Crossing Tracks
Train travel across America in 2021
Last week I got back from an exciting cross country trip through 10 states (Including Michigan) from Ann Arbor, Michigan to Portland, Oregon. The train experience was wonderful and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun way to travel the country that isn’t flying or driving. We saw a lot of beautiful countryside, the flattest flats to the huge and lush mountains and wide cool rivers.
I’ll be uploading some of the huge cache of photos I took while on the train, and while we were seeing the sites around the beautiful city of Portland so stay tuned!
Day One
The first day we woke up extremely early, 4:00 am, to catch The Wolverine, as it makes it way down from Pontiac, MI to Chicago, IL. Along the way we had to pick up our travel companions, my dear friends Bet and Cosmo, as we made our way to the station. Luckily my Dad was kind enough to see us off at the station. Once we located some seats on the packed morning train, we could relax in Coach, for the 2-3 hours it would take for us to arrive in Chicago. While we were delayed briefly due to a medical emergency onboard which required us to stop off in a small town in Indiana, we made it to Union station with enough time to check out the Metropolitan Lounge and the beautiful Union Station.
We decided we had enough time to get some brunch at a nearby restaurant, as we would be embarking the train after Lunch meals would be served, and we needed something to keep us filled until Dinner time.
Lou Mitchell's- Local diner in operation since 1923.
We had our brunch at Lou Mitchell’s, where we had meal. Chicken and Waffles, Malted Pecan Waffles and Hash browns, Eggs Benedict, and Eggs Florentine were our dishes of choice. Even their house Maple Syrup was excellent, and 99% of the time I hate syrup, especially at breakfast places it’s always the extra sweet and sticky thick Smuckers artificial syrup. Even “real” maple syrup is too sweet for my liking, but the Mitchell’s syrup? Ahh, it had only a hint of sweetness and wasn’t overwhelming on the maple flavor either. A perfect complement to thick and crunchy waffles that were fluffy on the inside. The bonus home made fresh doughnut holes were great as well, again not overly sweet. If you ever ride into Union Station, are starting off the famous Route 66, or are just in Chicago for the morning, Lou Mitchell’s certainly won’t disappoint.
We made it back to Union Station just in time for our boarding time to be called, perfect! We got lined up and escorted to our sleeping car by our lovely attendant Corey. Within a half hour we were off and running from Union Station on our way out West!
Dinner Calls
We had our dinner about 6:45, and boy were we hungry. Dining on Amtrak is about as fun and luxurious as it gets when eating while in a moving form of transportation. The tables were set in white linen, real silverware, and most importantly, real food. We are lucky that the dining car had recently opened back up the month before, so we were able to enjoy the full Amtrak dining experience.
We were feeling especially fancy so we ordered the signature and iconic steak. 8-oz Black Angus steak with a cabernet reduction sauce, served with baby green beans, Parisian carrots and a bed of cheddar polenta. My appetizer of mixed green salad with baby brie with a balsamic vinaigrette was a great way to start off the meal. The streak though - oh man - was probably one of the best steaks I’ve ever had. It was juicy, thick, and rich. If I could order it again right now, I would tuck in without hesitation.
Even the carrot cake was moist and delicious, and wasn’t too heavy, especially after decimating that huge slab of steak. If you are ever find yourself thinking of traveling by train long distance, spring for the Roomette and get access to the dining car. It really make the experience of traveling by train and seeing the beautiful country side as you eat such a memorable experience. Usually the dining car is accessible by Coach seats as well during normal operation, but at the moment due to COVID, it’s a Sleeper car only affair.
Our scenery was beautiful as we ate, we had traveled through the Wisconsin Dells region, on our way to St. Paul, Minneapolis. The sun was at the golden hour, and the high altitude smoke in the atmosphere had turned the sun a deep fiery red. The sandstone landmarks were made even more eye catching with the red hues and deep shadows.
7th Inning Stretch
When we did finally pull into the Twin Cities, I got out for our stretch break. It would be the only opportunity to get off the train before bedtime. The evening was comfortable, a cool breeze blowing in the wind. Just after we arrived the Saint Paul Saints, a minor league baseball team, started up their Friday Night Fireworks display. The fireworks were a lot of fun to watch from the platform, and we had a great view! It was almost as if they had started them up just for us.
Getting back on the train I decided to rinse off in the shower, the water was hot, the amenities were as expected, and plenty of towels to dry off with. Good enough for me.
Sleeping on train was an experience for sure, I would say there is a minor amount of discomfort that you have to put up with any sort of long distance overnight travel, and what you had to put up with on the train wasn’t really bad at all. Luckily I was pretty tired out after a long day, so the rocking of the train hardly bothered me. It’s more of when the train slows down and stops when I wake up, that soothing rhythm gets disrupted. I did wake up a few times when the train stopped at stations throughout Minnesota, and was definitely awake at 4:15 am when we pulled into Fargo, North Dakota. My partner on the top bunk had to use the bathroom, so I had to rearrange our bags so she could get down. My phone read 64 Degrees and Smokey conditions out in Fargo that morning, not that I could see anything but darkness once we left the station.
Leaving Fargo behind, we pulled up our covers and went back to sleep.
