H and I are mulling our Anniversary trip this year (August) and think we have decided we want a domestic train experience since neither of us have done that in the US. We’d probably leave from DC and head “west.”
What we’re looking for is a place to spend a couple of days on our actual Anniversary so we can enjoy nice vistas (nature), hiking, or exploring somewhere - maybe a city since we’d be coming by train - but generally cities are not top of our list.
In short:
Arrive by train, relatively easily get somewhere nice to spend two or three nights with exploration mostly on foot puttering around, then continue by train to sightsee the rails.
To me, west and maybe past Midwest makes sense for real scenery changes. Colorado? I would say a Canadian rail trip but that may not be possible by August.
I’d get a sleeper berth from Chicago to Oakland CA. It’s a gorgeous train ride. With your own sleeper “room” you will have some privacy. It’s more expensive but did include meals in the swanky dining car. Not sure what is happening covid wise. It’s an Amtrak train.
There are definitely some nice looking routes. What we’re really looking for is the stopping point. Where should that be? Then we’ll take a different route back home to see more of the railside.
“Where should that be,” means specifics. Stop at X and you can easily get to Y by cab/uber/maybe car rental and do Z.
It does go at least close to there if not right to it. I guess one of our major problems is we’ve been there - and almost all other major national parks in the US. One we’ve missed is Rocky Mountain so we originally had hoped to perhaps get that one in, but the train doesn’t go super close to it (Denver is sort of close, so it’s still in consideration).
We were wondering if we could find a better fit for a quick hop off stopping point, so I thought I’d check here where there’s so much BTDT experience.
Can you manage a little patience/flexibility? Given how much of the US you have seen, once Canada lets in US citizens again- perhaps by midsummer?- the Canadian Rockies train might be just the ticket!
I have already looked at their vacations thinking we’d like one, but we’re more “explore on our own” people rather than guided tours. Plus, by the time we pay for those we might as well have gone to Africa (another of our considerations put on delay due to Covid).
We think the train will be fun sightseeing in itself, esp doing a loop, but still want “a” stopping point for “our day.” Doing things this way seems to be about half the cost of their vacations.
The Canadian Rockies train trip is definitely on our list for sometime. We’ve seen most of Eastern Canada (esp since I grew up on the border - literally - could see if from the road in front of my mom’s house). We haven’t been to Western CA yet. Alaska is also the only US state we haven’t been to.
Maybe it will be an option in August? I don’t know.
Part of why I’m feeling we should be planning now is due to all the press about people traveling this year. I wonder what will still be available if we wait.
When the kids were younger we took the train from DC to Chicago for a vacation. Did the overnight sleeper(it took 2, 1 bunks and 1 suite.) There was a lounge car and sleepers are considered first class so dining and service were good. Don’t know if they still do it but it was fun. We spent several days in Chicago taking bus, trolley and walking to visit the sites.
Thinking of the Chicago idea (a city super fun to explore by foot ) and adding on a connector train north to a lake community in Wisconsin or Minnesota? The north is so pretty and August will be warm weather MAYBE without being too hot. Minneapolis, Madison, etc.
I have a friend who teaches in Canada, lives in the US, including consulting and running classes for governments. April 2020 she told me they were telling her at least a year for border closure, and this was when the border was only being closed one month at a time. I guess they think we can’t handle the truth.
She says they are now talking at least until Autumn for the border so I wouldn’t plan on the Canadian train being available, maybe keep it as a back pocket option? Certainly if they change it up so that vaccine passports or even just no quarantine, you likely could fly there, but you’d need a serious back up.
I am hearing about friends getting their first vaccine scheduled in BC, but one told me that their second shot will be 4 months after the first, at best.
You could do the Amtrak to California and maybe spend a few days in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. It has the big spa swimming pool, lots of nice hiking, rafting, biking trails, etc. It is about 45 minutes (car) to Aspen. It’s not that far west to the orchards and vineyards near Grand Junction (Palisades).
Wherever you get off, you have to make sure there is another Amtrak a few days later to continue your trip.
There is also an Amtrak stop near Winter Park Colorado (Fraser).
Yeah, we’re bummed with the border closure lasting so long and Ontario going into a lockdown now. Such is Covid.
2020 was the first year in my life that I never stepped foot on Canadian soil. We were hoping to revisit our haunts to see what was still there the end of May when we’ll be back in the area, but we know it’s not likely to happen.
I second the Glenwood Springs idea via Amtrak. Years ago we took Amtrak from the Mid-Atlantic to Chicago (overnight), switched trains, and on to Glenwood Springs CO. Just before entering the Denver area I had the idea to line up outside of the special viewing/lounge car (sofa-like sears facing the extra-large panorama windows). Sure enough, the first-come, first-serve car largely emptied out at the Denver station and we got first dibs on lounge seats. For hours, the route often snaked along the steep sides of mountains, with amazing views. Volunteers (retired people who did this as a labor of love) spoke on microphone about the history/geology/geography of places we passed much of the time (I think this may occur only on certain days). I had booked a cute B & B in Glenwood Springs (right near downtown and walking distance to the hot springs pool) and the B&B owners picked us up at the Amtrak Station. The pool was amazing (and fun at night as well as day). There is a long canyon hike on the outskirts of town. We’re not really big resort-town people but one day we took a regional bus from Glenwood S to Aspen (An easy ride) and a shuttle to the famously photographed Maroon Bells, where we did some hiking. A little crowded, but I’m glad we saw it! we then backtracked on the train eastward, to a stop or two before Denver (can’t remember where it was, exactly, but near Rocky Mountain National Park. My D was horse-crazy at the time, so I had booked five days at Drowsy Water Ranch (Yes, a dude ranch!) and someone from the ranch picked us up at the Amtrak Station. It was fun, Some of these “ranches” are ultra luxurious resorts and some are truly working family ranches…Drowsy Water is somewhere n the middle…a true family ranch that converted years ago to the hospitality business. Not exactly roughing it there, but the atmosphere is rustic (I.e. all meals served family style at long tables and people are encouraged to mix and mingle. Lots of different kinds of people, couples, retirees, families with kids. during the day, adults and children go on separate activities (riding/hiking, Kayaking etc). Everyone is assigned a horse for the week, based on prior horse experience. Horses were well-treated and staff was amazing. The ranch had very high reviews (at the time, anyway).
But I digress! After the ranch experience, we were driven by a ranch hand to the nearest car-rental place in the nearest town, and then spent a few days exploring Rocky Mountain National Park, which was pretty fabulous. The car rental folks were happy to take us back to the Amtrack Station when we returned the car, for our trip home. all in all, about three weeks! Took a lot of planning, but well worth the trip. My D and I shared a sleeper cabin for two, while my H was satisfied going coach all the way (a cabin for four would have been much more expensive for three people).
I’m dreaming of more train travel after the pandemic. My D will be in college and my H working IN a university, so I may go solo or find an adventurous friend. Now I’m feeling drawn to the northern route, to Glacier NP, the Cascades and Puget Sound. My only complaint about train travel is that It pretty much rules out camping, which I’d love to be able to do in these places.
Ah yes, this is the type of info I was looking for… I’ll be doing some googling tonight to see what’s still available as it sounds great (although owning a pony farm we’re likely to skip the Dude Ranch).
If anyone else has similar BTDT and loved it experiences, please share. I don’t mind offering H options and I’m sure plenty of other people will likely read the thread potentially getting inspired. In our travels we’ve found some of the best places to explore via others who have been there.
Great! Now I remember the town where we disembarked was Granby. Even without visiting the ranch it might be a good jumping-off place for renting a car and exploring Rocky Mountain National Park. Judging by how accommodating the car rental place was at that time (small-town friendliness) I wouldn’t be surprised if they’d agree to meet you at the station with a car, or to take you to the rental place! FYI, it’s possible to drive the park in a circle west to East, or East to west, but I was advised to do it East to West so we circled a longer route to be able to do that. There are some sheer drop-offs of dizzying height from the road, and going east to west (counter-clockwise) the drop-offs are somehow more maneageable, if that would matter to you at all.
Be careful about booking Granby and going to RMNP that way. That was where the big fire was last year and Grand Lake and that area was hit hard. Not sure how much of the park will be open this year and if that entrance will be.
so I wouldn’t plan on the Canadian train being available, maybe keep it as a back pocket option? Certainly if they change it up so that vaccine passports or even just no quarantine, you likely could fly there, but you’d need a serious back up.