River proper is formed at the North Yuba and Middle Yuba rivers' confluence, with the South Yuba joining a short distance downstream. Measured to the head of the North Yuba River, the Yuba River is just over 100 miles long.
The former Western Pacific Marysville station.
Binney Junction, where we crossed the former Southern Pacific Shasta Route.
The Sutter Buttes.
Curving into Oroville.
Oroville Yard.
The former Western Pacific Oroville station.
A diversion dam.
Crossing the Feather River.
We passed a westbound BNSF freight at Kramm.
Running along Table Mountain.
Views from Table Mountain.
We held the mainline at Elsey for this long westbound Union Pacific manifest freight before continuing.
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