A train trip from San Francisco to Chicago on Amtrak's California Zephyr. The trip takes about three days and two nights.
This was recorded in late August 2022.
There was too much info for one video so here are a few additional tidbits:
- The "tipping rock" mentioned in the video seems to be called the "rocking stone." It's located in Truckee, California and no longer rocks. Here's someone else's video of it: • The Rocking Stone in T...
- I used Amtrak Vacations to book the trip, which put me on the lower level. This meant less foot traffic and less rocking, but I'd book an upper-level room on future rides for better views.
- We were 6.5 hours late arriving in Chicago, which was the same as my previous trip. This was mainly due to ceding the right-of-way to freight traffic. At one point, we stopped while three freight trains passed us. Amtrak doesn't own most tracks in the U.S.
- The weather was 65 F (18 C) in San Francisco and 90 F (32 C) in Reno later that day. Temperatures can vary significantly.
- We had about two fresh air breaks a day where we could exit the train for 10-15 minutes.
- We passed through Moffat Tunnel in Colorado, which is 6.2 miles (10 kilometers). It's a cool tunnel but there was no good way to represent it in the video. All footage was either pitch black or else reflections from the windows.
- Tipping is standard both at meals and for the room attendant at the end of the trip. I couldn't find good info online but left about $2-$3 at meals and $40 at the end of the trip. This seemed to be in line with what frequent Amtrak travelers suggested.
- The train is largely divided by long-distance travelers in sleeper cars and short-distance day trippers in coach cars. I got to know many of those in the sleeper cars by the end of the trip.
- The train parallels major roads much of the way with a few exceptions. Near the Utah-Colorado border, you'll see some canyons only accessible by train or raft along the Colorado River.
- Speaking of the Colorado River, it's also known as "Moon River" due to the number of rafters who moon the train. There were probably 100 backsides presented. It's a strong case for travel during the colder seasons.
- Amtrak has a great train tracking map that shows the train's current location, ETA (although dubious), and other Amtrak trains across the country. www.amtrak.com/services/maps....
0:00 - Intro and map
0:34 - Bus ride to the train
1:49 - Boarding the train
3:08 - Traveling through California
4:31 - Train walkthrough
6:26 - Nevada
7:34 - Bedroom turndown service
7:54 - Utah
10:24 - Colorado
10:50 - Shower and bathroom review
11:26 - Along the Colorado River
13:00 - Arriving in Denver
13:44 - Nebraska
14:15 - Iowa
14:36 - Roomette feature review
16:30 - Menu and food review
17:09 - The Mississippi River
17:40 - Illinois
18:30 - Arriving in Chicago