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Holland America Dome Car Tour and Trip 4/4/2003 and 4/7/2003

I heard that the brand new Holland America dome cars were going to be on a tour with public viewing at various West Coast locations including Fullerton. My dear friend Barry Christensen sent me an e-mail with a link to where I could sign up for a tour and chose Friday the 4th of April. I received two e-mail reminders about my upcoming visit and really could not wait to see these cars. The day before, I rode Pacific Surfliner 579 to Fullerton in order to get some exterior photographs.

On the left is HALX dome car 1050 "Kenai" and on the right is HALX dome car 1051 "Knik", both built by Colorado Railcar in 2002. After visiting Trainweb offices, I returned to Santa Ana on Metrolink 602.

For Immediate Release

Seattle-January 23, 2002- Holland America Line is introducing the next generation of the storied McKinley Explorer rail car for the line's Alaska CruiseTour packages. These world-famous Full Dome cars have set the standard in luxury rail travel since the Golden Age of the railroad and have been a favored part of Holland America's Cruisetours for years. The new cars will enter service on May 16, 2003.

The four new rail cars will be the largest passenger rail cars in service in North America and will compliment Holland America's existing fleet of 13 cars. These marvels of modern design feature a host of guest amenities and innovative technology, providing an unsurpassed touring experience through Alaska's pristine backcountry.

"These new cars seat up to 88 guests and feature more glass area than any other passenger car ever built," said David A. Giersdorf, senior vice president, marketing and sales, Holland America Line. "Our guests can enjoy uninterrupted viewing through some of the most spectacular wilderness vistas on Earth."

Each McKinley Explorer features entertaining and informative narration provided by Holland America Line's expert Car Managers and is augmented by a state-of-the-art Global Positioning System (GPS) -automated narration system. Each passenger seat offers six channels of music and a seventh channel offering a GPS-automated narrative of the tour.

All of Holland America's McKinley Explorer cars provide guests with access to spacious observation lounges, gift shops, leisurely dining and spectacular views from outdoor viewing platforms. The cars' interiors have also been designed to reflect the countryside they pass through.

"The best scenery is outside our rail cars, but we've made the interiors a work of art as well," said Giersdorf. "The cars feature custom designed fabrics using Swiss wools, museum quality art and color schemes that evoke the award winning designs of Holland America Line ships."

I took Pacific Surfliner 579 to Fullerton. The size and height of the cars is very noticeable, since they are 89 feet long, 10 feet wide and 18 feet 1 inch tall, making these the largest rail cars built. These cars can carry 88 passengers under the dome and 44 in the dining room. The dining room seating will reduce meal service to two sittings instead of three, as there are on competitors' trains when these cars are in service in Alaska. The cost of these cars were $3 million each and there are two others in the fleet, "Chena" and "Kobuk".

I climbed onto the rear covered viewing platform of "Knik", which is a 9x10 feet area and stopped to enjoy the view. For picture-taking, this area would be an excellent environment for that purpose. Since you have a roof over your head, photographs could be taken in any kind of weather, something I would be doing if I rode in these cars in Alaska. To enter the car, you push on the plate and a sliding door opens, allowing access to the lower lounge with its built- in leather sofa, two chenille chairs and a small black granite bistro table. There is a display case where souvenirs would be sold. Across from is an ADA wheelchair lift that allows access to the three wheelchair seats in the dome.

There is an ADA lavatory on the lower level, as well as an ADA dining area in both cars. Each car is equipped with two restrooms, which are very well set up. I walked down the nicely upholstered and carpeted corridor and the colours used in these cars are found in nature: green of Alaska jade, purple of native wild iris and "honey" of fall tundra grass.

That led to the car's dining area, which has wall art of two layers of lit etched glass activated by speed of the moving train.The seats have black and "honey" plush velvet seat backs with purple accents in an elegant "tile" design. The seat cushions are custom-made using classic black European Leather. Ambient lighting of the dining car was inspired by images of ice caught in tree branches and it really looks like that. Leaving the impressive dining area, I walked into the well-designed galley across from the stairs to the upper level. I retraced my route back to the lower lounge at the other end of the car before going upstairs.

As you ascend, you are immediately aware of is the full 360 degree view from the upper level of the dome. The windows were the largest I had seen and provide a clear view over seated passengers. These cars have more interior dome space than any other dome car in service in Alaska. I tried one of the seats and found they are very wide, indeed they are the widest seats in any dome car built. In the wall is a headphone jack for a GPS-guided narration system, a six-channel music and emergency system. In case there was an emergency, these cars are equipped with eight emergency window exits. The front of the cars have a beverage service area and the onboard staff will carry handheld personal digital assistants for wait staff service to improve dining and cocktail service efficiency. For passenger comfort, each car is equipped with four separate air conditioning systems. The cars' interiors are smoke-free with smoking only permitted on the outdoor platform. Onboard luggage storage eliminates the passengers having to store their luggage under the seats as they have done in the past. I was completely impressed by all the features on the Knik.

I then walked through "Kenai", which has a complete kitchen unit in half of the lower level designed to create meals for all passengers. The other end of the lower level is a dining area for 44 passengers and there are stairs at both ends of the car leading to the upper level. I walked past the bathroom into the lounge area then through the sliding door is the outside viewing platform. Upstairs, the dome area is very similar to that of "Knik". I walked back through the lower area of both cars and thanked the cars' host for having me aboard.

I walked over to the Trainweb office and told Ray Burns about my visit and he had taken 360 degree virtual pictures yesterday. He then told me that Trainweb had been invited to ride a special train of the Holland America cars on Monday from Glendale to Santa Barbara and suggested that I go back over and ask if I could go along as well. So I did just that and found the correct person to ask and was happily told, "See you in Glendale on Monday." Now not only did I have the opportunity to tour these cars, I would be able to ride them as well. I walked back across the pedestrian bridge to Metrolink train 602 for my return to Santa Ana.

I was up early and drove to the Santa Ana station on a beautiful clear morning. This was definitely going to be a great day of train riding. Pacific Surfliner 763 arrived early and I chose a seat upstairs, reading USA Today and enjoying a cup of tea to Fullerton. I went back and found my dear friends from Trainweb.com, Steve Grande and Ray, the co-owners, and Shivam Surve, the technician, whom I would be joining on today's special train, as we followed a BNSF freight to Santa Fe Springs, where we crossed over and increased speed then passed the busy BNSF Hobart Yard before climbing the Redondo flyover across the Alameda Corridor and the Los Angeles River. We passed the Amtrak coach yards where our Holland America dome cars were being readied for our trip then went by Los Angeles Metro's Red Line maintenance yard before arriving at Los Angeles Union Station for a quick crew change. I saw my ever-friendly Metrolink conductor Jack Nealy and it was really good to see him. We departed on time, passed the Pasadena Gold Line and Metrolink shops, the remains of the Taylor Yard shops, before arriving at Glendale.

The four of us inspected the Glendale depot with its rod iron work and Southern Pacific herald. The only other time I had been here was in its pre-restoration days when I attended a "Yes" convention for that great progressive rock band after seeing the group live at the Greek Theater the night before. It was now train watching time with all these Metrolink trains, a Coast Starlight and two Union Pacific freight trains. The Starlight was a few minutes late due to a stuck baggage car door and we waited for our special train to arrive, seeking shelter in the shade from a very intense sun. There were a group of railfans who were also waiting for our train and they kept us up-to-date on its movement once they heard it on the radio.

Our two-car Holland America dome car train, led by Amtrak B32-8WH 511, arrived at 11:42 AM and the eleven passengers boarded at the back observation platform. Two minutes later, we were on the move and the plan was to run us non-stop to Santa Barbara. I went upstairs and chose one of the seats in the rear area of "Knik". The 360 degree view from the windows of the urban landscape was most noticeable and comparing the view from a standard full-length dome car, the larger windows are far superior. The ride was smooth and my seat really comfortable.

Amtrak 511 was really speeding our train along as we flew through Burbank, Burbank Airport and Van Nuys. I walked out onto the covered lower rear observation deck and while it was a little bit windy at 79 MPH on Metrolink's Ventura Subdivision, it would be perfect for the slower speeds of the Alaska Railroad, where these great cars were destined. I rode the rear platform from Van Nuys to Simi Valley, which included the trip through the Santa Susana Pass and tunnel, as well as those great rocks. Many Hollywood Western films were filmed in Santa Susana Pass over the years. The view was incredible as I saw things that I never had seen before. What a travelling experience I was having! These cars gave the best viewing, both inside and out.

I returned inside for a lunch at my seat of smoked salmon, chips, crackersand Coca Cola for a most satisfying meal. The fold-down table was quite easy to use and really sturdy The 360 degree view down the Simi Valley was incredible and we could not have asked for a clearer day. As we rounded the big curve west of Camarillo, one of the offshore islands stood out over the agricultural landscape. We briefly slowed for the curve at Oxnard before returning to track speed as this was by far the most impressive trip I had been on over this line. On such a clear day as this, these cars give a view one would dream of getting on a train. It was absolutely fantastic and I hope to one day have the opportunity to ride these cars in Alaska.

We crossed the Santa Clara River then made our way to Ventura where I returned to the open air platform for the journey along the California coast and a brand-new open air experience to Santa Barbara. The offshore islands were really visible as well as that great Pacific Ocean. The mountains were beautiful as was the fading rail miles.

It was an excellent and unique travel experience, one I will treasure forever. What a way to see the coast from a train to Santa Barbara! Everyone on board enjoyed their trip in their own way. However, it came to an end all too quickly as we arrived at 1:26 PM, just one hour and forty-three minutes, the fastest trip to Santa Barbara I had taken. I thanked our hosts for having me aboard and received a key chain and two Holland America pins. It was an incredible experience and one I will never forget. Thank you, Holland America!

I went across to State Street for a chocolate mint ice cream with plenty of time because our train was about ten minutes late in arriving from Goleta. We departed Santa Barbara with Ray, Steve, Shivam and I sitting in a four seater. Steve was using a GPS unit to plot our route and we had a pleasant trip back to Los Angeles, but the smaller windows on the Pacific Surfliner cars were very noticeable after that trip north. We had an eight minute fresh air stop at Van Nuys and arrived in Los Angeles fifteen minutes early where I detrained for more fresh air and learned that Amtrak was swapping out our engine. Did Amtrak have the new engine here and waiting for us? Of course not! If this train had been operated by VIA Rail Canada, the locomotive would have been waiting in the station when we arrived. I think Amtrak could really learn something from VIA Rail.

The new locomotive passed by my window at 5:17 PM and we departed at 5:28 PM {5:10}. At Fullerton, the Trainweb trio detrained and after a quick stop at Anaheim, we arrived at Santa Ana eighteen minutes late, bringing to an end another truly exciting day of train-riding. That evening, I was off to a video night at the Orange County Railway Historical Society meeting with an interesting story to tell of my day on Holland America's newest dome cars.

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