It was January pf 2023 when I decided I wanted to take a train adventure and started to do some research. Robin had traveled on the western section of the California Zephyr and suggested that might be a good trip – Chicago to Emeryville, CA. After doing my research I bought my ticket on a sleeper car in February – departure date of July 9th. Shortly after buying my ticket Robin said he wanted to go and then, of course, Greta didn’t want to be left out so she hopped on the train when we pulled into the Denver station on Monday morning. Many life things happened from February, when I bought the ticket to July. Robin started a new job with the National Park Service in Macon, GA, bought a house, sold a house and moved – all in May to July 7. Greta spent an epic two weeks in France and got home just a before the train rolled into Denver. This wonderful trip had three distinct parts; Chicago, Amtrak and Camel Valley and it was so much fun spending time with Robin and Greta.
Sunday morning, just before noon is when Robin and I decided to head down to Union Station in Chicago for our 2PM departure on the California Zephyr train to Emeryville CA, just out side San Francisco. Our hotel was only a couple of blocks away, but we wanted extra time to see the fabulous Union Station.
The present Chicago Union Station opened in 1925, replacing an earlier union station built in 1881. The station is the fourth-busiest in the United States, after the Pennsylvania, Grand Central Terminal and Jamaica station in New York City, and the busiest outside the Northeast Corridor. It handles about 140,000 passengers on an average weekday, including 10,000 Amtrak passengers.
The Amtrak person at the check-in station recommend checking one or both of our bags because the roomettes were small and our wouldn’t fit. She said there was a small luggage hold area in each car, but it tended to get full quickly. We decided to pull a few items from my bag, put them in Robin’s bag and check mine. Amtrak had a very nice lounge where we could store our luggage and enjoy some snacks and drinks while we waited for the train.
Our roomette was on the upper level, which in my opinion offered better views. The stairs were very narrow and steep. The dining car and observation car were both located on the upper level. Each car had a bathroom located on the upper level but, the showers were on the lower level.
Sleeping was a little tight in the roomette for two adults – there wasn’t enough to sit upright on the top bunk, which made it feel a little claustrophobic.
A few images as we followed the Colorado river.
