I woke up around 5 am. A hint of faint sunlight appeared on the heads of my fellow passengers, and most of them were still resting and bent. Some people yawned. Others were staring out the window of the valley. I had been on the train for about 40 hours, but there was still a long way to go before arriving at the San Francisco Bay Area.
Heading west, I walked to the back of the train and saw the rising sun reflect on the tracks. We were passing through Nevada. A few minutes later, we stopped by the city of Winnemucca, right in front of the Martin Hotel. At the end of the 19th century, the Martin Hotel catered to Basque immigrants who moved there to work as shepherds.
Amtrak’s California Zephyr is considered by many railroad enthusiasts to be one of the most scenic long-distance train routes in the United States, operating near Oakland between Chicago and Emeryville, California. The entire route takes about 52 hours and includes 33 stops. In 2018, while traveling to the United States on a three-month photography project, I left Mount Pleasant, Iowa in mid-August to complete most of my trip.
At 5:59 pm, I boarded the train in the golden light of a completely sunny day, outside a long series of soybean and corn fields, and the first part of the backyard of a small town that is often overlooked. saw.
At 10:55 pm, Zephyr’s 12 silver carriages slowed down and stopped in Omaha. Another passenger, Connie, got on and sat next to me. At the age of 72, she had short white hair, a sun-kissed face, and gentle eyes. It was too late to start the conversation, so we both tried to sleep a little. (Neither was completely successful.)
Early in the morning, while the yellow hills of Nebraska and Colorado were rolling around us, Connie said she was visiting Omaha’s daughter and would get off to meet her husband in Glenwood Springs, Colorado that afternoon. I told you.
Eventually I started wandering in the car shyly and restlessly and wanted to meet and talk to everyone. It was like the first day of the summer camp. Small groups were mixed here and there, exchanging some words.Others preferred to maintain themselves within themselves RoomletOr, I sat alone in the coach’s seat to read or take a nap.
The current California Zephyr, which went into service in 1983, shared the same name, but had an early repeat of trains that were personally operated on slightly different routes between 1949 and 1970. It was operated.
In the 1970s, long-distance passenger trains like Zephyr were unreliable, unprofitable, and unable to compete with planes and the fast-growing interstate highway system. But in the early 80’s, the reality was reversed. As air travel worsened (fares skyrocketed, airlines abandoned marginal routes, and competition intensified), some Americans turned to train networks again. Short-distance train journeys are often cheaper and more convenient, and routes conveniently started and ended in the city center. In 1979, Amtrak added a new superliner (a two-story intercity rail car) to the western line, and some people rediscovered a long-lost product.
Henry Kiso “Zephyr: Tracking Dreams across America” Announced in 1994: “Zephyr represents a new concept of rail travel. Trains are not just a means of transportation from city to city, but as a tourist cruise ship through the scenic sea.”
And, as Kisor points out, the train schedule sleeps with less exciting views, such as the dry landscapes of the Great Plains, Utah and Nevada, with dramatic alpine views during the day. Encouraged the passengers to have fun.
I spent most of my first full day in an observation car, also known as the Sightseeer Lounge (formerly known as the Vista Dome). The car’s floor-to-ceiling windows offer the best views of the Rocky Mountains, Colorado River Valley, Continental Divide, Sierra Nevada Mountains, and the lush forests of Northern California. The soft blue chairs give the rider a little privacy, but the four-person table is where most of the socializing takes place. I sat across from Connie and made friends with almost everyone around me.
For the vast majority of people I’ve met, traveling in California Zephyr Get somewhere. Instead, the trip was a reward — a slow and long-awaited few days carved out of a busy lifestyle.
I was planning to meet Joe (33) and Moe (38), a newlywed British couple who crossed the Atlantic Ocean in Mary II, get married and board California Zephyr in Chicago to Emeryville. This was their honeymoon.
Then there were two Amish parents, John (33) and Emma (27), from Pennsylvania who headed to Grand Junction, Colorado to appoint a specialist. Emma was crocheting her beautiful eyeballs on her first train ride.
Rose (18), Jenna (23), and their two cousins wearing neck pillows have returned home to San Francisco.
By the window behind the end of the train, I met Robert, 40, and Madeline, a 2-year-old daughter, taking a nap with her arms crossed. They were on her birthday trip with her mother and her grandmother in Madeline. They jumped into Denver and got off at the end of the line.
Sitting next to Connie and me was Tyler (10 years old) and his grandfather Bruce (66 years old). They got on the train in Iowa. Their plan: Visit Arches National Park and the Grand Canyon. They decided to wear flashy T-shirts so they wouldn’t lose sight of each other.
Sitting behind me was a group of Michigan flower-covered Mennonites. On their way to Glenwood Springs, they were actively talking about something they found outside the window.
Apart from the observation car, another social hub for the train is the dining car. I missed breakfast on the first morning, so I headed straight there on the second day. The attendant was busy setting the table. The car booth is for 4 people and all meals are shared. This means that if you are not in a group of four, you may be seated with other passengers.
Fifty years ago, dining in a dining car was an elegant event — think of linen tablecloths, fine pottery, and silverware. The waiter wore a white jacket and a blue bow tie, and a long white apron and towel on his arm. Currently, they are wearing light blue shirts, red ties and blue aprons. Pottery and silverware are still there, but based on the old photos I’ve seen, they look cheaper. I can’t see the linen. It was replaced with a large white paper.
Whenever I’m on a long-distance bus trip — I’ve traveled extensively throughout the United States on the Greyhound Network — I feel like passengers aren’t there for them Choose Rather for them Have Because the bus is either the only available option or the cheapest option. (Anyway, this has always been true to me.)
But when you go by train, the atmosphere is completely different. There was a sense of community riding the California Zephyr. After all, there aren’t many places where Japanese students Mennonites, smiling newlyweds, parents with children, towed grandchildren, and retirees have long been together to share a life story.
And that’s part of the appeal for long-distance train passengers, as Henry Kiso wrote. “The joy of meeting humanity with infinite diversity.”
Malta Jacone A photographer based in Tallinn, Estonia.You can follow her work Instagram..
