As a 62 year old Aussie I did 9 days and 6000 miles by Amtrak coach class over 6 weeks solo travelling these routes and on to Washington DC and New York.... loved every minute of of it... highly recommended.. particularly Denver to Salt Lake City... I would stop of in Flagstaff, Santa Fe, Denver, Reno, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, etc spend a week, rent a car and then get on the train again..... coming back to do the southern states :).. you yanks have a very special tourist asset... high speed trains are not scenic... they are too fast
Hi from Johannesburg in South Africa, I thank you warmly for taking me across America to places I have no hope in hell of ever seeing. Your commentary and presentation are excellent and I truly felt I was with you on your cross-country odysseys which, truth be told, I wish I WAS able to experience. I think Amtrak is wonderful and I hope budgets stretch to smoothing the rail lines in places, especially when one is trying to sleep. Thank you for your hard work, passion and appreciation of the one of the world's great services. I must say, having travelled China's high-speed trains on a few occasions, I wish you'd do the same in America. Imagine doing the routes you have just done at 300km/h. I'm looking forward to more of your journeys...goodbye and good luck.
America may see some high speed rail trains in a few densely populated states, but we will never see any over the overnight routes. Simply put America is too large. High speed rail competes with the airlines for 3 hours at 200 MPH, and 4 hours at 150 MPH. Beyond that time distance flying beats trains. It is the reason why the US Government itself, with the US Postal Service, chose to terminate their railroad mail contracts and invest more into air mail. US Mail chose a few hours to fly across the nation, not a few days?
Everyone who watches this needs to consider writing their member of Congress and expressing their support of Amtrak, and asking that Amtrak be fully funded. America should always have a strong passenger rail system. I support a dedicated trust fund to be established, similar to the trust funds that benefit the interstate highways and commercial aviation. Supporting Amtrak in this manner is a matter of basic fairness.
In the case of our national transportation network I would respectfully disagree with you. Our nation's transportation system is indeed "too big to fail." Left to fend for themselves with a mandate to either turn a profit or fail, neither Amtrak nor the airlines would last five minutes on their own, and even Greyhound will not operate in some areas without government support. The interstate highways, and the nation's airports, would crumble without regular maintenance. Kindly tell me how Americans are supposed to freely move about this nation without such support?
Last I heard, AMTRAK is NOT a private corporation. It's full name is the National Railroad Passenger Corporation. It is set up as a semi-public, semi-government Corporation that gets funding from a combination of public, private, federal and state sources.
There ARE people writing to Congress expressing support, but there just aren't enough. After WWII, car travel, and then air travel were king. Train service was doomed by the '60's. Today prompt rail service in the U.S. is provided in the Northeast corridor from Boston or NY to DC where Amtrak makes the most profit. I think that it's the only rail/track system Amtrak actually owns and maintains. Other countries with reliable rail service have less land mass where there is funding dedicated for high speed equipment which can get folks to/from major cities within a few hours. Here, it's precious time for those with time off for travel more than 200 miles. People have taken to their cars more since 9/11 and planes are filled to capacity. Amtrak has discontinued quite a few of its lines since its inception in '71. I've seen many Seniors and folks from other countries who have planned to take the trip of a lifetime with extra time to spare with a few students on board Amtrak trains. Some local and private sources are becoming involved, but still not enough to get people out of their cars.
Michael, that is a very good idea. Will do that today as well as my state representatives. Amtrak has significant presence in my state and I would like it stay that way. Thanks for the suggestion.
@@micmac99 people are expressing support by USING the government subsisized transportation systems. Highways - yes. Planes - yes. Trains - not so much.
YouTuuba, You inspired me to book the Amtrak vacation package called the Northern Experience. I go out to the west coast on the Empire Builder....down to Emeryville on the Coast Starlight, and back to Chicago on the Zephyr.....going all roomette on all the trains. Can't wait.
did the Zepher twice. once in the fall, other in the winter. loved them both. had roomeete had my cds sanford&son the jeffersons all in the family adam12. up most of the nite really enjoyed myself!
My home town is St. Cloud Mn. Haven't lived there for 40 years but still have relatives there and visit quite often. I actually grew up three blocks east of the train station. As young kids we used to walk these very tracks picking up coal that the Northern Pacific steam locomotives left behind. I too remember driving on Hwy 10 watching the trains pass. My great aunt owned a restaurant in the small town of Rice which is also mentioned. Many memories brought back with this video. Thanks for doing this.
Just finished "A Train Odyssey 2" and want to say THANK YOU for the enjoyable trip ! Reminiscent of my own trips out toward Seattle in the early 60's via the Great Northern Empire Builder with my mom and dad.
Just listening to you speak I thought you were a VERY intelligent person, but when you told us what you do for a living, now I KNOW it. Your narration is deep, and very detailed. Thanks for your videos. I love trains but my family prefers to fly because of the time involved. My last train was the silver meteor to Disney world in 1978 where they let you hang out the windows between cars and take pictures. I had a BLAST. Dont think they allow you to do that anymore.......
Just wanted to tell you that I've watched other amtrack videos on here and very few have the marration you've provided. I'm totally blind and you do an extremely job narrating your trip. I feel like I'm right there with you. Thank you very much for the turn by turn narration, it's fascinating.
I truly enjoy your videos, the amount of detail that you present are far superior to most other train videos on youtube. Amtrack needs to worry about their paying customer's satisfaction and less to the amount of executive compensation, the higher-up's probability fly to their endless meetings. Too many bureaucrats and not enough workers as with most government entities. Again thank you for the ride along and see our great country, Thank you...
b bock Amtrak is mostly career government with few high paying jobs. But the Oil Industry would much rather we Drive Our Cars, so have cut back the funding for Amtrak. And before you say your car isn't subsidized, all those roads you drive on are funded with tax dollars, and the gas tax covers only a portion of it.
I don't know why, but I watched one video, and havnt stopped watching these for about 3 days now. relaxing and made me want to build some cool train maps on city skylines. even enjoyed the calculator video. havnt seem them all yet but sure I will get there 😉
About half way through, absolutely stunning footage. Another brilliant video! Great shots of the Mississippi River crossing and following that river was another excellent passage of your fantastic train travel video. Thank you so much for bringing this fantastic journey to some folk who will probably never get the opportunity to travel your country's fantastic railway system. It should be nurtured not starved of cash. I look forward to your next train Odyssey.
All your videos are great. I took the Empire Builder two times, one time out of Milwaukee with my wife and another time out of St. Paul Mn. by myself when I was single. Both times were fun and exciting. This September 3rd 2018 We are getting on Amtrak in Crawfordsville Indiana and heading to Chicago to catch the California Zepher. Thanks to you we are bringing a scanner and a good camera. We will post videos of our trip later when I get to know video editing better.
Can't thank you enough for your videos, I've just booked this exact trip for this May. Some of the tips from your other videos will make my journey so much more pleasant.
I just returned last week from a round trip from St. Paul to Austin on the Empire Builder and Texas Eagle. Stayed overnight in Chicago both ways because of the connections. Loved the trip. I’ve ridden the Empire Builder to Seattle many times over the years. I loved your video. Next time I ride a train I’ll take my Garmin.
Back in 1977 I rode the first PIONEER from Salt Lake City to Portland, along the South side of the Columbia River, with the tracks used by the EMPIRE BUILDER, using the tracks on the North side of the river. Your videos are always enjoyable, by the way.
I took that train from Portland to Chicago and back 3-4 times a years for several years. My favorite. My next favorite is the Zephyr. Grew up in trains even before Amtrak. I made sure my kids did too. Many happy travels for you.
I love the story from when you were a kid and I don't think that it is silly at all. Fantastic video series this time, I have enjoyed every second of all three. Thanks!!!!
The second batch of Superliners were built by Bombardier for Amtrak beginning in the early 90's. They have smoother riding wheels and updated sleeper rooms similar to the one you rode on.
Always remember, when traveling by sleeping car, tip your car attendant, I had the same attendant for 3 trips. They don't forget. They will take care of you.
Love train travel, I would tip my car attendant when I first saw him/her and tell them in case I missed them on detraining got the best service always! Best memories are train trips...
Love your videos. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of Multnomah Falls not too far outside of Portland, but that area was apparently blocked by trees next to the tracks. And yes, I did enjoy your trip and hope to make the same trip very soon.
You give the best info of all the train videographers, was glad to see you had one of the Empire Builder coming out of Portland. You have a new subscriber, you have helped give me great ideas of where to shoot on previous videos. Thanks for the info.
Greetings from Australia. Looks like we arrived in Chicago the same day (May 23), but I arrived on the California Zephyr from Emeryville , CA. Despite all the often heard criticism, Amtrak is a great way to travel. I enjoyed my cross country sojourn enormously. Also looks like your window had the same tint as on my Superliner sleeping car which lends a somewhat yellow tint to everything, particularly noticeable through the spectacular but very brown Glenwood Canyon.
By the way, your video really helps me relive the feel of being on the California Zephyr. Thank you. I hope I can get back to the States some day to experience another long distance Amtrak journey. They really are some of America’s best kept secrets. I’m surprised more people don’t use them.
Just noticed that we even arrived at the same platform (26-28) at Chicago Union Station. share.icloud.com/photos/0TXrPWWaOlns2peAp6MXp5DXw#Stanton_&_Creston
Gorgeous. I'll have to watch it in pieces. But I do want to thank you for training on using the Scanner Radio. In early July we were traveling from Denver to Emeryville on the California Zephyr. And the Millage marker with a female voice decided to report the Track Temperature was 103. At which point a crew member exclaimed "103? Shit Lady, that's hot." I guess even crew people forget she's automated. Yeah, reduced speed most of the afternoon, but the tracks took it without complaint.
To Youtuuba, I watched the other two parts of your series and I am just starting part three and I must say that your work is fantastic. I like the details you provide and using the map to track the journey is a nice touch. The scenery is wonderful and I never knew how large Amtrak is. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
We are scheduled on the Coast Starlight 12/23 after watching Youtuuba's video a few months ago. LAX-PDX and back. Very excited! Next we want to take the Zephyr.
I have been "affixed" to my laptop watching your vids, I live not too far from you in Racine County WI and I had the pleasure of DRIVING to Eugene OR as a passenger last year. We decided to drive down 101 through the Redwoods down all the way to LA but I think next year I may take this Amtrack trip because I never made it as far north as Seattle . Our country is beautiful and these vids that you put out can show the less fortunate just this beauty....great job!
I really enjoyed this video. Have always wanted to take a long train trip. Can't beat this in an armchair with a laptop! Your audio information throughout your video was just right. I feel like I spent this evening traveling with you. I just discovered your videos so I am looking forward to watching others.
Bravo! So well done, informative, and entertaining! Along with your many other fans I have been waiting for this installment for weeks. You did not let me down. After the first Empire Builder video I was not so certain that I would enjoy that LONG journey. You changed my mind; now I think it would be most enjoyable. You visual aids, (maps, GPS, scanner chatter) made the trip much more interesting for me and now I eagerly await an opportunity to make solid plans for the my own odyssey.
Great Video, thank-you for sharing your travels with us, your commentary is fantastic. I watched your entire series and have enjoyed seeing the USA from the rail perspective, for the most part it's a beautiful country with interesting towns and cities. Many parts of California and Oregon look similar to parts of my country- South Africa. I'm hoping to do a similar Amtrak trip in the not too distant future.
Enjoy your Videos very much. A week from today, we will be leaving St. Louis via Lincoln Service, boarding the Empire Builder in Chicago to go to Portland and make connections for the Coast Starlight to Sacramento. Then we'll catch the Calif. Zephyr back to Chicago and the Lincoln Service back Home to Missouri. Thank You very much for all the excellent information You've provided in your vid's. Charlie from Mid-Missouri
charles finn, glad you like the vids, and that you will soon take a good trip. As I write this, I am shooting video on the AMTRAK Lake Shore Limited.....
Amazing, I finished it, it was outstanding, this, and the other two are well worth watching again. I love how you show us the roads and other things on the map.
Enjoy your videos as always. I am taking the California Zephyr next February east all the way from San Francisco to Chicago. It has been a long time coming and I am very excited about it. Please keep posting your videos. I truly enjoy how yo put them together and the information you include.
Jeff Steffen I did that trip back in May 2018. You’ll love it. I broke the journey twice (Grand Junction and Denver) and hired a car to take in some extra sights. It was well worth it.
It’s so interesting to me to see the Great Northern Railroad engine. My grandfather was an engineer on the Great Northern (he died in 1957). Also my grandparents lived in Minot and I took at least a couple of trips on the Empire Builder, years ago. I’ve watched the Empire Builder videos several times. When I was a little girl, I’m certain there was a wooden covered footbridge which crossed the tracks between my grandparents’ house on the north side of town and downtown. I remember pelting my grandfather with questions about it when I walked downtown with him.
I very much enjoy your Amtrak videos including this one. At the 2:57:45 mark, you said your train was stopped for a while to retrieve an Amtrak engine. That's interesting because the location where you sat was, in fact, the old Amtrak Station. On the other side of the tank cars, you can see the covered platform. The yellow and dark brown building in the background is the old station. After 43 years of non-rail use, St. Paul Union Station was renovated and reopened for passenger train service in May of 2014. At that time, Amtrak moved its Twin Cities arrivals/departures from this station in Minneapolis to Union Station in St. Paul.
I worked as a machinist on the Great Northern at Waite Park MN just before the merge of BN. I lived at St. Cloud just north west of the GN depot. You were passing by the old NP depot at St. Cloud.
This series of Train Odyssey has been very relaxing to watch in this era of Covid-19. I don't feel I can safely travel right now, and this is my way of traveling right now. I like this man's comments and narration. Very interesting...I almost feel I am on the train, also!
Awesome scenery. I especially enjoyed the Columbia River Gorge. Another thing Amtrak did away with is the Quarterly Published System Timetable in a printed version Your video's make me want to take the trip. I noticed on this segment the train was not as bumpy. Thank you for all you do.
I like low profile (flat) wristwatches, and can't stand bulky ones. I also do a lot of work in my home shops, and like a watch that is not too precious, and if it gets damaged then 'oh well'. I can't tolerate metal wrist bands (skin condition), so the plastic/rubber/sports bands are better for me, and they are easier to keep clean as well (from sawdust, etc). I can don't have to take my Casio off to swim or shower, or ride my bike in the rain. Expensive or precision wrist timepieces just don't make sense for me, and my current Casio (which I paid about $40 for a LONG time ago) keeps good time, and I tweak its setting every couple months when it drifts to the point of being more than 1 minute off of what my smart phone clock says.
Watched this every night for 4 nights during dinner time, enjoyed with a Sam Adams '76 IPA. Nice! At the end I was sad it was over. I think I'm going to have to do the full Empire Builder. I enjoyed the Tomah to Chicago section as I've done that trip 4 times, both in summer and winter. I met some really nice Amish in economy class. I think I'll do Seattle to Chicago some winter soon as I have friends to visit with in the Chicago area.
+John Clark>Are you really local? I've driven through there several times on I-84 and on the radio (Portland probably) I've heard them say it like the Dials. Like punching numbers on a phone. An example used in a sentence: The "dials" on my cell phone are not lit very brightly so it is hard for to make calls.
The railroad bridge over the Mississippi at La Crosse was put up the same rear that Custer died (1876). He may have been alive on opening day! The bridge is in poor shape, like so much of the rust belt infrastructure.
The "soot" on the windows is actually brake shoe residue. Every time the brakes are applied, there is an invisible thin cloud of brake shoe dust following along under the entire length of the train. I have worked in a railroad yard for the past 20 years and I am very familiar with how often brake shoes need to be replaced on our yard locomotives.
I stayed at West Glacier Park with my daughter who loved driving our two person snowmobile to the top of the mountain. We went in February and wanted to go on Going to the Sun Road but there was fourteen feet of snow blocking the way. lol
You do a great job.You are very precise in your descriptions .Thank you very much.My only concern if I were to make a trip like that,would be about leaving any equipment such as GPS 's and phones in the roomette while I was gone.Keep up the great work.Thanks again.
I would not leave cameras, phones, or other easily grabbed 'valuables' in a roomette while absent for a significant amount of time (e.g. wile in the Dining Car or Lounge Car). Although theft on the trains, especially in the Sleeper car section, is virtually nonexistent, it is still wise to take reasonable precautions. I keep most stuff in my backpack or suitcase, with a small lock holding the zippers closed, to discourage the 'quick grab'. Things like maps, GPS, battery chargers and the like are safe to leave out, I think. These are low value items, and in the case of a GPS these are now low-priced commodities which any decent thief would not consider to be worth the risk of stealing. I, as well as most other Sleeper car passengers, will pull the curtains to the aisle and close the room's door while we are going to be away from the room for a while. Any potential thief would not know if anyone is in the room, and unlikely to barge in blindly to find out. The greatest risk is leaving your door open, curtains open, and valuables laying loose on the seats in full view from the aisle, and easily snatched with only a break in the thief's stride. And even then, risk is low, because these cars are not open to the public, or even to the majority of train passengers, who cannot leave the Coach cars. The number of fellow passengers in a given Sleeper car is few, and there are not any likely thieves among them.
Thanks for such a good video. I have trip reservations for Empire Builder Chicago to Whitefish &return Oct 22 for Glacier National Park and a good friend in Whitefish. Then City of New Orleans to Memphis station & then Greyhound to Nashville Tn home. 62yr Anniversary trip.
I watch these Over and over, just wish u included the dining experience a little more. That was my favorite thing riding the trains plus the scenery. Great job!
Martha Skeel.....please think about that for a bit. How could I possible include "the dining EXPERIENCE"? The food is nothing special, and no video can portray the quality of the food anyway. The EXPERIENCE is in large part about the conversations with strangers once has when eating in the diner, and that is basically impossible to capture and portray from the vantage point of a single handheld camera being aimed by one of the people in the conversation. Not to mention, everyone at the table would have to agree to being in the video, and everyone would be self conscious about it and not able to enjoy THEIR meal. That is why I don't include very much in the dining car in my videos.
This trip of yours was extremely well done. My husband and I have taken the Fort Worth to San Antonio to Los Angeles to Chicago and back home to Fort Worth trip twice. We felt like we were on this trip with you, so now we don't have to go. Thank you!
That was the Columbia Slough, not the S fork of the Columbia. Lived there and rode that train to Seattle and back, once to Memphis TN, dozens of times. Love the Amtrak Cascades train too.
Glad you made your connection onto the mp 36. Great move and apologise for calling you an idiot in the first movie. You have done a great three movies since. Sorry again from the uk person who wants to do the great circular trip :-)
The Empire Builder is Amtrak's only long distance train I have not ridden. Interestingly however, I have ridden Milwaukee Road's Olympian Hiawatha and Northern Pacific's North Coast Limited. I miss The Pullman Company terribly.
best thing about amtrak...it beats thee ever living hell out of catching a greyhound bus, lol, just booked amtrak from pittsburgh to nyc for $130 round trip..!! 10 hours each way..thats quicker than a cheap air flight i looked at ! trains are a sweet way to travel, hopefully some day America will have high speed trains.
Very interesting and very well-crafted video. I took you to be a musician and a cyclist for some reason, but with your interest in rivers I figured you’d be a canoeist as well! With your voice I anticipated you would be a singer! Thanks for a great vid.🇨🇦
I used to be a voiceover 'artist', and mostly did spoken word stuff for commercial jingles. I am a trained classical singer, and sang professionally on stage during the late 70s, and through the 80s and into the 90s. Sang in the Chicago Symphony Chorus, and on a TV church show, and in small chamber singing groups.
Phenomenal travel adventure series, Mate. Should I ever travel long-distance by rail in the US, booking a roomette or larger compartment will definitely be the way I would go. I was amazed at how certain areas of your trip was reminiscent of Scotland, England, and Germany. Slàinte
Love your videos....As I commented on your 1st Empire Builder, I wish someone would do video from Philadelphia to West Palm Beach Florida....There is one that someone made but I believe its only about 10 to 15 minutes long. I don't call that a complete trip.
3:52:35 is a great place to spot trains coming and going from Union Station and OTC if you can be on one of the taller building looking down at the tracks
As a 62 year old Aussie I did 9 days and 6000 miles by Amtrak coach class over 6 weeks solo travelling these routes and on to Washington DC and New York.... loved every minute of of it... highly recommended.. particularly Denver to Salt Lake City... I would stop of in Flagstaff, Santa Fe, Denver, Reno, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, etc spend a week, rent a car and then get on the train again..... coming back to do the southern states :).. you yanks have a very special tourist asset... high speed trains are not scenic... they are too fast
@Myron Bennett thx mate, gotta say Amtrak was the best way to see your beautiful country
@Myron Bennett Will as soon as Australia opens our prison doors :)
Yanks? OMH that's dated! But we do love our Amtrak! We know now blessed we are over here.
😊😊
"high speed trains are not scenic... they are too fast" You are absolutely right... 😀
Hi from Johannesburg in South Africa, I thank you warmly for taking me across America to places I have no hope in hell of ever seeing. Your commentary and presentation are excellent and I truly felt I was with you on your cross-country odysseys which, truth be told, I wish I WAS able to experience. I think Amtrak is wonderful and I hope budgets stretch to smoothing the rail lines in places, especially when one is trying to sleep. Thank you for your hard work, passion and appreciation of the one of the world's great services. I must say, having travelled China's high-speed trains on a few occasions, I wish you'd do the same in America. Imagine doing the routes you have just done at 300km/h. I'm looking forward to more of your journeys...goodbye and good luck.
America may see some high speed rail trains in a few densely populated states, but we will never see any over the overnight routes. Simply put America is too large. High speed rail competes with the airlines for 3 hours at 200 MPH, and 4 hours at 150 MPH. Beyond that time distance flying beats trains. It is the reason why the US Government itself, with the US Postal Service, chose to terminate their railroad mail contracts and invest more into air mail. US Mail chose a few hours to fly across the nation, not a few days?
Everyone who watches this needs to consider writing their member of Congress and expressing their support of Amtrak, and asking that Amtrak be fully funded. America should always have a strong passenger rail system. I support a dedicated trust fund to be established, similar to the trust funds that benefit the interstate highways and commercial aviation. Supporting Amtrak in this manner is a matter of basic fairness.
In the case of our national transportation network I would respectfully disagree with you. Our nation's transportation system is indeed "too big to fail." Left to fend for themselves with a mandate to either turn a profit or fail, neither Amtrak nor the airlines would last five minutes on their own, and even Greyhound will not operate in some areas without government support. The interstate highways, and the nation's airports, would crumble without regular maintenance. Kindly tell me how Americans are supposed to freely move about this nation without such support?
Last I heard, AMTRAK is NOT a private corporation. It's full name is the National Railroad Passenger Corporation. It is set up as a semi-public, semi-government Corporation that gets funding from a combination of public, private, federal and state sources.
There ARE people writing to Congress expressing support, but there just aren't enough. After WWII, car travel, and then air travel were king. Train service was doomed by the '60's. Today prompt rail service in the U.S. is provided in the Northeast corridor from Boston or NY to DC where Amtrak makes the most profit. I think that it's the only rail/track system Amtrak actually owns and maintains. Other countries with reliable rail service have less land mass where there is funding dedicated for high speed equipment which can get folks to/from major cities within a few hours. Here, it's precious time for those with time off for travel more than 200 miles. People have taken to their cars more since 9/11 and planes are filled to capacity. Amtrak has discontinued quite a few of its lines since its inception in '71. I've seen many Seniors and folks from other countries who have planned to take the trip of a lifetime with extra time to spare with a few students on board Amtrak trains. Some local and private sources are becoming involved, but still not enough to get people out of their cars.
Michael, that is a very good idea. Will do that today as well as my state representatives. Amtrak has significant presence in my state and I would like it stay that way. Thanks for the suggestion.
@@micmac99 people are expressing support by USING the government subsisized transportation systems. Highways - yes. Planes - yes. Trains - not so much.
YouTuuba, You inspired me to book the Amtrak vacation package called the Northern Experience. I go out to the west coast on the Empire Builder....down to Emeryville on the Coast Starlight, and back to Chicago on the Zephyr.....going all roomette on all the trains. Can't wait.
Hey I’m looking to do the same trip! What did it cost you total to do this trip?
did the Zepher twice. once in the fall, other in the winter. loved them both. had roomeete had my cds sanford&son the jeffersons all in the family adam12. up most of the nite really enjoyed myself!
My home town is St. Cloud Mn. Haven't lived there for 40 years but still have relatives there and visit quite often. I actually grew up three blocks east of the train station. As young kids we used to walk these very tracks picking up coal that the Northern Pacific steam locomotives left behind. I too remember driving on Hwy 10 watching the trains pass. My great aunt owned a restaurant in the small town of Rice which is also mentioned. Many memories brought back with this video. Thanks for doing this.
Just finished "A Train Odyssey 2" and want to say THANK YOU for the enjoyable trip ! Reminiscent of my own trips out toward Seattle in the early 60's via the Great Northern Empire Builder with my mom and dad.
The Portland, OR station is gorgeous inside & out! The interior reminds me a bit of the main hall inside Union Station in Chicago.
yeah, for sure.
I've never seen that AmTrak Line before. Matter of fact, I've never seen that part of Montana and I've lived here most of my life. Thanks.
Just listening to you speak I thought you were a VERY intelligent person, but when you told us what you do for a living, now I KNOW it. Your narration is deep, and very detailed. Thanks for your videos. I love trains but my family prefers to fly because of the time involved. My last train was the silver meteor to Disney world in 1978 where they let you hang out the windows between cars and take pictures. I had a BLAST. Dont think they allow you to do that anymore.......
Just wanted to tell you that I've watched other amtrack videos on here and very few have the marration you've provided. I'm totally blind and you do an extremely job narrating your trip. I feel like I'm right there with you. Thank you very much for the turn by turn narration, it's fascinating.
I truly enjoy your videos, the amount of detail that you present are far superior to most other train videos on youtube. Amtrack needs to worry about their paying customer's satisfaction and less to the amount of executive compensation, the higher-up's probability fly to their endless meetings. Too many bureaucrats and not enough workers as with most government entities. Again thank you for the ride along and see our great country, Thank you...
b bock Amtrak is mostly career government with few high paying jobs. But the Oil Industry would much rather we Drive Our Cars, so have cut back the funding for Amtrak.
And before you say your car isn't subsidized, all those roads you drive on are funded with tax dollars, and the gas tax covers only a portion of it.
You Tube is a new experiencia for me and great to can travelling this way. Thank you from Chile.
"Big Sky" says it all! Thanks for taking the time to capture and share such beautiful scenes of America.
I don't know why, but I watched one video, and havnt stopped watching these for about 3 days now. relaxing and made me want to build some cool train maps on city skylines. even enjoyed the calculator video. havnt seem them all yet but sure I will get there 😉
About half way through, absolutely stunning footage. Another brilliant video! Great shots of the Mississippi River crossing and following that river was another excellent passage of your fantastic train travel video. Thank you so much for bringing this fantastic journey to some folk who will probably never get the opportunity to travel your country's fantastic railway system. It should be nurtured not starved of cash. I look forward to your next train Odyssey.
All your videos are great. I took the Empire Builder two times, one time out of Milwaukee with my wife and another time out of St. Paul Mn. by myself when I was single. Both times were fun and exciting. This September 3rd 2018 We are getting on Amtrak in Crawfordsville Indiana and heading to Chicago to catch the California Zepher. Thanks to you we are bringing a scanner and a good camera. We will post videos of our trip later when I get to know video editing better.
Did you enjoy your trip?
How was your trip?
@@chrisdobrowolski2783 it's been three times now that I have taken the empire builder I love it
Hi:
Yes, I enjoyed the whole third part of your trip. i have been to some of the places that you rode the train through. Thank you for sharing.
Can't thank you enough for your videos, I've just booked this exact trip for this May. Some of the tips from your other videos will make my journey so much more pleasant.
Excellent 3 part video! Love your detailed descriptions. A shame Amtrak cars are not better maintained though.
I just returned last week from a round trip from St. Paul to Austin on the Empire Builder and Texas Eagle. Stayed overnight in Chicago both ways because of the connections. Loved the trip. I’ve ridden the Empire Builder to Seattle many times over the years. I loved your video. Next time I ride a train I’ll take my Garmin.
153:20 "The Flying Train!". Definitely one of my all-time favorite youtuuba commentaries. Thanks for everything!
Back in 1977 I rode the first PIONEER from Salt Lake City to Portland, along the South side of the Columbia River, with the tracks used by the EMPIRE BUILDER, using the tracks on the North side of the river. Your videos are always enjoyable, by the way.
I took that train from Portland to Chicago and back 3-4 times a years for several years. My favorite. My next favorite is the Zephyr. Grew up in trains even before Amtrak. I made sure my kids did too. Many happy travels for you.
I love the story from when you were a kid and I don't think that it is silly at all. Fantastic video series this time, I have enjoyed every second of all three. Thanks!!!!
The second batch of Superliners were built by Bombardier for Amtrak beginning in the early 90's. They have smoother riding wheels and updated sleeper rooms similar to the one you rode on.
Always remember, when traveling by sleeping car, tip your car attendant, I had the same attendant for 3 trips. They don't forget. They will take care of you.
odiecalodie good advice. The Amtrak sleeping car attendants work hard and I haven’t experienced a bad one.
Love train travel, I would tip my car attendant when I first saw him/her and tell them in case I missed them on detraining got the best service always! Best memories are train trips...
average is $10/day tip
@@macdunlap6257 They are well-paid low-skill employees already paid with taxpayers' money.
@@alphonsozorro7952 not low skilled. they are like hotel concierge in that they have to deal with assholes in a confined space
Love your videos. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of Multnomah Falls not too far outside of Portland, but that area was apparently blocked by trees next to the tracks. And yes, I did enjoy your trip and hope to make the same trip very soon.
You give the best info of all the train videographers, was glad to see you had one of the Empire Builder coming out of Portland. You have a new subscriber, you have helped give me great ideas of where to shoot on previous videos. Thanks for the info.
I like your train videos, in particular, your commentary, which many people who upload similar videos don't bother to provide.
You might enjoy a trip on the Arkansas and Missouri Rail Road. A trip taken in the fall would be a beautiful time to take it.
Greetings from Australia. Looks like we arrived in Chicago the same day (May 23), but I arrived on the California Zephyr from Emeryville , CA. Despite all the often heard criticism, Amtrak is a great way to travel. I enjoyed my cross country sojourn enormously. Also looks like your window had the same tint as on my Superliner sleeping car which lends a somewhat yellow tint to everything, particularly noticeable through the spectacular but very brown Glenwood Canyon.
By the way, your video really helps me relive the feel of being on the California Zephyr. Thank you. I hope I can get back to the States some day to experience another long distance Amtrak journey. They really are some of America’s best kept secrets. I’m surprised more people don’t use them.
Just noticed that we even arrived at the same platform (26-28) at Chicago Union Station. share.icloud.com/photos/0TXrPWWaOlns2peAp6MXp5DXw#Stanton_&_Creston
that gps idea is great, I love maps, and am frequently lost these days.
Gorgeous. I'll have to watch it in pieces.
But I do want to thank you for training on using the Scanner Radio. In early July we were traveling from Denver to Emeryville on the California Zephyr. And the Millage marker with a female voice decided to report the Track Temperature was 103. At which point a crew member exclaimed "103? Shit Lady, that's hot." I guess even crew people forget she's automated. Yeah, reduced speed most of the afternoon, but the tracks took it without complaint.
I am watching now, it is awesome as are your other two, I feel like I am there. Thank you so much for sharing these.
To Youtuuba,
I watched the other two parts of your series and I am just starting part three and I must say that your work is fantastic. I like the details you provide and using the map to track the journey is a nice touch. The scenery is wonderful and I never knew how large Amtrak is. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
We are scheduled on the Coast Starlight 12/23 after watching Youtuuba's video a few months ago. LAX-PDX
and back. Very excited! Next we want to take the Zephyr.
I have been "affixed" to my laptop watching your vids, I live not too far from you in Racine County WI and I had the pleasure of DRIVING to Eugene OR as a passenger last year. We decided to drive down 101 through the Redwoods down all the way to LA but I think next year I may take this Amtrack trip because I never made it as far north as Seattle . Our country is beautiful and these vids that you put out can show the less fortunate just this beauty....great job!
I really enjoyed this video. Have always wanted to take a long train trip. Can't beat this in an armchair with a laptop! Your audio information throughout your video was just right. I feel like I spent this evening traveling with you. I just discovered your videos so I am looking forward to watching others.
I watched the entire trip. It was wonderfully enjoyable. Thank you for doing this.
Lllokmlĺl
P. BBC
Well... I am visiting again my favorite videos. Superb work. Thank you.
Bravo! So well done, informative, and entertaining! Along with your many other fans I have been waiting for this installment for weeks. You did not let me down. After the first Empire Builder video I was not so certain that I would enjoy that LONG journey. You changed my mind; now I think it would be most enjoyable. You visual aids, (maps, GPS, scanner chatter) made the trip much more interesting for me and now I eagerly await an opportunity to make solid plans for the my own odyssey.
Great Video, thank-you for sharing your travels with us, your commentary is fantastic. I watched your entire series and have enjoyed seeing the USA from the rail perspective, for the most part it's a beautiful country with interesting towns and cities. Many parts of California and Oregon look similar to parts of my country- South Africa. I'm hoping to do a similar Amtrak trip in the not too distant future.
I feel like I am riding in the seat right next to you, what a nice and enjoyable video.
Great videos on your Train Odyssey 2 ! I love all your videos ! Well done my friend.
Just finished watching this 3rd in series, really enjoying "traveling" with you. Love the trip, scenery, various people from my home.
Enjoy your Videos very much. A week from today, we will be leaving St. Louis via Lincoln Service, boarding the Empire Builder in Chicago to go to Portland and make connections for the Coast Starlight to Sacramento. Then we'll catch the Calif. Zephyr back to Chicago and the Lincoln Service back Home to Missouri. Thank You very much for all the excellent information You've provided in your vid's. Charlie from Mid-Missouri
charles finn, glad you like the vids, and that you will soon take a good trip. As I write this, I am shooting video on the AMTRAK Lake Shore Limited.....
Amazing, I finished it, it was outstanding, this, and the other two are well worth watching again. I love how you show us the roads and other things on the map.
Worth watching several times.
Enjoy your videos as always. I am taking the California Zephyr next February east all the way from San Francisco to Chicago. It has been a long time coming and I am very excited about it. Please keep posting your videos. I truly enjoy how yo put them together and the information you include.
Jeff Steffen I did that trip back in May 2018. You’ll love it. I broke the journey twice (Grand Junction and Denver) and hired a car to take in some extra sights. It was well worth it.
This makes me wanna operate on Marias Pass on Train Simulator!!
It’s so interesting to me to see the Great Northern Railroad engine. My grandfather was an engineer on the Great Northern (he died in 1957). Also my grandparents lived in Minot and I took at least a couple of trips on the Empire Builder, years ago. I’ve watched the Empire Builder videos several times. When I was a little girl, I’m certain there was a wooden covered footbridge which crossed the tracks between my grandparents’ house on the north side of town and downtown. I remember pelting my grandfather with questions about it when I walked downtown with him.
I very much enjoy your Amtrak videos including this one. At the 2:57:45 mark, you said your train was stopped for a while to retrieve an Amtrak engine. That's interesting because the location where you sat was, in fact, the old Amtrak Station. On the other side of the tank cars, you can see the covered platform. The yellow and dark brown building in the background is the old station. After 43 years of non-rail use, St. Paul Union Station was renovated and reopened for passenger train service in May of 2014. At that time, Amtrak moved its Twin Cities arrivals/departures from this station in Minneapolis to Union Station in St. Paul.
The amshack was actually st paul but closer to dt mpls than dt st paul
the first superliners where built by pullman the newer ones where built by bombardier
Thank you so much for this video! As a former frequent flyer of the North Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin parts it brought back a lot of Memories.
I worked as a machinist on the Great Northern at Waite Park MN just before the merge of BN. I lived at St. Cloud just north west of the GN depot. You were passing by the old NP depot at St. Cloud.
This series of Train Odyssey has been very relaxing to watch in this era of Covid-19. I don't feel I can safely
travel right now, and this is my way of traveling right now. I like this man's comments and narration. Very
interesting...I almost feel I am on the train, also!
Thank you so much for your wonderful train journey videos. I always feel like I'm along on the trip.
So many miles of beautiful scenery this leg of the trip!
Amazing scenery, thank you so much for sharing this, and it's contributed to my desire to go on this Amtrak route - just to see more of America.
Awesome scenery. I especially enjoyed the Columbia River Gorge. Another thing Amtrak did away with is the Quarterly Published System Timetable in a printed version Your video's make me want to take the trip. I noticed on this segment the train was not as bumpy. Thank you for all you do.
Simply the best. Many thanks from Iran.
Look forward to seeing more trips on AMTRAK that you take.
I like low profile (flat) wristwatches, and can't stand bulky ones. I also do a lot of work in my home shops, and like a watch that is not too precious, and if it gets damaged then 'oh well'. I can't tolerate metal wrist bands (skin condition), so the plastic/rubber/sports bands are better for me, and they are easier to keep clean as well (from sawdust, etc). I can don't have to take my Casio off to swim or shower, or ride my bike in the rain. Expensive or precision wrist timepieces just don't make sense for me, and my current Casio (which I paid about $40 for a LONG time ago) keeps good time, and I tweak its setting every couple months when it drifts to the point of being more than 1 minute off of what my smart phone clock says.
I still own a Seiko 5 wristwatch that i bought 25 years ago for 100 DM (Deutsche Marks) .
Watched this every night for 4 nights during dinner time, enjoyed with a Sam Adams '76 IPA. Nice! At the end I was sad it was over. I think I'm going to have to do the full Empire Builder. I enjoyed the Tomah to Chicago section as I've done that trip 4 times, both in summer and winter. I met some really nice Amish in economy class. I think I'll do Seattle to Chicago some winter soon as I have friends to visit with in the Chicago area.
It was nice to see my hometown of Havre, Montana from your perspective. Thank you.
Love your voice. Can't wait for more of your adventures. Happy Holidays. Stella
For a bit of local knowledge, The Dalles rhymes with gals. Great videos of Odyssey #2 - really enjoyed these!
+John Clark>Are you really local? I've driven through there several times on I-84 and on the radio (Portland probably) I've heard them say it like the Dials. Like punching numbers on a phone. An example used in a sentence: The "dials" on my cell phone are not lit very brightly so it is hard for to make calls.
Its definitely the rhymes with gals , palls, pronunciation
Pullman-Standard built the first batch of Superliners and Bombardier Transportation built the second batch.
Awesome video!!! I really enjoyed your commentary and the road atlas references. Especially the coverage of MN and WI. Thank you.
Great video! May you have many more good trips.
The railroad bridge over the Mississippi at La Crosse was put up the same rear that Custer died (1876). He may have been alive on opening day! The bridge is in poor shape, like so much of the rust belt infrastructure.
The "soot" on the windows is actually brake shoe residue. Every time the brakes are applied, there is an invisible thin cloud of brake shoe dust following along under the entire length of the train. I have worked in a railroad yard for the past 20 years and I am very familiar with how often brake shoes need to be replaced on our yard locomotives.
hit the nail on the head, Jerry
I stayed at West Glacier Park with my daughter who loved driving our two person snowmobile to the top of the mountain.
We went in February and wanted to go on Going to the Sun Road but there was fourteen feet of snow blocking the way. lol
You do a great job.You are very precise in your descriptions .Thank you very much.My only concern if I were to make a trip like that,would be about leaving any equipment such as GPS 's and phones in the roomette while I was gone.Keep up the great work.Thanks again.
I would not leave cameras, phones, or other easily grabbed 'valuables' in a roomette while absent for a significant amount of time (e.g. wile in the Dining Car or Lounge Car). Although theft on the trains, especially in the Sleeper car section, is virtually nonexistent, it is still wise to take reasonable precautions. I keep most stuff in my backpack or suitcase, with a small lock holding the zippers closed, to discourage the 'quick grab'. Things like maps, GPS, battery chargers and the like are safe to leave out, I think. These are low value items, and in the case of a GPS these are now low-priced commodities which any decent thief would not consider to be worth the risk of stealing. I, as well as most other Sleeper car passengers, will pull the curtains to the aisle and close the room's door while we are going to be away from the room for a while. Any potential thief would not know if anyone is in the room, and unlikely to barge in blindly to find out. The greatest risk is leaving your door open, curtains open, and valuables laying loose on the seats in full view from the aisle, and easily snatched with only a break in the thief's stride. And even then, risk is low, because these cars are not open to the public, or even to the majority of train passengers, who cannot leave the Coach cars. The number of fellow passengers in a given Sleeper car is few, and there are not any likely thieves among them.
Thanks for such a good video. I have trip reservations for Empire Builder Chicago to Whitefish &return Oct 22 for Glacier National Park and a good friend in Whitefish. Then City of New Orleans to Memphis station & then Greyhound to Nashville Tn home. 62yr Anniversary trip.
I watch these Over and over, just wish u included the dining experience a little more. That was my favorite thing riding the trains plus the scenery. Great job!
Martha Skeel.....please think about that for a bit. How could I possible include "the dining EXPERIENCE"? The food is nothing special, and no video can portray the quality of the food anyway. The EXPERIENCE is in large part about the conversations with strangers once has when eating in the diner, and that is basically impossible to capture and portray from the vantage point of a single handheld camera being aimed by one of the people in the conversation. Not to mention, everyone at the table would have to agree to being in the video, and everyone would be self conscious about it and not able to enjoy THEIR meal. That is why I don't include very much in the dining car in my videos.
At 54:18 it is The Dalles hydro dam that has locks.
It makes electric power the locks are a side benefit.
Side benefit or necessity? Once the dam is in place, the locks are needed.
This trip of yours was extremely well done. My husband and I have taken the Fort Worth to San Antonio to Los Angeles to Chicago and back home to Fort Worth trip twice. We felt like we were on this trip with you, so now we don't have to go. Thank you!
The widest point of the Mississippi River is in the Lower Mississippi portion where it exceeds 1 mile (1.6 km) in width in several places.
That was the Columbia Slough, not the S fork of the Columbia. Lived there and rode that train to Seattle and back, once to Memphis TN, dozens of times. Love the Amtrak Cascades train too.
Great trip as usual. Took me 3 days to make the trip on U Tube. Thanks so much!!!
Glad you made your connection onto the mp 36. Great move and apologise for calling you an idiot in the first movie. You have done a great three movies since. Sorry again from the uk person who wants to do the great circular trip :-)
sure am enjoying traeling with you. Thanks for the video.
I appreciate you sharing your Amtrak experience. :)
Thanks for taking me every where you are good tour guide
The Empire Builder is Amtrak's only long distance train I have not ridden. Interestingly however, I have ridden Milwaukee Road's Olympian Hiawatha and Northern Pacific's North Coast Limited. I miss The Pullman Company terribly.
best thing about amtrak...it beats thee ever living hell out of catching a greyhound bus, lol, just booked amtrak from pittsburgh to nyc for $130 round trip..!! 10 hours each way..thats quicker than a cheap air flight i looked at ! trains are a sweet way to travel, hopefully some day America will have high speed trains.
some absolute beautiful scenery on that trip!
Tried a long distance Amtrak journey of two nights in a sleeping car.. ..couldn't WAIT to get off.
Very interesting and very well-crafted video. I took you to be a musician and a cyclist for some reason, but with your interest in rivers I figured you’d be a canoeist as well! With your voice I anticipated you would be a singer! Thanks for a great vid.🇨🇦
I used to be a voiceover 'artist', and mostly did spoken word stuff for commercial jingles. I am a trained classical singer, and sang professionally on stage during the late 70s, and through the 80s and into the 90s. Sang in the Chicago Symphony Chorus, and on a TV church show, and in small chamber singing groups.
What a great YT video, so scenic throughout, I’m from the UK and would love to come and do a trip like this. Great Watch 👍Thumbs Up👍
I love your name. My name is also Jamie. My maiden name is Smith.
Love your videos sir! Look forward to many more.
The railroad bridge near Wishram is the Oregon Trunk. BNSF owned it goes through Bend to Chemult and on the Union Pacific to Klamath Falls.
Staples is a place where you can buy stationery supplies. It's a suburb of Office Max.
One of the coaches is a coach/baggage where checked luggage is placed on the Portland section.
I'm glad that you ended your "Odyssey" with a return trip on the train.
Phenomenal travel adventure series, Mate. Should I ever travel long-distance by rail in the US, booking a roomette or larger compartment will definitely be the way I would go. I was amazed at how certain areas of your trip was reminiscent of Scotland, England, and Germany. Slàinte
Love your videos....As I commented on your 1st Empire Builder, I wish someone would do video from Philadelphia to West Palm Beach Florida....There is one that someone made but I believe its only about 10 to 15 minutes long. I don't call that a complete trip.
I enjoyed watching this video...thanks for posting.
3:52:35 is a great place to spot trains coming and going from Union Station and OTC if you can be on one of the taller building looking down at the tracks
Great series!! The Coast Starlight is supposed to be the best train on Amtrak. I hope the incessant announcementdidn't ruin it for you.
JAMES MARK the California Zephyr is pretty impressive too. The scenery is spectacular.
@@Crosshead1 I've taken the CZ as far West as Glenwood Springs. Still need the mileage out to Emeryville and the whole route eastbound on #6 ;-)
You can take the Zephyr from Chicago then used the Coast Starlight to get to any city along the west coast:))