The California Zephyr

The train ride to end all train rides: The California Zephyr

It's a foggy morning in San Francisco as I walk the mile or so from my hotel to the Amtrak station in the Ferry Building.  I check my large bag through to Denver and wait for the Thruway Bus to take me across the Bay Bridge to Emeryville.  The driver of the bus is a bundle of laughs: "It's my first time on this route so you'll have to direct me," and, "I drive so fast that the bus goes round the corner on two wheels," were typical of his sense of humor!  As it happened, he knew the way and he couldn't go fast enough to go on two wheels.

Our train rolls into Emeryville from the depot where it has been serviced overnight.  Unusually, the coach cars are not at the end of the train but towards the front.  I have to remember to go towards the rear of the train to get to the lounge car.  once my ticket has been collected and my seat assignment has been placed above my seat I head to the lounge car.  I leave my Amtrak blanket on my seat to show it's been taken.  The Frisco fog soon gives way to sunshine as we head up the Bay, stopping at Richmond and Martinez to pick up more passengers.  We crossed the Carquinez Strait and headed across the Sacramento Delta towards Davis, with its beautiful Spanish Mission style depot and then on  to Sacramento.  I took the opportunity to go back and check my seat.  There was a guy in the seat next to mine and my blanket was still there!

Now it's uphill for the next 80 or so miles as the train climbs "The Hill".  There is a 7000 foot height gain before dropping down the other side of Donner Pass towards Truckee.  The scenery changes gradually as we gain height.  From Sacramento to Roseville it is predominantly urban but hen changes to being more arable as the train heads towards Colfax.  After Colfax, the train goes round Cape Horn where there are amazing views down towards the North Fork of the American River.  At this point, the river is about 1000 feet below the railroad tracks and it's a long way down!  Most of the trees are now conifers and they crowd around the track and reach up to the skies.  From time to time there are gaps in the trees which reveal tracks leading who knows where; houses and small settlements nestling among the trees and rivers with crystal clear waters.  We have a couple of guys on the train from the California State Railroad Museum who describe some of the events which took place in the building of the railroad and some of the communities involved in the gold rush of 1848/49.  After crossing Emigrant Gap the view opens up on the other side of the train.  I80, which we had been following from Auburn, can be seen down in the valley below.  The environmental impact of aa highway is so much greater than that of a railroad and it's good to see that UP are still transporting stack trains from the ports on the west coast to places inland.  After passing through the 'Big Hole' at the top of the pass, the train starts to descend passing Donner Lake and going round a couple of 180 degree bends before making the next stop at Truckee.  I've been talking with a fellow passenger and after leaving Truckee a plain clothes detective comes to interview him.  He fits the profile of drugs smugglers - a one way ticket from California to the east coast.  His answers satisfy the police officer who leaves the car but comes back a few minutes later asking if anyone owns a bag in the next car.  No-one owns up and I think nothing of it.  At our next stop, Reno, after a change of crew and passengers, I see the policeman with a young man handcuffed on the platform.  Next to them was the bag matching the description of the one described by the officer.  It looks as though someone had been trying to smuggle drugs on the train!

After leaving Reno, the train headed across the Nevada desert as the sun slowly set in the west.  One thing that I was looking for was the place where a truck ran through a grade crossing into the side of the Zephyr, killing six people.  It was not difficult to find thnks to Google maps.

I slept in fits and starts as we crossed from Nevada into Utah and I was grateful for the stop in Salt Lake City where I was able to buy a hot chocolate at the station.

We were way past Hepler, UT, before the sun came up.  I love the time when the sun is low in the horizon as it gives a lot of texture to the land.  The further east we got, the dryer and browner the vegitation got.  It's hard to believe that this desert was once fertile.  Gradually, the Colorado River came into view as we approached the border between Utah and Colorado.  Then we headed into Ruby Canyon.  There is no road through this canyon but there was a couple of groups of rafters on the river.  Before long we were at Grand Junction where it was time for an ice-cream before setting off again through Grand Valley where the best peaches in the country come from (so I'm told).  We continue to follow the Colorado River as the train heads towards Glenwood Springs.  When travelling this route in '99 I took a picture along this section which always stood out.  In 2001, I took another picture and then realised that it was the same house taken from practicallythe same point.  So, every time I ride the Zephyr I look for the point where I took the pictures and I can usually locate it.  Between Grand Junction and Glenwood Springs I saw several Bald Eagles, some of which were in flight!

Heading up Glenwood Canyon, I was on the wrong side of the train for a change.  However, it gave me the opportunity to look upwards and see the canyon from a different perspective.

I was praying that a rock didn't come loose and fall on the train!

The train then continued to follow the Colorado River between Dotsero and Orestod.  The.re were many farms, houses and small communities along the river which seem to integrate themselves with the landscape.  The train followed every twist and turn of the river as we traversed deep canyons and wide plains in the high Rockies.  Snow capped peaks could be seen in the distance.  Bond and Winter Park were passed before we crossed under the Continental Divide in the dark depths of the Moffat Tunnel.  I'm so grateful that David Moffat had the vision to build the tunnel, and so reduce the time it took to cross the divide from four hours to ten minutes, even though he didn't live to see it.

After the tunnel, the train rolled downhill for the next forty miles until we arrived at the Mile High City of Denver.