Day4

Day4

TO PORTLAND AND CHICAGO BY RAIL, 6/10/08 TO 6/17/08

by Fred Dunn

Day 4

Friday, June 13

After breakfast at the hotel, I decided to explore the Skidmore Old Town Historic District. I passed a narrow building with the inscription "Bishop's House" in stone over the door. But no church was nearby. Maybe it once stood on the parking lot next to the Bishop's house.

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New Market Block, 1872

Erickson Saloon, 1895

Mother's Bistro & Bar

Bishop's House (Where's his church?

I had to check out of the hotel by 12:00 p.m., so I headed back, but decided to stop at Jake's for a quick lunch. I had a bowl of Manhattan clam chowder, which came with half a loaf of sourdough bread. I then went back to the hotel, checked out, and took the trolley from SW Stark St., one block from the hotel, to NW Glisan St., which is about halfway to Union Station. I walked the rest of the way. I deposited my bags in the Metropolitan Lounge in the station, and then walked around the station area.

Portland Union Station

Cascades train in station

At 1:40 p.m., the southbound Coast Starlight, #11, arrived at Portland. This is the train that left LAUPT as #14 on June 11, the day after the inauguration of the upgraded Pacific Parlor Service. I had heard that this train left without a Pacific Parlor Car, and seeing it in Portland proved that to be true. It had no Parlor Car, and no equipment was substituted to replace it. That really is a sad commentary on Amtrak's shortage of equipment and lack of funding, considering that this was only one day after the inauguration of the upgraded Parlor Car service.

While snooping around the track platform area, (while trying to avoid the rent-a-cops, whose job is to keep everyone off the platforms) I saw what appeared to be the Portland Empire Builder consist sitting outside the station. I was somewhat apprehensive however, because it consisted of two coaches and one sleeper, but no lounge. The Portland section of the Empire Builder is supposed to have the lounge car and the Seattle section has the diner. I went back to the Metropolitan Lounge and asked the attendant about the missing lounge car. He checked the computer, and said it was taken off of the westbound Empire Builder, and a replacement will be on the Seattle section.

When planning my trip, I didn't pay attention to the fact that I would be starting my Empire Builder travel on Friday the 13^th. Maybe I should have.

The Portland section of the Empire Builder, consisting of two coaches and one sleeper, left on time at 4:45 p.m. I was in room #10, the last room of the last car. One advantage was that I could look out the window of the rear door of the car. Leaving Portland, we crossed the Willamette River, and then crossed the Columbia River to Hayden Island. From Hayden Island, we crossed the Columbia River again to Vancouver.

Crossing Willamette River

Crossing Columbia River to Hayden Island

Crossing Columbia River from Hayden Island

OnVancouver side of river

Vancouver Station

After leaving Vancouver, our car attendant, Dan Foley, distributed our box dinners, which we ate in our rooms. We had a choice of three items: beef, shrimp or chicken. I choose the "fiesta chicken", which consisted of a chicken breast on a bed of greens with pico de gallo and fire roasted corn and peppers. It came with fresh fruit salad and a pastry for dessert. For a cold boxed meal, it was actually very good. For beverage, we had a choice of champagne or sparkling cider.

We proceeded up the Columbia River Gorge, which was the part of the trip that I most wanted to see. Unfortunately, my room was on the opposite side of the car, and since there was no lounge car, it made sightseeing difficult. Most of the pictures below were taken through the window of the rear door of my sleeper car.