July 8, 2008:

 

I had set my alarm for 8:00 am, but I got up earlier then that. I went downstairs for breakfast. After breakfast, I went back upstairs and finished packing. I then checked out of the hostel and walked over to Back Bay Station where I rode the orange line to Downtown Crossing. When I got off, I filmed the train pulling out of the station. I then rode a Red Line train to South Station and got off. I filmed the train pulling out. I then went upstairs.

 

I chose to ride train 449 from South Station instead of Back Bay because the train left at noon and I didn’t have much to do in the morning, so I would go to South Station. Besides, I haven’t covered the trackage between Boston South Station and Boston Back Bay.

 

While I was waiting I took some photos of Amtrak trains.

 

 

 

 

At one point, I took a walk to the end of the station and back to try to get a good vantage point. While I was there, I saw an MBTA commuter train depart, but I couldn’t get a good shot of it.

 

I then walked back to the station. At one point, I saw the consist of train 449 back into the station, but it pulled out again. The train didn’t return to the station and board until 28 minutes after the train was suppose to have left. When the train did board, I photographed it.

 

 

I was seated in Amfleet 1 coach in the 44709, a refurbished coach. The train ended up leaving 39 minutes late. Between Boston South station and Back Bay, that was the only coach open.

 

At Back Bay, I briefly got a seatmate, but she moved to the coach in front of mine. After we left, I bought lunch from the café car. I found out from the Amtrak crew why we were late leaving. They had added a second locomotive because the locomotive we had was iffy and they didn’t want to risk the locomotive failing en route.

 

The train stopped at Framingham and Worcester. We were soon in the countryside. At one point we stopped to let a freight train get ahead of us. We soon stopped at Springfield where I photographed the Vermonter and a shuttle train.

 

 

 

The air conditioning wasn’t working in my coach. The Amtrak crew let the passengers know they could sit in the coach ahead or the café car for relief. We soon stopped at Pittsfield. At one point we took a siding for a couple freights. A little while later, we stopped to start the second unit. We then took the siding to allow train 448 to pass us. As it passed, I filmed it. I noticed that it was the same consist that I rode to Boston on except the coach I rode in had been replaced by Amfleet 1 coach #44712

 

After 448 passed, we reversed back onto the main line and headed towards Albany. We slowed down as CSX was still having signal problems on the last few miles before Albany.

 

Meanwhile, there was a crying baby in the coach. It had been crying for awhile, I finally had enough and moved into the coach in front for the last few minutes. We finally arrived into Albany 53 minutes late. Train 49 was scheduled to leave at 7:05 pm so we made it. I took some photos of trains 449 and 49.

 

 

 

In the Albany station, we were told to wait until they announced train 49 could board. While waiting, I took a photo.

 

 

Soon we were allowed to board 49. I noticed that the coaches were the same as train 48 I had ridden from Syracuse to Albany. He just got different power. When I made it to track level, I saw a Sperry Rail car which I photographed.

 

 

I took some photos of 49 before I was seated in coach 25004, the coach I rode on 48 a few days prior.

 

 

 

I was assigned a seat for my brief trip to Schenectady. I had an aisle seat. This was no big deal as I was getting off at the next stop. I filmed a few Amtrak trains including train 64 and 449 as the train departed on time.

 

Not a whole lot happened on 49. I walked to the café car and to the rear of the train to double check if this was the same train I rode on the 4^th. Sure enough it was. We soon arrived on time to Schenectady where I got off. I walked to the end of the platform where after a brief misunderstanding with an Amtrak employee, I took some photos and a video of the train departing.

 

 

 

 

I saw a hobby store and a camera store across the street, but they were both closed. I then walked over to a Wendy’s a couple blocks away and had dinner I then headed to my hotel, a Days Inn not to far from where I stayed last time in I was in Schenectady.

 

            Once I had checked in, I watched a little TV before I took a walk to see the former Great Northern Alco RS3 I discovered on my Adirondack trip.

 

 

 

 

            I noticed the Friendly’s Restaurant that I ate dinner and breakfast on my trip on the Adirondack was closed. Fortunately, my hotel would serve a complimentary breakfast. I then called home from a convenience store across the street from my hotel.

 

            After, I went back to my hotel and had a shower. I then watched a bit of TV including a show on airport runway incursions that made reference to what I consider to be the second worst air disaster in history: The 1977 collision of a Pan Am Boeing 747 and a KLM Boeing 747 in the Canary Islands; second only to the attack on the World Trade Center on 9-11.

 

            After that show, I watched a show called mega disasters. The episode I watched was about what would happen if a “Glow train”; a train carrying nuclear waste derailed in a large city. At least there wasn’t anything about passenger train accidents like the 1993 Sunset Limited crash. I asked for a wake up call at 8:00 am and called it a night.

 

July 9, 2008:

 

            I got my wake up call at 8:00 am and got dressed. I headed to the lobby for breakfast. After breakfast, I went back up to my room and finished packing. After, I went downstairs and checked out. I then walked to the Amtrak station. Along the way, I photographed a couple buses.

 

 

 

            When I got to the train station, I saw train 280 in the station. I filmed it pulling out. I then went over to the camera store near the station to see about another memory stick. The store wasn’t open right away, so I waited with a couple other people. The store finally opened and I learned that they didn’t sell memory sticks for my digital camera; Sony only sells them to large retail stores like Wal-Mart.

 

            I then walked back to the Amtrak station. I waited around a bit before I took the incredibly slow elevator up to platform level. I filmed Amtrak train 290 arrive from Boston.

 

 

Train 290 soon departed. A few minutes later, train 63 arrived right on time. I filmed the train pulling into the station.

 

 

I boarded Amfleet 2 coach #25054 and took a seat in Amfleet 2 coach #25078. Both were refurbished coaches. The train soon departed. We stopped in Amsterdam.

 

As we approached Utica, I photographed the former Metro North FL9 stored there.

 

 

The train stopped at Utica. I now had a window seat as I had sat next to someone who was getting off in Utica. As we left, I filmed various pieces of equipment from the Adirondack Scenic Railway as well as the two RDCs I saw on July 4^th. Sometime later, train 286 passed but I was unable to film it.

 

The train soon stopped at Rome, New York. Between Rome and Syracuse, we passed the area where I saw the 25 derailed freight cars on my way back from Schenectady last year after riding the dome car on the Adirondack. By now, CSX had removed the cars. Outside of Syracuse, train 48 passed but I was unable to film it.

 

We soon stopped at Syracuse and were soon underway. West of Syracuse, I filmed train 64 passing. We soon stopped in Rochester.

 

I had been given a form to fill out prior to Customs. I filled it out. As we approached Buffalo Depew, I filmed the scrap yard with three Orion 5 buses in it. We soon stopped at Depew.

 

The train then stopped at Buffalo Exchange Street station. Between Buffalo Exchange Street and Niagara Falls New York, we slowed down. We then stopped at Niagara Falls, New York. Here I was allowed to step off the train and take some photos.

 

 

 

I then got back on the train. The train soon departed and crossed into Canada. It took a little while for the customs agents to come on board. When they did, the person who interviewed me was thankfully nowhere as anal as the customs agent who interviewed me on my “Arizona Make-up trip”.

 

Soon the inspection was over. The train, now known as VIA train #98, departed 20 minutes late. The VIA crew said they thought they could make up the time.

I phoned my dad to let him know I was back in Canada. I went to the café car for dinner. Unfortunately, we were delayed because we had to let a ship pass under the Welland Canal drawbridge. We soon stopped at St. Catherines. As we left, I saw the St. Catherines Transit bus garage with some retired Classics out back. The train continued on before it stopped at Grimsby.

 

Between Grimsby and Aldershot, VIA train 95 passed us. I was able to film part of it passing. We curved around Hamilton and before we stopped at Aldershot, a Hamilton bound GO train passed us. It was good to be back in GO Transit territory.

 

We stopped at Aldershot and Oakville. As we left Oakville, I saw one of GO Transit’s new double decker buses. The train continued on. As the train passed VIA’s Toronto Maintenance Centre, I filmed the yard. We soon arrived into Union Station 23 minutes late. Once I got off, I took a photo of the train.

 

 

I went downstairs and phoned home. I then got on the subway to Finch. When I got there, I was met by my dad. We didn’t go straight home. Instead, we stopped at my mom’s Marble Slab store. We left a few minutes later. On the way, we passed YRT D40LF #612 which finally got the new YRT livery applied to it. We arrived home a few minutes later.

 

Conclusions:

 

Boston was great! I didn’t have any problems taking photos and didn’t have to whip out my laminated copy of MBTA’s photo policy. I wish I could have gotten to Seashore sooner and rode SEPTA PCC #2709, but that was mostly my fault. At least I got to ride the PCCs on the Mattapan-Ashmont line.

 

This trip also set some personal trip records. They included most trains ridden, first time I rented a car, first time I was prepared for a confrontation about taking transit photos, first time I had a conversation with a robot, most photos/videos taken on a single trip, and third and fourth time riding a PCC streetcar that never ran in Toronto.

 

This trip was the first trip to the States 5+ days long where nothing bad happened. On my Arizona trip, I had to endure a 12 hour late Sunset Limited, on my Arizona Make-up trip, I was snowbound in Buffalo. On my trip to New York, I caught a cold at the end. Finally on my trip to Washington and Cleveland, a lousy taxi company made me miss train 48.

 

I certainly took a lot of photos and videos on this trip and if/when I return to Boston and Seashore, I’ll have to buy more memory sticks. My next trip is in two weeks when I plan to go on an overnight trip to Orillia, Ontario to see my favourite musician: Weird Al Yankovic. Until next time…

 

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