A tour of Holland America 1058 and 1059, page two

We'll conclude our tour of Holland America 1058 and 1059 with a look at the upper levels of both cars, and some views of the cars during delivery. If you missed the first half of this tour, you can backtrack and find it here.

On the A end of the 1059 (That's above the kitchen, while the B end is the platform end) there is a wait station and the stairs to the lower level. One other slight adjustment from the other cars is the inclusion of real tiles instead of linoleum on the floor.

A closer look at the wait station of the 1059, which also includes the in-car PA system and a coffee maker, sink and refrigerator. Note the little tables in front of the first row of seats. The blue strip in the stair is tape covering the glow in the dark strips on the leading edges of the stairs.

On the other end of the 1059 is the wheelchair lift and another stairway downstairs. Both stairs are tiled like the service bar area. All of the seats opposite the wheelchair lift can be moved around to allow for access to wheelchair tiedowns.

As shown in the 1058, both cars are decorated in the same combination of patterns that was introduced in the 1050-1053. The intent of the design is to provide a visual break in the 89 foot long interior. My feelings haven't changed much in that regard. I did find out however that the pattern of the carpet is extremely good at hiding stains. That seems handy.

That's right, we're in the middle of the road! After several days of summery conditions, the 1059 and 1058 departed Denver under rainy skies on the rear of the M-DENLAU-14. Here we get a passenger's eye view of the surprisingly patient traffic as the train makes its way through several blocks of street running in Ft. Collins, CO.

Sure it might have been over 80 degrees the day before, but as the cars rolled through southern Wyoming, the temperature had been cleaved in half, then dove even lower, and the rain gave way to snow flurries. For just such occasions, the cars are equipped with full freeze protection, including heated wraps around all of the water pipes under the car, all of which performed flawlessly in this real-world test.

Colorado Railcar's new cars are delivered via freight train. Here, the 1058 and 1059 bring up the markers of train M-LAUPAS-1-13 as it meets an eastbound manifest train at Eddy, MT. Both trains are BNSF runthrough trains on Montana Rail Link.

Nearing Tacoma, the BNSF line from Vancouver, WA skirts along Puget Sound for about 15 miles, allowing views like this one of the power of M-PASINB-2-15A in Stillacoom, WA.

I hope that you have enjoyed this up close and personal tour through Holland America's newest dome cars. For a close look at Alaska Railroad's barge loading process, featuring the 1058 and 1059, click here. I hope that the tours provided on this site serve to arouse your interest in taking your own ultradome adventures! Thanks for visiting.

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