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The excursion's private railcar
"Sky View" sits on Track #24 at Chicago Union Station, ahead of our
284-mile trip to St. Louis, MO on April 23, 2016
Shortly after starting the APRHF Rail Rangers program in
July 2015, we got word of a possible private rail excursion taking place in
Spring 2016 between Chicago and Saint Louis, Missouri. Even though we both have
ridden the rail line several times before, we really hadn’t done much research
on this particular route. So, before the first flake of snow began to fall last
winter, we drove part of the route to learn about its history. This expanded
into three weekends of driving portions of the 284-mile route across Illinois.
One weekend we drove from Chicago to Joliet… the next weekend we drove from
Joliet to Springfield… and the final weekend we drove from Springfield to St.
Louis Gateway Station. As we have done with other routes, we drive as close as
possible to the tracks and take our time – stopping in various local museums,
chambers of commerce, and even stopping off at folks’ farms and homes to hear
their hometown stories. Driving the route from Chicago to St. Louis was
relatively easy compared to other routes, since much of the rail line is
paralleled by old U.S. Route 66, and present-day Interstate 55.
The Sears Tower (on the left in the above photo) can be seen just after leaving Chicago from private car "Sky View"
We got up early on the morning of Saturday, April 23rd
and drove from our house in Wadsworth, Illinois to Chicago Union Station.
Around 8:00am we met up with our fellow APRHF Rail Rangers Interpretive Guide,
Robert Neil. He lives in Des Plaines, Illinois, and came in on the Union
Pacific (ex-CN&W) Northwest Metra Line. We also met up with Mike Abernethy, the President of Zephyr Route, which was
chartering the dome car that we were riding on. If you are not familiar with
Mike and Zephyr Route… there is an interesting story there. Even though he was
a school teacher most of his life, Mike started out working for the Burlington
out of Chicago. In the past decade or two, he decided to purchase private
railcar Silver View (an ex-CB&Q round-end observation/dome car). He keeps
it out in northeast Iowa where it is undergoing restoration. In order to
support his restoration efforts, he charters private railcar trips around the
Midwest and uses the profit made for items he needs to re-build Silver View.
Mike was one of the original charter partners in the APRHF Rail Rangers
program. In fact, Mike let us do a “test run” of APRHF Rail Rangers in June
2015 on one of his trips to Hannibal, Missouri, even before the program
officially had a name or was announced to the public. Mike often charters his
cars from Iowa Pacific. His car of choice is often “Prairie View”, however for
this trip it was out in Virginia doing excursions with the N&W 611. So,
instead, we got “Sky View” for the trip to Saint Louis, an ex-Santa Fe Big
Dome.
Amtrak Conductor Michael Case
and APRHF Rail Rangers Director Kandace Tabern pose for a picture with
our new route guidebook for the Chicago-St. Louis route
Anyway, Robert Neil and Kandace helped Mike greet passengers
in the Great Hall of Chicago Union Station, while Robert Tabern got everything
set on the dome car. Set-up ahead of passengers getting on the train can often
take some time. APRHF Rail Rangers own two wireless speaker systems which are
used on our excursions; these were purchased by the APRHF for Trails &
Rails, but they are used now for Rail Rangers. Wireless speakers let passengers
on both end of the dome car clearly hear our narration, while the person doing
the narration can freely move about the car. APRHF Rail Rangers has also
partnered with Outside the Rails Guidebooks, which offered its Chicago to St. Louis
route guidebooks for sale on this trip. This company is owned by the two of us,
and the guidebooks were written from the notes that we took during the three
driving research trips we did last fall. This is an excellent service that we
are able to provide our private railcar partners. We have found that many private
railcar owners and excursion organizers have a lot to worry about when it comes
to the trips… and putting together a quality in-depth route guide often goes on
the back burner. That is another advantage that private railcar owners have
when they partner with APRHF Rail Rangers. Our volunteers put together the
route guides so they can worry about other aspects of the trips. The Chicago to
St. Louis route guidebook that we put together was over 100 pages long!
The view out of the dome car windows of the rest of Amtrak Train #303 at Joliet, IL on April 23, 2016
Around 8:45am everything was in place, and passengers began
to board “Sky View” for the southbound trip to St. Louis. Almost immediately
after boarding, passengers were served a warm breakfast of scrambled eggs,
bacon, cubed potatoes, and toast. We also began our narration rolling out of
Chicago Union Station. The first 37 miles of the train route, between Chicago
and Joliet, is on the Canadian National (ex-Illinois Central). Most of this portion of the route follows the
historic Illinois and Michigan (I&M) Canal… and there are many sites to see
and talk about. While many people may not have heard of the I&M Canal, it
marked a major transportation milestone for the United States. Before its
completion, if one wanted to travel between Chicago and New Orleans by boat,
they would have to head east through the Great Lakes, up the St. Lawrence
River, around the East Coast and Florida… and into the Gulf of Mexico. With the
completion of the approximately 100-miles I&M Canal, boats were able to
head directly down to St. Louis and New Orleans via the Canal and Illinois
River. While boats don’t use the I&M Canal anymore, several of its locks
and dams are still around. In fact, a few are even visible from the train line.
There are also many refineries and other factories that we told passengers
about. Around 10:30am, we pulled into
Joliet Union Station. Amtrak recently closed the historic building and moved to
a smaller station; the old building will be used for special events.
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APRHF Rail Rangers Interpretive Guide Robert Neil (left) explains the history behind the Illinois & Michigan Canal
Just north of Joliet, the route switches from Canadian
National to Union Pacific. We stayed on the Union Pacific route all the way to
St. Louis – except small stretches that are jointly owned by Norfolk Southern,
Kansas City Southern, and the Terminal Railway of St. Louis. Three of the major
themes of our presentation to passengers throughout the day were about Abraham
Lincoln, coal mining, and Route 66.
The train route between Chicago and St. Louis goes through
Springfield, which was the home for many years of our 16th
President. Many passengers found it interesting that Abraham Lincoln rode the
very rail line that we were riding – both as part of his campaign for the Oval
Office in 1860 – and sadly, for his funeral train between Washington, DC and
Springfield, Illinois. Coal mining is a
major industry in central Illinois. Interpretive Guide Robert Neil pointed out
a four-mile-long coal conveyor belt that runs along the tracks; it’s part of
the Viper Mine. If you are going southbound, it can be seen off on the left
side of the train between Lincoln and Springfield. There are still many active
coal mines the train passes through. Finally, many stretches of old Route 66
can be seen from the train route between Chicago and St. Louis. U.S. Route 66 was one of the original federal
highways created in 1926; it ran from Chicago to St. Louis… down to Oklahoma
City… across the northern part of Texas… through New Mexico and Arizona… before
passing through Los Angeles and ending at Santa Monica Pier on the Pacific
Ocean in California. It was immortalized by the television show and other
media. Through the 1970’s and early 1980’s, many stretches of Route 66 were
replaced by various Interstate Highways; in Illinois, it was Interstate
55. Since the interstate went around
towns, and Route 66 went through towns, many stretches of the original highway
can still be seen today. Viewing the old roadway bed is especially good from
the train, since it was often built parallel to the tracks. These are just
three of many topics that we shared with our passengers.
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Private railcar "Sky View" makes a stop at the historic Dwight, Illinois Amtrak Station
Around 1:00pm lunch came out and was enjoyed by all –
including choices of a cheeseburger, club sandwich, or chicken Caesar Salad –
and a wide variety of drinks and desserts.
If you have never been part of one of the excursions that APRHF Rail
Rangers partners on, the meals are just as great as our narration. These are
not your typical fast food, or even Amtrak meals. Chefs with Iowa Pacific
prepare all meals from scratch onboard. Looking in the kitchen, we didn’t even
see a microwave or convection oven to be had. Robert Neil and Robert Tabern
both had the cheeseburger and commented to the chef how it was one of the best
burgers they ever had. The chef commented that he and his co-workers actually
grounded the meat by hand and rolled the hamburger patties out before putting
them on the grill. Amazing service like this on a train exists today! But it
works – it was one of the best burgers we’ve had in a long time. Kandace’s club
sandwich was so huge she wasn’t even able to finish it! Not only are you riding in a historic 1950’s
dome car – you are getting meals prepared fresh aboard like passengers in the
1950’s got to experience them. This is all part of the experience and makes it
well worth the ticket prices that are charged for private railcar trips.
Passengers had the chance to purchase one of eight books written by APRHF Rail Rangers Directors Robert & Kandace Tabern
Around 2:45pm we were crossing the Mississippi River and
heading into Downtown St. Louis. We explained to passengers there were actually
two different routes that Amtrak uses to access Gateway Station. One route goes
over the Merchant Bridge – and the other goes over the MacArthur Bridge. It
seems like most trains, especially recently, have been using the MacArthur
Bridge. This bridge goes by the Gateway Geyser – the tallest water fountain in
the United States. Three times a day it shoots water 630 feet high – the same
height as the Gateway Arch right across the river. We explained to our
passengers that the only other higher water fountain is located at the King’s
palace in Saudi Arabia! Going the MacArthur Bridge route – you also get a
sweeping view of the St. Louis Skyline coming in. If the train would have taken
the Merchants Bridge route – the train goes under tunnels under the Saint Louis
Arch – you can look up and see the tallest monument in the United States out
your window.
APRHF Rail Rangers Director Kandace Tabern narrates about Route 66 while passing through Chenoa, IL
The train arrived in St. Louis a few minutes early.
Passengers were given a full 26 hour turn-around time to enjoy the sights of
the city. Zephyr Route offered passengers an optional trolley tour of the city,
while others headed out on their own to take a riverboat ride or buy tickets to
go up on the Arch. It was also the hockey playoffs between the Chicago
Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues – so there were also a fair numbers of our
passengers who were going to hit the hotel and watch sports. Almost immediately upon getting all of our
passengers off, the conductors came aboard “Sky View” to inform us that we
could either get our equipment off now, or we could stay on for a bit and go
around the wye with them. Who isn’t up for some “rare mileage”, so we stayed on
the train and go to on the riverfront wye. Part of the wye goes through one of
the tunnels under the Arch that we would have gotten to go through if we came
in over the Merchants Bridge – so it was fun to have the best of both views.
The train got back to the station around 3:30pm and “Sky View” was cut off from
the rest of the consist – as it was going to be turned to go back to Chicago
later that evening.
"Sky View" makes a stop at the new intermodal station in Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
The two of us, and Robert Neil, enjoyed our free time in St.
Louis for the rest of the evening. We stayed at the Crowne Plaza St. Louis
Riverfront, while the passengers who were part of the trip stayed at the hotel
by the old Union Station. We had to wait a long time to check-in due to some
high school and college dances that were going on at the hotel, but were
rewarded for our patience with an upgrade to a full suite. We were sad to learn
that the Crowne Plaza might be upgraded into condos sometime soon. We walked
around the Arch Grounds for much of the afternoon – a lot of the park area is
being torn up for a new visitor center that is being built (it will open in
2017).
APRHF Rail Rangers Executive
Director narrates for passengers about Lincoln, Illinois; it was named
for Abraham Lincoln before he became President in 1861
After a restful night’s sleep, we got on the northbound
Texas Eagle to head home. Just four days after this APRHF Rail Rangers
excursion, we had a major cross-country train trip planned and wanted to get
home early. Passengers returned back to
Chicago with Interpretive Guide Robert Neil the following evening on Train
#306; it left St. Louis at 5:30pm and got into Chicago just after 11:00pm.
Robert kept everyone entertained with additional stories that we did not share
with them going north.
A view of the Illinois State Capitol from the dome car windows of "Sky View"
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APRHF Rail Rangers Director Kandace Tabern points out the St. Louis Gateway Arch to passengers from the train
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Excursion organizer Mike Abernethy even provided some narration for the group about the history of St. Louis, MO
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After a nearly 6 hour trip, our time aboard "Sky View" comes to an end at St. Louis' Gateway Station
If you missed this APRHF Rail Rangers excursion between
Chicago and St. Louis, you are not totally out of luck. We have several other
exciting events coming up later this summer and fall. On Friday, June 3, 2016, our interpretive guides
will be on a private railcar excursion between Chicago, La Plata, Missouri, and
Kansas City. This trip is sponsored by American Rail Excursions; passengers
will be going on a five-day tour of the “Iron Triangle” between Chicago, St.
Louis, and Kansas City. For you steam engine fans, get ready to hit the rails
with APRHF Rail Rangers on Saturday, June 4. Our interpretive
guides will be aboard selling custom-made route guides and providing narration
services for Premium Class Passengers going from Minneapolis to Duluth,
Minnesota. A third APRHF Rail Rangers event will take place in June. On
Saturday, June 26, join our guides again as we travel on a Zephyr
Route excursion between Chicago, Galesburg, and Quincy, IL/Hannibal, MO. Limited seating is still available for this
trip – it is very likely to sell out very soon! The APRHF Rail Rangers will offer its
keynote excursion of 2016 between Friday, September 9 and Sunday,
September 11
– as a private car trip is planned to La Plata,
Missouri for the first time ever. Participants will enjoy a 600-mile
roundtrip
rail ride through Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri, two nights at the Depot
Inn
& Suites, and a guided all-day tour of Northeast Missouri – ending
with a
cook-out along the tracks done by none-other than APRHF President Bob
Cox and APRHF
Vice-President Amy Cox. On Saturday, October 1st, APRHF Rail Rangers
are partnering with the Friends of the Cumbers and Toltec to offer an
open-platform lounge car excursion between Chicago, La Plata, MO, and
Kansas City. APRHF Rail Rangers will also offer a fall colors
excursion the second weekend in October between Chicago and St. Paul,
Minnesota. As you can see, there are a lot of exciting events ahead
this year
for APRHF Rail Rangers. We encourage those interested to follow us on
facebook
at www.facebook.com/railrangers
and check out our website at www.railrangers.org
for an always “up to date” listing of our excursions and outreach events.