This unusual trip on the Coast Starlight on Sunday, June 22, 2008, started for me in Fullerton, CA, as I boarded the Surfliner 763, the connector train from the south to the Coast Starlight in Los Angeles. 

The unusual part of the trip was the route which the Coast Starlight would take:  Not the traditional coastline route, but instead through Tehachapi, California, Bakersfield, and the Central Valley, a route not taken by a passenger train for 35 years, some were saying. 
Tom Anderson stood on the platform in Fullerton as I arrived.  He was explaining procedures to a couple, new to train travel, who were going to Santa Barbara on this same Surfliner 763.  Tom and I rode to LA in the less crowded Superliner car that was in the consist.  He had a coach seat on the Coast Starlight for this historical trip, and I had a sleeper.  We were both headed for Sacramento and a room at the Vagabond Inn, within walking distance from the Station.


At LA, we walked into the station for a breakfast bagel and noticed Sleeper Passengers were being directed to the TRAXX bar just inside the LA Station from Alameda St. where their luggage was tagged for loading, or stored.  Eventually the Sleeper Passengers were escorted to the train or Red Caps took them.   There were early announcements not to go to the platform until the call to board was made....perhaps some rail buffs were crowding the platform. 

Andy Smith had e-mailed me that a private car, The Silver Solarium, would be at the end of this train, and he had come down from Sacramento on it and was returning there on it as well.  They would go through the Tehachapi Loop as well...perhaps the reason for being on this specific train.  Andy walked into the LA Station's Great Hall just as we were heading out to the platform, so I had a quick  conversation with him on our way out to track 11.

Above left, a couple of folks I enjoyed champagne with orange juice, (left) Cathleen Schamp, Rail Specialist with Irvine Travel, 714-838-0539; and (right) Charles Varnes, who writes for Wheel Clicks the Pacific RR Society Newsletter, 909-599-7369.

12:05, we passed Stored Metrolink trains at Lancaster.  12:15 power started going off and on, including air conditioning.  I counted 7 times that it went off and back on, then quit counting.  Later someone said we lost one locomotive and it was replaced in Stockton.  UP detector 396.1 said we were doing 65 mph, north of Lancaster.`

Cars continued to pace the train, some with movie cameras.  A testament to America's interest in passenger trains, especially when they take an unusual route through California.  A nice road paralleled the tracks on the west side of the tracks for this activity.

We passed a freight in Palmdale and on the scanner he said, "Up in the loop, they're already camped out up there."

At Mojave, CA, with 20 miles to Tehachapi, folks began to get excited because the Tehachapi  Loop would be upon us soon.  Milepost Detector 328.6 said, "No Defects, 54 mph, 101 degrees."

I had a 12:45 lunch reservation in the Parlour Car.  Shawn was the attendant and was trying his best to keep up.  Salads are available for lunch there.  I ordered the carnberry walnut salad.  It took Shawn some time to deliver it, and I was worried I'd be here when we reached the loop, so when I saw him bringing it, I asked if I could take it to my room and he quickly popped on a plastic cover and off I went.  Therefore, I was in my Room B having my salad as we approached the loop.

Before I left the Parlour Car, we went through the town of Tehachapi where I noticed that the RR building had burned.  Matt Meltzer, sitting in front of me in the Parlour Car, said the city fathers had already said they'd rebuild it.

12:37 Mojave detector said:  "377.0 Milepost, Track 2, "Integrity Failure," 93 degrees, 30 mph"  The engineer radioed the Dispatcher and asked what that meant since nothing had followed the "Integrity Failure" message.  (I'd never heard this on a scanner, only "No Defects."

She asked, "Do you have passengers?"  (None have gone through here for years, so she was obviously surprised.)  The engineer responded, "Yes Ma'am."  She said, "Proceed at 30 mph, and check the next detector."  He closed with, "Thanks, we've been enjoying all the green lights."

We had a red signal for a freight before the loop, but the detector after the loop at MP 347, said, "No Defects," and 90 degrees.

Tehachapi Loop (below).  We entered on the high-level track on the left, rounded the hill descending as se went, entered a cut, leaving through a tunnel under the entry track.

After the loop, I walked back to coach to see Tom Anderson.  That gave me a different view of our train going around curves, where I could see more than just the locomotives:

2:30 pm Caliente, CA, which we would see from high above south of town, held a real treat.  Not only the view of the town, but the southbound Coast Starlight was waiting there to pass us.  We got an aerial-type view of a Coast Starlight, also with a private car.  It was pretty much a mirror of our train:

They had a Classic Pacific Parlour Car!  Looks like there still are some out there
	Down from the hill, on the same level as Train 11, you could see what a Coast Starlight consist looked like in its entirity:  Two Genesis engines, a baggage car, Transition Car for crew, 2 or 3 sleepers, Parlour Car, Diner, Sightseer/Lounge Car, and Coaches.

The following photos are of Train 11, Southbound Coast Starlight at Caliente, CA. (Right)  An 'illegal' picture was being taken from a passenger at an open window on their coach car (windows are not to be opened by passengers).
Their Parlour Car.  We stopped briefly, for some reason, Parlour Car-to-Parlour Car.	Sightseer/Lounge Car.

We had a private car on our CS 14, the Silver Solarium, but the CS 11 did also...Scottish Thistle.  Private cars are the only way to have an open-air ride on an Amtrak Route.
	We made a slight turn after passing them, so I took a photograph of the two Coast Starlights passing, with a private car at the end of each.

Getting close to Bakersfield, you can smell oranges, from the many manicured groves.  There are also some vineyards.

	A Santa Fe Diner has samples of each road's chinaware.
Lower berth in a vintage sleeper (wider than modern day lower berths).  (Right), upper and lower berths when curtains were your only privacy in Pullman Cars.  There were washrooms in the car and one suite.

	Locomotive 4466 can be seen from the main floor as well as the upper level.
The museum is pretty dark for photography, so ask if you can use a tripod or monopod.  All my pictures were taken by just bracing my camera on a pillar or corner of a wall or display.  Above, someone walked by during this long exposure, but it looks like steam to me, so I kept it.	This vintage train of wooden cars is upstairs on the second level!

From the second floor, overlooking the turntable on the property, you can see the double-deck (cars and trains)  I Street pivot Bridge.

Stores in Old Town have some unique items such as this enamelware at Huntington & Hopkins Hardware near the Discovery Museum. Across the Sacramento a very large new building is going up (right).
Along the river, south of the Museum, are Sacramento River Cruises and the Delta King.	While at a table overlooking the Sacramento River, I  had a very good salmon sandwich with sweet potato fries for lunch at Rio City Cafe

A nice trail, for walking, running, and bicycles, runs along the east side of the Sacramento River. A landmark noticeable  from Old Sacramento is the golden Tower Bridge (right and below) on Capital Mall.
	The center of the lift portion houses the controls. From the golden Tower Bridge, looking east, you will see the "Welcome to Sacramento" sign, below.

	California's Capitol Building, down Capitol Mall from Tower Bridge.

It was still smoky from the Watsonville Fire as we passed a slough in the Sacramento River bottoms.	The mothball fleet and new cars lined up for loading onto auto haulers took on a eerie look in the smoke.
	At Emeryville, we pulled in next to the California Zephyr, a beautiful Amtrak Route in itself.

Approach Bridges to San Francisco.	BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit. Amtrak Switcher for Amtrak California Cars

Jack London Square Station, Oakland
Jack London Square must be one of the few places in the US that Amtrak does 'street running' where the train is actually at street level.  The sleepers stopped right next to a Food Corporation, so I watched groceries being loaded while we waited.

We passed Niles (right), which has a nice tourist train nearby.
The tracks leading to the tourist train.

Still some sharp curves where I could photograph the locomotives out my sleeper window.	Tom, Car Attendant, announced that these abandoned buildings used to be the town of Drawbridge, CA.

The day in my Roomette was spent writing this report.  I took breakfast in the Dining Car, because the Dining Car opens at 6:30 and the Parlour Car not until 8 a.m., but I took lunch and dinner in the Parlour Car for.  I like the Parlour Car for meals because they seat 24 or less, usually 12, per meal.  You can sit along on one side of a table, or join one other passenger who sits on the opposite side.  The menu is different, usually a selection of salads for lunch, and steam table food for dinner.  Of course you can have a glass of wine ($5) and desert and drink are included.  There is wine tasting in the Parlour Car in the afternoon, but I took a late lunch and dinner at 6, so I skipped wine tasting since I usually fill up on the 16 pieces of cheese that come with the 4 wines at tasting time.

My only negative comments (So skip this paragraph if you wish):  After Santa Barbara, we heard way too many requests from the crew to "help us since this train turns around tomorrow."  For instance, Coaches were instructed to,  "Please clean up your area and we will be by to pick up your trash, pillows, headrests.  Also, please put your seat in the upright position."  Didn't we pay a good amount to get on here and shouldn't we not feel responsible to help the crew get their work done?  I felt like I should ask, who has the vacuum cleaner that I can use?  Should we still tip when we've done the cleanup work?  I'll have to say I didn't hear any of these requests in the sleeper cars.  Also, on southbound Amtrak Coast Starlights, dinner starts at 4:30 and we get to LA at 9, why?  We seem to be put into a position of feeling sorry for the crew, so they can head home as soon as we get to LA.  Maybe part of the First Class Feeling we're supposed to have on Amtrak nowdays would be more realistic without the "help me get home earlier from work" attitude we're seeing.

I enjoyed pleasant meal mates at all three meals, so it was the only social interaction I had all day since I sequestered my self in the room so I'd get this report finished by the time I was home.  I call my room on Amtrak, my Office.  I guess I could call it my A-Office.

Hope you find this report informative, and your comments are welcomed at Carl@TrainWeb.com.