Our day of departure finally arrived and, in order to be sure that we were in Sacramento (a 4-hour drive) on time we left the night before and 'moteled' it about an hour from the train station. We arrived for our 11 AM departure in plenty of time to find out that the train would be 5-hours late due to troubles on their previous trip from Chicago to the west coast. We had yet to discover that AMTRAK schedules are estimates at best. Luckily the train station is within walking distance of the Sacramento "Old Town" river district and we were able to amuse ourselves with lunch and some celebratory Bloody Marys.
We were pleased to find that the train employees were all a bunch of characters. Kammi, the attendant for our sleeper car, was a non-stop talker and very helpful and Gerald, who took dinner reservations, took one look at Kelly and declared she must be a model, then took one look at me and said "What are you doing with THIS guy?" I made me feel homesick for NJ to be insulted by a total stranger. He then told us how he had been asked to dinner by the fella in a sleeper at the other end of the car. We found all the train workers to be very friendly and helpful on both legs of our trip.
One of the things we like about the train is that they seat you with other travelers for meals and seem to try to seat you with different people at each meal. Our first dinner was spent with two very pleasant folks named Anna and Tom. Tom is actually father-in-law to Aaron Ralston, the hiker who had to cut off his own hand when it was pinned beneath a rock in the Utah canyon country.
We found the food on the train to be surprisingly good. I had a very credible steak for dinner both nights on the train and all the food was actually quite good. We had reserved a "roomette" which is a private car about 6-1/2 feet long and 3-1/2 feet wide. Two chairs which face each other can turn down into a bed and there is a bunk above which folds down into another. It is strongly recommended that whoever is in the upper bunk double down on their yoga stretches before attempting to put on jammies and don't forget your prostate medication because midnight bathroom runs are challenging to say the least.
Sunrise found us on a lunar landscape in the Utah desert but by late morning we had made it to the Colorado mountains and entered Glenwood Canyon, the western gateway to the Rocky Mountains. The entire stretch through this section is quite spectacular and the train follows the Colorado River as far a somewhere about halfway across the mountains. The leaves were just beginning to change and it was quite beautiful. Unfortunately, darkness fell before we made our decent to Denver but we should see that portion of the mountains on the return trip.
The next morning we awoke in the green fields of Nebraska. Not being very good at sitting with nothing much to do but look at the scenery I had been apprehensive about this section of the journey. I had assumed that by the time we hit Indiana I would be spending quality time gnawing at the straps of my straight jacket but this was not the case. We had been so deprived of green scenery at our home town in California that it was a pleasure to watch the green fields and puffy clouds cruising past our windows. The trains are not like planes, where you have to stay put for your entire trip. You can get up and go to the viewing car to visit with other travelers and watch the view out the floor to ceiling windows, go to the café car, or simply enjoy walking past the peasants in coach class and feeling superior.
Finally, we pulled into Chicago where we were transfer to the commuter train to Milwaukee. By this time we were still a couple hours late and we had about 10 minutes to make our connection, the last train to Milwaukee that day. I figured there was no way our bikes would make it there with us but they surprised us by having them there waiting for us. All in all, the train was a very pleasant experience and a good opportunity to de-compress from work, for tomorrow...We Ride.
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