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The Trip to Fort Worth aboard the Sunset Limited and Texas Eagle 12/27/2006 to 12/29/2006

Chris Parker and I decided to take a trip to Texas between Christmas and the New Year, riding ride several trains that neither of us had ridden before. Chris flew into Dallas-Fort Worth and I took the Sunset Limited and Texas Eagle to meet him.

My mother drove me to the Santa Ana station and dropped me off at the corner of the northeast parking lot which made it easy to walk to the east platform via the Santa Ana Boulevard grade crossing. It was a rather windy early afternoon as I waited for Pacific Surfliner 573 to take me to Los Angeles Union Station.

As I finished my first Sudoku puzzle of the trip, Metrolink 811, on its way to San Juan Capistrano, arrived.

The train arrived with the following consist: Surfliner cab car 6903, coaches 6407 and 6453, café/coach 6302, Pacific Business Class 6802 and F59PHI 456. We departed on time and made our way to Anaheim, Fullerton and Norwalk before making the final sprint to Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal, arriving on Track 12. The Sunset Limited would be reversing in across the platform on Track 11.

At 1:45 PM, the Sunset Limited reversed in with P42DCs 47 and 97, baggage 1172, transition 39005, sleeper 32045, diner 38018, lounge 33097, coaches 35002, 34016 and 34097 with my sleeper 32057. Cars 34097 and 32057 are the through cars for the Texas Eagle, known as Train 422. My sleeping car attendant, as far as San Antonio, was Lloyd Berry from El Paso, Texas. I walked down the platform for a picture of the train and it was raining again then returned to my room and started listening to Billy Joel's "Stormfront" prior to our on-time afternoon departure.

Our train passed Mission Tower as we left Los Angeles via San Gabriel.

Crossing the Los Angeles River.

Going through East Bank Junction.

Yuma Junction.

Yard power could be seen at LATC, Union Pacific's intermodal yard, with downtown Los Angeles in the background.

We entered the Alhambra Trench and passed a Union Pacific freight train.

The Alhambra Trench, which was constructed in 1977 and opened in Novembre 1978. Its main purpose was to eliminate several grade crossings. Prior to the trench, it was not uncommon for eastbound trains to have to wait at the end of double track (located near the Marengo Avenue crossing east of the depot site) for westbound traffic to clear, thus blocking crossings.

After we passed Mission San Gabriel, I returned from the rear door to my room and relaxed to Pomona before walking through the train which was completed after the Ontario station stop. Back in my room, I listened to Jethro Tull's "Heavy Horses", my next late afternoon musical choice. We were stopped by a Union Pacific double stack train at South Fontana for a few minutes after I received a 6:00 PM dinner reservation.

At least the traffic on the San Bernardino Freeway was moving while we waited for the train to pass. On the move again after a second Union Pacific freight, we passed West Colton Yard before crossing over at CP Ramona, just before the BNSF crossing at the former site of Colton Tower.

I went to the lounge car for the ride up San Timiteo Canyon and over Beaumont Hill. At Loma Linda, we crossed back over to the north main and later passed an eastbound Union Pacific freight at Hinda. We continued with no delays over "The Hill" to Palm Springs, a fresh air stop, which I passed on because of the cold windy conditions. Union Pacific 2424 West went through during our station stop. At MP 606.1, I passed my 969,000.0 rail mile before being called for dinner. Roy and Joyce, going to Dallas, joined me in the dining car this evening and I ordered the beef ragout and Mississippi Mud cake then returned to my darkened room for an evening of more Jethro Tull music as I enjoyed the clear desert night. I called it a night after Yuma, making up my room, climbing into my bed and dreaming the night away!

12/28/2006 I woke up two states later as the train was speeding east towards Deming, New Mexico. In the early morning darkness, I prepared myself for the day and went to the lounge car to wait for breakfast then at 7:00 AM, the dining car opened and I was seated with Pete on his way to Houston. I enjoyed French Toast and sausage patties and we crossed the Rio Grande River into El Paso, Texas with Ciudad Juarez to the south of the International Border.

The Sunset Limited in the station.

The very impressive El Paso Union Station built in 1905. Seven companies, including the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe and the Texas and Pacific each had stations scattered throughout El Paso by 1902. This led to confusion and traffic when passengers needed to transfer from one line to another. Calls for a "union" station to unite all the rail services in one building became strong. A building fund was initiated in 1899 with a donation of $500; two years later this was taken over by a Terminal Association, charged with promoting a new union station. In 1903, famed Chicago architect and city planner Daniel Burnham was awarded the contract for the new structure, which was completed by 1906.

Constructed in red brick, the new Union Depot was designed primarily in the neoclassical style, a Burnham trademark. A large porch with grouped pillars and arched openings welcomed visitors. Balance and symmetry were important in the overall composition, as well as the use of classical elements such as pillars, quoins, balustrades, and elaborate cornices. The station featured a six story bell tower topped with a tall spire, reminiscent of older Victorian rail depots. The total cost for the structure was $260,000, and on opening night in February 1906, more than 10,000 persons arrived to admire downtown’s new landmark.

In addition to seeing dozens of trains pass through every day, the depot's second floor featured a Harvey House restaurant, part of a famous chain of eateries associated with the ATSF. Known for gracious service and fine meals, the dining room was at the top of the city’s culinary scene, remembered fondly for the lobster and raw oysters shipped by rail. Interestingly, the El Paso Depot was America’s first international rail station, as Mexico Central trains crossed the Rio Grande from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. By uniting all of the rail lines in one central structure, downtown witnessed the construction of numerous hotels, banks, and other businesses positioned to benefit from proximity to the transportation hub.

The Mexican Revolution of 1910-20 saw intense fighting in Ciudad Juarez. El Paso became a safe haven for refugees and exiled political leaders. It is said that Mexican revolutionary war general Pancho Villa used Union Depot's bell tower as a lookout position during an attack on Ciudad Juarez. At this time, Villa was actively sought by Gen. John J. Pershing, based at nearby Ft. Bliss, for his cross border raids into New Mexico. By the 1940's, the popular appeal of Southwestern architecture had taken hold in El Paso and a women's group advocated for the remodeling of the station in a "regionally appropriate" style. Subsequently, the bell tower's steeple was removed; the red brick was covered with cream colored stucco; the roof was recovered in red tiles; and the surrounding iron fence was replaced with an adobe wall. It was this version of the building that would welcome Elvis Presley in 1958.

Losing passengers after the mid-twentieth century, the depot was shuttered in 1974 and put up for sale the next year. In response to abandonment, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975, highlighting its importance to the community. In time, the city decided to purchase the structure for $925,000 to house its local transit system, Sun Metro. Using federal, state, and local grants, Mayor Ray Salazar's administration funded a restoration that began in 1982. Paint was removed from the brick, the tower's spire was rebuilt, woodwork was cleaned, and marble imported from Italy was used to reface the wainscoting of the waiting room.

The main entrance.

The train board inside the station.

The Amtrak ticket counter.

The interior of the Station Hall.

100 Years of El Paso Union Station display. I bought a newspaper and returned to the train.

Sleeping Car attendant Lloyd Berry and our sleeping car passengers were enjoying our early arrival.

I was at the rear of our train when a westbound Union Pacific came by en route to the mainline fuelling racks just west of the station. We departed on time and continued eastbound to our next station of Alpine.

Leased power in Union Pacific's yard. I put on Jethro Tull's "Crest of the Knave" on this extremely stormy western Texas morning.

As we neared Sierra Blanca, the clouds hid the mountain peaks from my gaze.

The mesas east of there.

To the south one could see the Rio Grande River and Mexico. As we continued on, it became time to listen to Queen's "Live Killers". The book I was reading was "Wicked, the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West" by Gregory Maguire. We were stopped briefly at Aragon for a track inspection truck to clear the mainline so we could continue.

Union Pacific 4451 East at Paisano Junction.

Our crossing of Paisano Pass, the highest point on the Southern Pacific's Sunset Route. We arrived in Alpine early at 1:42 PM and had an extended fresh air stop.

The sleeping car passengers were really able to enjoy the fresh air.

Downtown Alpine.

The Welcome to Alpine, Texas" sign at the rear of a petrol station.

Sleeping Car Attendant Lloyd Berry kept on eye on his sleeping car passengers. The Sunset Limited departed on time and we made it just to the next siding, Strobel, where we pulled in behind an eastbound freight to wait for some westbound trains.

First, the westbound Sunset Limited came by on its way to Alpine about an hour late. We followed that freight one siding east to Lenox, where we took that siding.

Union Pacific 5547 West came by and had to clear the block before we could reverse onto the mainline and continue.

On the move again, we finally passed Union Pacific 3657 East at Lenox. My next musical selection was Emerson, Lake & Palmer's "Live".

We passed through Sanderson forty-five minutes late after the delays at Strobel and Lenox. Darkness fell long before we reached the Pecos River High Bridge. At 6:00 PM, I was called to the dining car and was seated with Patsy from Oklahoma City and enjoyed a half-baked chicken and another piece of Mississippi Mud Cake. I finished dinner just before Del Rio, our next fresh air stop and a westbound Union Pacfici freight passed by while we were in the station. A refreshing shower was next before I returned to my room to read more of "Wicked" and listen to Deep Purple's "Under the Gun" then I made up my room and called it a night. The Sunset Limited arrived in San Antonio just after 11:00 PM, a little over thirty minutes late.

At 5:00 AM, I arose to record the consist of the Texas Eagle to which our through cars for Chicago had been added to earlier this morning. Thus, the train's consist was P42DC 19, sleepers 32115 and 32057, coach 34097, diner 38038, lounge 33001 and coaches 31017 and 34052. As you can tell, the through cars 32057 and 34097 were cut into the consist instead of being added to the rear of the train as they had been in the past. I went back to bed and we departed San Antonio on time with me sound asleep. Twenty minutes before San Marcos, I awoke and dressed before going to the lounge car for a cinnamon roll and orange juice. Since the dining car crew boards the train in Austin, passengers received a boxed breakfast that did not really appeal to me. I rode in the lounge car until near Austin with some local railfans pointing out things along the route on this cloudy morning.

The train crossed the Colorado River of Texas just before our fresh air stop at Austin.

Our train at the station, after which I went inside. It started to rain as we made our way to Taylor and Motley Cr üe's "20th Century Masters" was my first musical choice this morning.

Scene between Taylor and Temple.

After Taylor, we turned north onto the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas line for the run to the former Santa Fe connection just before Temple, where one of the large hospitals is located on the outskirts. Temple was also the next fresh air stop.

The Texas Eagle at rest.

Santa Fe 4-6-2 3423 built by Baldwin in 1921. It was retired in 1952, donated to City of Temple in 1955 and moved to its current location at the Temple Railroad Museum in 2001. During the stop, it became lunch time so I went to the diner and was seated with Alan and Jennifer going to Chicago from Austin. I had the Angus beef burger and chocolate cake as we made our way to McGregor. Back in my room, Guns N' Roses' "Appetite for Destruction" was the next musical selection of this dark, cloudy and rainy early afternoon.

We stopped in Cleburne and here is part of the former Santa Fe shops where CF7s and other locomotives were built. From here, we continued toward Fort Worth, where, with no delays at Tower 55, we arrived at the Fort Worth Transportation Center at 2:18 PM where I detrained.

The Texas Eagle at rest at Fort Worth.

Chris Parker and I met inside the station and we put my luggage into the boot of the rented Ford Taurus then walked over to the Texas and Pacific station in a light rain to catch the Trinity Railway Express (TRE) to Dallas, buying our tickets and going upstairs to board the waiting train. Named after the Trinity River, the West Fork of which flows from Fort Worth to Dallas, the TRE was launched on December 30, 1996, shortly after the inaugural service of Dallas' DART light rail system, operating from Dallas Union Transit Station to the South Irving Transit Station. It runs along a former Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad line that the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth purchased in 1983 for $34 million.

Chris Parker aboard TRE Train 2932.

The author. Since I had written about my trips on the TRE in April 2003, I will only make a few comments this time. This was Chris Parker's first experience aboard the Trinity Railway Express and we had a very enjoyable ride on this very dark late afternoon. Before we arrived at Dallas Union Station, we had to wait for my Texas Eagle to Chicago to arrive.

I photographed TRE 2932 and we visited the station before walking two blocks to a Subway sandwich shop for dinner, returning in pouring rain with strong gusty winds. We bought Premium day passes, then boarded a DART train for Westmoreland, whose route shares the tracks with the trains going to Ledbetter, where I had ridden before as far as the 8th & Corinth station. We stopped at the Convention Center and Cedars before crossing the Trinity River and came to the 8th & Corinth station. At the junction just south of there, we turned right onto brand new trackage. In the pouring rain, we stopped at the Dallas Zoo Station (just to the west), Tyler/ Vernon, Hampton and on to the last stop on this line at Westmoreland.

Our DART train departed Westmoreland and Chris and I enjoyed the light show that Mother Nature provided for us as we returned to Dallas Union Station. We boarded the soon-to-depart TRE Train 2935 for the return to the Fort Worth Transportation Center and our car. It was a great night to be safe inside a train as it poured and we counted the seconds after the flashes of lightning until it thundered; a few times there were no seconds between. It was interesting to watch people run for their cars in the pouring rain across flooded parking lots at the various stations. Lightning knocked out the trackside signals before the Hurst/Bell station and our conductor did a great job of keeping us informed during these delays. At Fort Worth, Chris and I thanked the conductor for the safe trip back before we walked across street to the car.

It does not rain like this back home in Southern California. With all this nasty weather and President Bush's motorcade on its way to Crawford, Texas, Chris and I decided to stay off Interstate 30 and took Lancaster/Division Street as we drove east. The rain and wind was incredible as we slowly made our way towards Arlington and the mess to the Best Western Southland Inn and escaped that wild weather for the night.

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