Trip Reports: June 24 to July 11, 2004
by Ted & Sylvia Blishak
"Overland Trail and Pacific Sands"
PRIVATE RAILCARS BEHIND THE COAST STARLIGHT
Day 1: Thursday, June 24: Klamath Falls, Oregon. Bill Hatrick, snappily dressed in a vintage dark-blue Southern Pacific conductor's uniform, including vest, gold buttons and watch chain, strides along the platform at the Klamath Falls Station to meet and escort us to his private lounge/diner "Overland Trail", coupled to the end of Amtrak Train 14, the northbound Coast Starlight. Bill is operating an overnight charter with his railcar, in tandem with the 10-roomette, six-bedroom sleeper "Pacific Sands", owned by Doug Spina. Bill and Doug have a group of 18 passengers traveling from Los Angeles to Portland, with a side trip on the Lewis and Clark train from Portland to Astoria. (Another such trip will depart on August 26th. )
Since "Overland Trail" can seat 39 day passengers, Bill has graciously invited us to join his group aboard the private-car consist for a short trip from our home in Klamath Falls to Salem.
Our day had started when the alarm clock woke us at 4:45am. Ted checked the Amtrak web site. The Coast Starlight was running two hours and 36 minutes behind schedule -- good news, as we wouldn't be inconvenienced by the train's scheduled 8:25am departure -- and we went back to sleep.
When we call the station at 7am, we are advised that the expected arrival time is 11am, so we plan to arrive by 10:00am to check our baggage.
Our new webmaster, rail enthusiast Craig Bass, whose company is called A Site 2 See, has come to the station to meet us in person for the first time. We hope you will enjoy the new look that he is developing for our website. I especially enjoy the flashing lights he added last night (his own idea) to the grade-crossing-signal photo on our home page.
The northbound Coast Starlight finally whistles in at 1pm.
Sylvia's Travel Tip: When riding on a private railcar, which will always be at the rear of the train, wear thick-soled walking shoes. The private railcars are so far behind this lengthy train that the paved platform isn't long enough and you'll be walking on ballast (fist-shaped sharp rocks that support the ties and rails). My thin-soled white flats make walking hazardous and the rocks leave scrape-marks on them.
Bill's sharp-looking conductor's uniform looks as if his tailor just made it to order. But it is entirely authentic -- he picked it up at a railfan's swap meet! Once on board, he dons a lounge car steward's white coat with brass buttons and the name of the car, "Overland Trail" embroidered in gold thread. Soon he's serving beverages from the mirrored quarter circle bar in the center of the car. Originally built for Southern Pacific for use on its Overland Route, it features table and lounge chair seating for 39, a barber shop (!), and a small kitchen behind the bar. Curtains, chairs, tables, lamps, and carpet are all from the Andrews Sisters era, as is the background music. Except for today's casually dressed passengers, we could be time-travelers back in 1949!
A light luncheon is served as we depart Klamath Falls; a well seasoned mixed green salad with fresh strawberries, followed by a bowl of corn chowder with fresh rolls and butter. From the bar there is a short, but excellent selection of wine, beer, and cocktails. The specialty soft drink menu lists 12 flavors of Stewart's Fountain Classics, such as cream soda and peach soda, not your everyday flavors.
The air is crystal clear, affording wonderful views of the still snow-covered Cascade volcanoes; Mt. McLoughlin, Mt. Scott, Mt. Thielsen, and Diamond Peak. Although we are accumulating further delays due to Union Pacific's difficulties in dispatching trains, the passengers are in a congenial, relaxed and friendly mood.
Travel Tip: Traveling with a group by private railcar is a great way to meet other people, as you'll be sitting in a lounge area with others during the day, as well as dining at tables for four.
All residents of the parched cities of Southern California, the other passengers consider the morning's delay a bonus as they got to see the snow-and-glacier covered Mt. Shasta from many angles. They are awed by the scenery of Southern Oregon, which changes so dramatically from Klamath's sage and juniper desert to snow-covered peaks on the other side of Upper Klamath Lake to the brilliant green rain-forest of the Cascades with its pines, ferns, waterfalls, and wild rhododendrons.
While the rough tracks through the Cascades on a Superliner II Amtrak car usually make it a "hold on for dear life" challenge when walking through the train, the ride on this vintage Pullman is remarkably smooth.
Union Pacific dispatchers continue to run us further and further behind schedule. That timeworn excuse about "too much traffic on the line" is finally becoming a reality as we are shifted into sidings, stalled, and sometimes forced to back out of sidings which are also holding freight trains, in railroad parlance, a "sawby", according to an old timer on board.
By the time we reach Eugene, it is 7pm, or 6 ½ hours behind schedule. As we are sitting in the station, the southbound Starlight arrives, nearly two hours behind schedule. Due to the cumulative delays of our train, "Pacific Sands" has run out water, and we take some at Eugene. Amtrak won't permit us to take the time to fill the tanks, so the order of the evening is no showers until the tanks are filled in Portland tonight. Our ETA in Portland is now 10pm. Fortunately, the "Overland Trail" chef is prepared for delays, and serves hot snacks followed by a light buffet dinner.
Doug reveals that this is the "Overland Trail's" first long-distance trip since Bill has owned the car. Bill ordinarily does day runs from LA to San Diego, with special theme trips on Flag Day and Pearl Harbor Day. Some passengers dress in 1940s style, and World War II survivors are invited along to give testimony about their experiences.
The two cars are also available for private charter, and would be a wonderful venue for family reunions or special occasion get-togethers. An ideal private group size would be sixteen individuals.
If you'd like to book one of the organized trips (an identical itinerary to ours will take place from August 26th through the 31st ), or arrange a charter from any stop on the Coast Starlight route, please give Accent on Travel USA a call at 1 800 347 0645.
Continue to Next Page
Back to this trip's index page
