Well, day one and two have been a mix of emotions. It is great, we are on vacation together and having fun. It stinks that our well made plans for the outbound train trip got flushed down the toilet.
In summary, our train from Lamy to Los Angeles was six hours late which made it 3 hours too late for our connecting train in LA. They took us off our train in San Bernardino and out us on a three hour bus to Bakersfield, CA. We then got on an Amtrak California San Joaquin train for about six hours (coach only) to Martinez, CA. Then we waited two hours for our original connecting train to arrive, the Coast Starlight. We boarded it at 11:00.
Some pics from the train trip…
In the dining car…
In our sleeper rooms…
Outside the parlour car…
Klamath Falls, OR stop…
We went straight to bed, but got up early and enjoyed the time we did have on that train.
We arrived in Portland, OR around 4:00. We got a rental car and headed straight to the Zoo where we spent a couple of hours.
Black bear up a tree!
We then went and checked into our hotel (free nights stay thanks to rewards points!) and then ran and ate some dinner. Decided to go ahead and top off the rental car. Interesting factoid, it is illegal for you to put gas in your own car in the state of Oregon. Guy at the station stopped me right before I was about to to do it. I guess I could have been hauled off by the cops for it.
Tomorrow, a little more time in Portland then off to Seattle.
Love Moo’s picture pointing to the bear up the tree!!!
New York and Oregon are the only 2 states you can’t fill your own car. I always had trouble with that one when I lived up there.
We were walking up in the zoo to the bear part and we were looking for some of the bears, then just for some reason my mom looked up and saw that huge bear up on the tree. Every time someone came over to the bear part I would look up there and start saying,”How in the world did that thing get up there?” And yes every one that passed did see the bear all the way up there. Then my dad saw a sign that said, “Our bear Dakota likes to climb trees, so don’t worry.”
It looks like you all are on track for now. If the train to Seattle is just on time.
Michael, that looks like a heavy lamb. You would make a good shepherd—taking care of your lost sheep!!!! I bet that bear has more trouble getting down than it had getting up there!!!
GOOD ACCOMODATIONS! HAVE FUN–
Donna sue Arnold would live it there! She WILL NOT pump gas!
I’m jealous that you’re wearing jackets!
Thanks so much for including me in your train trips. I really enjoy reading all about them. Yes the important thing is you are all together making memories! I thought of you the other night when on the news they were showing the train system in China and other places of Europe and then they talked about the train systems here in the U.S. It was quite interesting.
I loved the bear in the tree also!