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2026 California Zephyr trip with Mark and Lindsay
Written by Lindsay Korst
gngoat@gngoat.org
Monday May 25
CZ_Day5
0615 Winnemucca, Nevada. Sounds naughty, doesn't it? Remarkably, we are still on
time as we begin our third day on the California Zephyr. We are now on Pacific
Time.
0650 Breakfast for me was Railroad French toast and a nice, hot cup of tea, whilst Mark had his de rigueur
continental breakfast. To my surprise, we were facing forward and had no one
seated with us! Could Angela have grown a heart?
0745 We're back in our sleeper, when the Dining Car Steward started bellowing,
“FIRST CALL FOR BREAKFAST!!",
over and over on the P.A. system. I think he forgot 0630 was the actual start
time, or maybe the time change threw him for a loop.
Amtrak's app sez we’ll be 10 minutes early into
Reno. Fairly good cell phone signal across Nevada (probably because the tracks
are close to I-80). Not much to see though. Mostly sand.
0915/0930
The Reno “Trench”.
Life in the trenches; looking up towards first class; looking back at the unwashed masses,
preparing to board coach.
Mark - rumpled, but presentable; Lindsay - grimacing, but still game.
and here comes Cousin Eddie from Vegas Vacation.
1000 Climbing out of Nevada. This is my smug face. We have just snagged lounge seats on the shaded
side of the train looking towards the Donner Lake side. Best seats in the house.
1. Sunlight on the Truckee; 2. Penstocks into the Sierras; 3. Double track and
green water; 4. We cross above the Truckee River.
1025/1038 Truckee, California
Welcome to California! Land of fruits and nuts! Now, PAY UP!
Truckee will be a 3-stopper due to the short platform. One spot for the sleeper
and two spots for both coaches.
Let's start with the price of gasoline. How does $7/gal Regular and $7.50/gal
Premium sound?
1. Truckee has a former
Southern Pacific depot, now used as a Welcome Center; 2.
Historical touristy town; 3. Hysterical Marker; 4. Nicely-restored SP
caboose...with a half-assed 1268 spray-painted on (would it have killed them to
use a stencil?); 5. Here's the Flying A gas station Mark wanted a picture of.
Okay. In search of the Donner Party!
Eww.
Well, maybe not. We pop out of a tunnel and below us is Donner Lake. It looks
like every inch of shoreline has someone's summer cottage or a resort property.
Looking ahead, I see concrete snow sheds for the tracks.
We're rounding "Stanford Curve" as we climb towards the
Summit Tunnel (#41); We
pass underneath a signal bridge; Mark is absolutely enthralled with the scenic
delights from the Sightseer Lounge.
1101 AMTK #5 enters the summit tunnel with a yellow over yellow signal aspect
(two tracks narrowing to one).
Emerging from darkness at Norden, we pass
the old snowsheds of the original
line, no longer in use.
At Soda Springs, there's a nice little resort lodge. Anyone for tennis?
It's all downhill now (mostly in a tunnel of trees) to California's capital city. How about some lunch?
1150 According to the Dining Car crew, it will be a short lunch (so they can be
closed and tidied up long before we reach Sacramento).
1206 Our final Amtrak meal. I have the Ham on Swiss. and Mark partakes of the
Patty Melt. We are sitting with two old biddies who are happily nattering at
each other, so at least we don't have to entertain them. AND we're facing
forward. Things are looking up.
Near Blue Canyon, there's quite a drop-off. I believe this is the American River
canyon.
Just above Colfax, we soar above I-80 on a high bridge.
1247/1251 Colfax
Nicely restored Espee depot in town.
1257 The Amtrak app shows us 26 minutes EARLY into Roseville. That’s some
serious schedule pad, baby.
25 minute fresh air break at Roseville! Looking west; Looking east.
We finally depart @ 1412. It's time to start
packing up.
Crossing the American River and just like that, our journey is over. On the
platform in Sacramento at 1436. We arrived on time, if not early. We both tipped Rita $40.
But the action was just beginning! They loaded us first class snobs onto this
oversized golf cart with all our luggage. Our driver gave us a wild and crazy
ride from track side to Sacramento Valley station. She kept up a non-stop patter
and drove at top speed. Took corners on two wheels. Great fun! So much train
equipment to see along the way. We both tipped her $5 for the joyride.
The station is magnificent inside and out. Note the mural of the "Big Four"
(Leland Stanford, Collis P. Huntington, Charles Crocker, and Mark Hopkins).
Mark and I hoofed the three blocks to the Holiday Inn. We checked in and were in
our rooms by 1520. The above is the view from my room 907 (Southern Pacific
Shops and Locomotive Works).
Despite all the Holiday Inn vans in the parking lot, the front desk said there was no shuttle to the
airport. Welcome to Cali. Pay for everything.
That evening, a nightcap was in order, so we went to the bar for an Old
Fashioned, Rum and Coke, Doritos chicken nachos and wings. And so to
bed.
 
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