Riding the rails on the California Zephyr

     Day 1 of our epic tale of riding the rails has moved into the evening hours, and so far it has exceeded our expectations.

At 9:10 AM, the California Zephyr eased out of the Amtrak Station at Emeryville, right on schedule.  We had about a 30 minute wait at the station before boarding, but the station personnel gave us a briefing before the arrival, and we were all set and ready to go when she arrived.

      It was going to be a full train, 548 passengers, but it was going to take a couple of stops to get all the cars filled up.  Our steward met us on the platform and directed us to our berthing area in car 361.  And shortly after we pulled out, he came through and explained all the switches in the room.  Tonight while we're at dinner, (we have a 6:45 dining call) our beds should be all pulled down and ready to go.  My immediate impression of the bedroom was that it was a little cramped, but after putting everything in its place, it will be just fine.

 The room has a complete bathroom including a shower, a couch that folds down into a bunk style bed, and another bunk that folds down from the ceiling. After settling in, we headed 2 cars forward to the car holding the observation deck and the downstairs lounge.

     We settled down into some open seats, and soon the conversation was flowing from both sides as fellow passengers talked about their expectations and their experiences on this train. Everyone is completely friendly, and more than willing to share their stories.  Most everyone is starting their holiday travel, but some younger passengers are enjoying a few weeks vacation.  But everyone agrees, its an easy and restful way to see America.  As we pulled out of Sacramento, we headed to the dining car for lunch.

      All meals are included in the package when you book a room.  All tables seat 4, so the conversations don't slow down over lunch.  Debbie and I both had an Angus cheeseburger, and it was quite tasty!  Amtrak seems to have it down to a science, but there was no rushing.  We would have like to visit some more, but the train was moving up through the Sierra Nevada's and the views were spectacular.  There was a little snow on the ground along the tracks and on some of the mountain tops, which made for some great picture taking.  I didn't notice the 2 deer in this photo until after I uploaded it to my computer.

     Today's journey took us through Donner Pass and into Truckee, CA.  We made quite a switchback coming into Truckee, but the single engine didn't appear to have any difficulty getting us up the mountain or down.

 Tomorrow we're going through Salt Lake City and then over the Rockies to Denver.  Should be an awesome day.  Gotta get everything charged up, so I'll close this out.  Hope you enjoy the pics.