Passenger Trains > .

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Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/12/21 07:21 by F40PHR231.

Chris, what a stunning set of photos! Great work. Thanks for sharing.

Larry W. Grant
(olddude41)
Dallas, Texas

Very nice set.. thanks for sharing. I especially like your people pictures. I have to admit I am a bit chicken to just snap shots of random people. I sometimes wonder if they will think.. " hey why is that guy taking my pic.." ... :)

Tony

Something is missing from Pic 5. Where is jdb??

zuco74 Wrote:
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> I have to admit I am a
> bit chicken to just snap shots of random people. I
> sometimes wonder if they will think.. " hey why is
> that guy taking my pic.." ... :)

Remain chicken! You don't want to get your a*s kicked. Some people (such as parolees) don't want their photo taken.

Awesome series! Seeing everything in order is like taking a mini trip for the viewer.
I take it no rock hit the train as far as you heard? The one time I took the Starlight to OAK, we got hit near Gaviota. Put a nice chip in the window.

Stunning photos! Amazing!!!

Excellent photos. One of my biggest issues with Amtrak long distance trains is the overuse of the PA by many crews. Why do I have to hear the lounge car menu every time the attendant gets back from his break? And why do I even need to know he is going on his break? On VIA Rail, the bar tender just puts out a little clock showing his return time. And why do I need to be told to remain seated until the train comes to a complete stop at the station when I'm up walking around for days at 79MPH with the train rocking and rolling while at 10MPH its not. In Europe, people are expected to be up and ready to get off at their stops and it goes quickly. Here, not so much. And why do I need to be told to use the seat backs to steady myself when walking through cars. Good grief. Enough. Not ever the airlines do that. We were even told once on a Michigan train to "exit at the front of the car which is towards the direction you are traveling." Really? In recent years, in spite of having more free time, I find myself flying more and using Amtrak less.

although Anderson has some valid complaints, they seem rather trivial to me when
it comes to choosing my mode of transportation

andersonb109 Wrote:
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> Excellent photos. One of my biggest issues with
> Amtrak long distance trains is the overuse of the
> PA by many crews. Why do I have to hear the lounge
> car menu every time the attendant gets back from
> his break? And why do I even need to know he is
> going on his break? On VIA Rail, the bar tender
> just puts out a little clock showing his return
> time. And why do I need to be told to remain
> seated until the train comes to a complete stop at
> the station when I'm up walking around for days at
> 79MPH with the train rocking and rolling while at
> 10MPH its not. In Europe, people are expected to
> be up and ready to get off at their stops and it
> goes quickly. Here, not so much. And why do I need
> to be told to use the seat backs to steady myself
> when walking through cars. Good grief. Enough. Not
> ever the airlines do that. We were even told once
> on a Michigan train to "exit at the front of the
> car which is towards the direction you are
> traveling." Really? In recent years, in spite of
> having more free time, I find myself flying more
> and using Amtrak less.

Those are pretty interesting (and funny) observations. I can't disagree with them, that's for sure. The one type of PA announcement that drives me INSANE is when the volunteer docents get on the Zephyr and read from a book about the sights you are seeing. I guess if we were truly hearing something interesting about the sites and if the person sounded interested in what they were saying, it might be different. But the tired, monotone voices of these volunteers reading from a script about, "In 1897 Joe Blow traveled this route in a horse. The horse got tired and died, and he was stuck here for 3 years with no food.". It's just boring as hell (plus I've heard the same spiel for over 30 years now---it has hardly changed). And on some of the newer sleepers, there is no PA cutoff switch in your room (or volume control), so you are stuck listening to the blaring audio from this stuff (meaning there is no way you can snooze or enjoy a nice, quiet ride through the Sierra--all the way from Sacramento to Reno!).

As far as flying more and Amtrak less, I totally get it. However, let me just throw one thing out there. I gave myself a self-imposed ban on Amtrak due to multiple screw ups that happened over and over again, and I decided I'm not giving them another dime. But then in February, I took the Starlight from LA to Seattle. I was VERY pleasantly surprised. The train was clean inside and out, everything worked, the crews were good, and the food had vastly improved (except for lunch, which has gone downhill). If you have access to the Starlight, give it a shot (in a sleeper)--I really enjoyed the changes they've made.

Very nice travelogue Chris. The pictures from Oakland south bring back memories of the TO trip last August.

Sharon Evans
Glen Allen, VA

You should sent a copy of the rock thrower pic to the Watsonville pd.

Normanroger Wrote:
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> You should sent a copy of the rock thrower pic to
> the Watsonville pd.


What would they do with it?

Now that was most excellent , just a beautiful ride.

Yes, thanks for the wonderful pictures. I feel like I just took a trip on the Starlight...

Keith Hunter
FOREST CITY, IA

Looks like it's still the Golden State, despite everything. Beautiful photos, beautiful trip. I've done it a number of times, including in an ex-Espee dome and on the head end from Oakland to Santa Barbara.

Regarding your "coming into Los Angeles", that got me thinking of an old Grateful Dead song:
--------------------------
Comin' into Los Angelees
Bringin' in a couple a keys
Don't check my bag if you please
Mr. Customs Man!
--------------------------
But that was many years ago.

The kids are very identifiable. We also know the time and date of the incident. The PD could distribute the pic to officers who may be able to match the picture with the kid as they cruise through neighborhoods along the tracks. This should also be sent the Amtrak PD.

John Webb
Trinidad, CA

Winnemucca Wrote:
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> The kids are very identifiable. We also know the
> time and date of the incident. The PD could
> distribute the pic to officers who may be able to
> match the picture with the kid as they cruise
> through neighborhoods along the tracks. This
> should also be sent the Amtrak PD.


People, these kids live in the very run down small town of Pajaro where Watsonville Junction is located. There aren't any recreational facilities in Pajaro and very few trains now pass through so this is just one way they entertain themselves. Watsonville and Pajaro are heavily gang populated and these kids are just practicing up for their future when they'll be doing drive-by shootings of each other. THe Watsonville PD has more than their hands full with real heavy duty crime.
Sad situation.
C.

Carol Voss
Bakersfield, CA



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/30/12 09:17 by CarolVoss.

Better still - send the pic to the schools and let the kids see that they're not invisible. You can't teach respect but you CAN pass out a nice dose of shame.

Next time they might use slingshots. I don't care how poor their "village" is, they should not entertain themselves throwing rocks at trains. An example of "whinny liberalism" at work.