Florida-bound on Amtrak's Silver Meteor

[Hiawatha Pete]

Last edited Thu Jan 13, 2022, 02:12 AM - Edit history (2)

Good afternoon DU'ers,

With all the non stop depressing news, first about the pandemic, then the grave injustices still being inflicted on vulnerable groups - especially people of color - and with the hope that America will emerge from this as once again being a beacon and inspiration for all peoples, I though it might be time for another weekend distraction with a few pics from a somewhat better time, and about a completely different subject.

Back in 2015 my wife and I decided to forgo the dreary weather up here in Canada and head south to Florida. Instead of flying or driving, we chose to take the train (naturally, as those who are familiar with my prior posts will know).

For those interested in taking a land cruise down the eastern seaboard to Miami, my wife and I often travel by train and thought we might share some pics from our trip a few years back on Amtrak's "Empire Service" train from Buffalo to New York City, and then aboard Amtrak's "Silver Meteor" from New York to Miami, and finally by rental car to the Florida Keys.

The pics are from my website, https://northamericabyrail.info/

Hope you enjoy,

Best Regards, Pete

4:30am at Buffalo-Depew Amtrak Station. Waiting for Amtrak's 'Empire Service' train that will take us to New York City


Passing a New York Central 0-6-0 type steam locomotive on display at Utica Amtrak Station


Along the Hudson River south of Albany, NY


Passing Bannerman's Castle on the Hudson River


Storm King State Park, Cold Spring, NY


Along the Hudson River at Croton-Harmon, NY


US Post Office Building, New York City. Photographed during our layover in New York while changing trains


The Empire State Building, taken during our layover at Penn Station.


Onboard Amtrak's 'Silver Meteor' departing Penn Station for Miami, with the dining car crew working to prepare this evening's meal.


Dinner in the diner, nothing could be finer. Fresh Tilapia


Entering Philadelphia, PA


Entering a tunnel at Baltimore, MD


Engine change in Washington, DC. The electric locomotive that pulled our train from New York is uncoupled...


...and replaced by diesels for the rest of the trip to Miami


Bedroom on Amtrak's Silver Meteor, set up for day use


Passing swamplands near Savannah, GA


Approaching Deland, FL Amtrak station


Entering Winter Park, FL


Approaching Winter Park Amtrak station


Passing a fountain in downtown Winter Park


Winter Park Amtrak station


Entering Orlando, FL


Passing an orange grove south of Orlando


Leaving the Silver Meteor at Miami Amtrak Station


View of Miami Beach as seen from our hotel


Collins Ave, Miami beach


By rental car to the Keys along the Florida Overseas Highway


Mangroves in the Florida Keys along Overseas Highway


A shot of a rooster wandering the streets in Key West, FL


The lighthouse at Key West, FL

[nocoincidences]

1. TY!

I love riding trains, your pics are the next best thing.

[Hiawatha Pete]

8. Thanks for the compliment!

Likewise, I hope to hit the rails again once the pandemic situation passes.

[Hoyt]

2. Cool trip. Need to try that.

[Hiawatha Pete]

9. Thanks for checking out my pics!

The trip comes highly recommended.

[Hiawatha Pete]

37. ...In fact we'd like to do it again after the pandemic. n/t

[Gothmog]

3. I am jealous.

A long train ride is on my bucket list. I have some hope that we will have a train between Houston and Dallas some time before I retire

[Hiawatha Pete]

11. Thanks!

The 'Texas Eagle' passes through Dallas but unfortunately does not connect to Houston. It's on our bucket list to take it from Chicago to San Antonio & Los Angeles.

[yellowdogintexas]

36. We want to take the Sunset Limited from San Antonio to just south of Phoenix

then our daughter and family can come pick us up or we can rent a car.

We took the 'Texas Eagle' from Fort Worth to San Antonio for a weekend. We stayed at a La Quinta that is just a few steps from the Amtrak depot, and spent the rest of the weekend catching as many sights as we could cram in. Alamo, Botanic Gardens, River Walk. S/A has decent bus system which helped greatly.

It was great fun. This was back when it was possible the route from OKC down through FW was going to be eliminated and we wanted to take our daughter on a train trip. We used trains all over Spain and loved it. Thankfully, our last halfway decent Senator Kay Baily Hutchison saved it..

I read the other day that AMTRAK no longer offers the stellar dining service and dining cars. That is sad.

[Hiawatha Pete]

38. It is sad. However I know someone who did the California Zephyr trip last Christmas

& it still has the full-service dining car, as do all the Western long distance routes. Unfortunately the Eastern long distance trains had the diner replaced with in-room pre-packaged meal service, or cafe-car service, though for ourselves personally that wouldn't be a deal breaker as the Eastern LD routes are pretty well all one night onboard at most. Western are 2-3 nights.
Plus sometimes we buy food & beverages before boarding and consume them in our room anyway.

Thanks for the info about San Antonio w.r.t. hotels & transit, we have friends in Texas and would like to visit someday. Cool trip, by the way!

[msongs]

4. sounds like fun thanks for the pics nt

[Hiawatha Pete]

12. No problem, my pleasure! n/t

[BComplex]

5. Great pictures, Pete! You're quite the photographer/photo journalist!

And I needed a break. I needed to look back to a better time.

[Hiawatha Pete]

13. Then mission accomplished!

Thanks for the compliment & for checking out my pics

[DarthDem]

6. Fantastic pictures. Thank you.

You have a real eye and talent with the camera!

[Hiawatha Pete]

15. Thank you for the generous compliments!

Though these are cherry picked from my website. Regardless, makes me feel better about my investing in a Nikon photography day seminar a few years back

[DarthDem]

75. Money well spent!!

I love it when people take pictures today with a real camera. Your shots are just fantastic. I feel like I was on the trip! PS, was your hotel in South Beach the Days Inn or the Courtyard (Cadillac) by Marriott? The view looks familiar!

[Hiawatha Pete]

76. It was the Days Inn,

It's no longer a Days Inn however, now it's the Lexington Hotel Miami Beach. One of the reasons we chose it is it had a restaurant that served breakfast on the lower floor. I take it you've been to Miami Beach before then, gorgeous place

Thanks again! It was my hope to be able to take people on a virtual journey, so mission accomplished

[tblue37]

7. This brought back fond memories. When I was a little girl in the 1950s we used to travel by train.

Last edited Sat May 30, 2020, 10:08 PM - Edit history (1)

I really loved those days-long trips!

[Hiawatha Pete]

16. Thanks for checking out my post!

Likewise I really enjoy long distance train rides, where you still get the traditional railroad experience of sleeping in a berth and dining onboard a train

[tblue37]

58. I loved both of those experiences. nt

[empedocles]

10. Great to see the pictures. Memories.

Few years ago my wife and I trained from DC to SF. Enjoyed the whole trip, especially Cumberland gap, Chicago, Mississippi River, KC, Albequeque, the mountain cuts, Grand Canyon, LA, - stopping to see friends along the way.

[Hiawatha Pete]

17. Cool!

I've been on the route Chicago - Albuquerque - LA. Actually rode it eastbound from LA. Loved every minute of it.

[doc03]

14. Looks like a nice trip. I only rode a train once in this

country from DC to Baltimore. They announced deboarding in Baltimore from like car six I am in four with a suitcase it was standing room only I made it through one car. I ended up getting off in Willmington Delaware.
Had to catch a train back. What a nigtmare. I rode a train several times in Germany it was great.

[Hiawatha Pete]

19. Thanks!

Wow, sounds like they were overbooked. We once took Amtrak Niagara Falls-NY-Philadelphia and then NJT to Atlantic City and the Amtrak train from Niagara Falls to New York was sold out. Lucky for us Niagara is the start terminal and we got seats on the Hudson River side of the train.

[doc03]

23. I guess that was the commuter train from

DC to NYC. That was back in 1966.

[MLAA]

18. Wonderful!

Thank you for sharing. I enjoyed the trip!

[Hiawatha Pete]

20. No problem, my pleasure!

Thanks for viewing my pics.

[Niagara]

21. Incredible photos, Pete!

Thank you for sharing.

[Hiawatha Pete]

22. No problem, I enjoy showing them off!

Thanks for checking out my post

[FailureToCommunicate]

24. Great photo-log! Each one could be a post card. We LOVED our cross country train trips

when our kids were little. Best way to travel!

Thanks for the reminder of good times!

[Hiawatha Pete]

41. No problem,

Last edited Sat May 30, 2020, 08:40 PM - Edit history (1)

Thank YOU for checking out my pictures and for the generous compliment. I agree 100%, best way to travel!

[kairos12]

25. Great journey and pictures. Thanks.

[Hiawatha Pete]

42. No prob, Thanks for checking out my post!

[whistler162]

26. Last major train trip

was from Syracuse NY to Savannah Ga. to go to Hilton Head SC for my Aunt's 70th birthday/family reunion in 2010.

[Hiawatha Pete]

43. Cool!

We passed through Syracuse and Savannah on this trip.

[csziggy]

27. Great trip! Thanks for the beautiful pictures

One correction - they are orange groves, not plantations.

A few years ago my husband and I took the Silver Meteor from Lakeland, Florida to Alexandria, Virginia and back - I had a seminar in Alexandria so while I was in that, my husband took the Metro to Washington. We both spent Election Day 2016 in Washington at the National Museum of the American Indian. The next day we took the train back.

I loved taking the train - my husband not so much. The bunks are simply too small for him but the final straw was when our engine broke down in the middle of the North Carolina mountains. It took hours for them to arrange for a freight engine and crew, then they stopped in Jacksonville to see if the original engine could be repaired, then stopped in Deland to change out engines. We arrived in Lakeland nine hours late.

I need to follow your site and show him the pictures from your trips. Eventually we will be at the age where he won't want to drive thousands of miles and for me, a train is the way to go.

Thank you for sharing your trips!

[Hiawatha Pete]

44. Thanks for the clarification! I corrected it...

I attribute my ignorance on orange groves to being from Canada, not something you get to see up here!

Cool trip by the way, too bad about the engine breakdown & your husband's experience. If it's any consolation, we took the train across Canada in 2017 and due to forest fires and freight traffic the train was 23 hours late on arrival into Vancouver. We were supposed to arrive at 9:30am. We ended up arriving at 8:30am - on the following day! We were ok though as we never book connecting travel on the same day the train is due to arrive.

I don't know if this would help in your husband's case, but the lower bunk in the Amtrak bedrooms is wider and might work sleeping corner to corner. Or if he's really tall a pillow under the knees to keep them elevated might help shorten his footprint, the Amtrak attendants will give you extra, fresh, pillows if you ask. For my part I'm 6'3 and am fine in the roomette (smaller bedroom) bunks.

Best Regards!

[csziggy]

49. If we had not had a lunch with my mother scheduled, it wouldn't have mattered

But we missed that and seeing my sister. As it was, my sister dropped off my car at the train station and we drove straight out of Lakeland.

On the way up we had a roomette - with my husband's long legs that was a disaster. There was no room for my knees and feet! At Alexandria, I checked into getting a room. Since I had my walker with me (mostly to carry stuff around at the seminar) they upgraded us to an ADA room for only $23 more!

The real problem is that I do not trust myself climbing a ladder so I can't take the top bunk. In the ADA room, the bottom bunk was a bunk and a half so very roomy.

I want to take the train from Florida to Seattle and visit Vancouver Island. We'd stop in Minneapolis to visit his family; I'd like to go to Escanaba where my grandparents were from. And we'd consider taking the train across Canada either there or back.

I'm trying to convince my husband that we can do legs of the trip on the train and stay in hotels along the way for a good night's sleep. But we'd have to plan this carefully.

The biggest problem is that the trains no longer come through Tallahassee where we live. We'd either have to drive to Jacksonville and go up the East Coast or to Mobile, then through New Orleans to go to Chicago and out west. I'm working on him - and as we approach seventy, letting someone else do most of the driving is very attractive.

Last fall we went to the UK and drove from Glasgow all over Scotland, England and Wales, ending in Southampton - from John O'Groats to Lands End! Way too much driving, and too long a trip at our age. Next trip I would like my husband to be able to appreciate the scenery so a train trip seems a good choice.

[Hiawatha Pete]

50. I hear you,

The top bunk doesn't work well for people with trouble climbing. It's why I take the top bunk and my wife the bottom. If you could do the trip in stages and stay in hotels then you might not necessarily need a sleeper and can save some $, though the private bedrooms are nice.

The fact the train no longer runs through Tallahassee seems to be a recurring theme of transportation policy in both the US and Canada - massive funding for highways and air transport while passenger trains must operate on a shoestring budget

[csziggy]

55. We'd probably still get a room since we're used to privacy

That said, we took a few trains in the UK - from Edinburgh to the Kyle of Lochalsh (couldn't get a ticket for the Harry Potter train which runs south of that route), up Mount Snowdon (with rain and fog, so no view), and a Welsh coastal train into the mountains further south. We had a great time talking with people we met along the way and that really added to our journeys.

The train through Tallahassee used to be part of the Sunset Limited which ran from Miami to California, but after the Amtrak train was dropped into the bayou near Mobile (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bayou_Canot_rail_accident) it was never consistently resumed from Mobile to Jacksonville - despite what the Wikipedia article says about it (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunset_Limited#Amtrak). If it did, it did not stop in Tallahassee. Now the train station has been converted to a community center so I doubt we will ever get passenger rail travel again.

I missed my chance to take the same route my grandparents used to - they'd get on the train at Winter Haven, Florida, change at Jacksonville, again at New Orleans, and up to Chicago. Then they would travel up to Escanaba for summers with their relatives. Many of the relatives would come south the same way to spend winters with them in Central Florida.

[Corgigal]

28. We took a sleeper car,

actually two rooms in the train car, from Charleston SC to NYC. My husband and son in the bigger disabled room, which had a shower. My daughter and I in the smaller room. You can sleep looking right out the window.

I love the train. So much better then flying.

[Hiawatha Pete]

45. I agree 100%

The train is great, I love falling to sleep looking out the window.

Thanks for checking out my post!

[Corgigal]

47. You also went

through my childhood hometown, one up from Croton. Ossining, where Sing Sing prison, you passed its wall on the right side.

Happy you enjoyed it. I do love eating in the food car too.

[Hiawatha Pete]

51. Cool!

Thanks for the info, I had no idea the train passed right by Sing Sing. I hope to be riding the rails again once the pandemic passes and I plan to keep an eye out for it next time!

[Fla Dem]

29. When relocating to Fl 20 years ago, took an Auto train from Lorton Va to Sanford Fl.

Was the longest train ride I'd ever been on. Unfortunately it was an overnight trip so didn't get to see a lot of sights on the way. But thoroughly enjoyed it.

Your pictures are a great chronicle of your trip.

[Hiawatha Pete]

53. Cool!

I know someone who rode the Auto train and used it to bring his family & car to Florida. It's definitely one for our bucket list.

Thanks for the compliment, btw.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

30. Looks fantastic. Weren't u worried about COVID?

[Roland99]

32. Looks like pics from 2015...a reminiscing.

[Hiawatha Pete]

46. I would be worried, however as Roland99 indicated, our trip was in 2015.

Once the pandemic crisis passes we hope to hit the rails again.

Thanks for the compliment & for checking out my post!

[Laura PourMeADrink]

66. Huge duh. Sorry, I missed that everyone on edge maybe?

That's my excuse and I am sticking to it Seriously, that trip sounds fabulous. Who knew? We were at Mardi Gras in February, both of us seemingly well informed people. Side by side with all. Not a clue.

[Hiawatha Pete]

69. Nah, that one reference to 2015 in my ramble was easy to miss.

I'm envious, we'd also love to go to New Orleans once the pandemic crisis passes.

We were also largely oblivious of the situation at that time, going shopping as normal like nothing was up, until we started hearing all the horror stories.

Lucky for us we were ok, as I assume and hope that you are and were

[Laura PourMeADrink]

73. Where in Canada? We got married 4 days after 9-11

And cancelled our European honeymoon. We got on internet in New Orleans and just looked for any flight still flying. It was BUFFALO. Ended up great. The Mansion in Buffalo - lovely, Niagra Falls, into Canada, Toronto. Great trip. We loved the pubs because each had TVs and everyone was watching Bush and laughing and yelling at TV. Because bush told international flights to land in Canada not US.

[Hiawatha Pete]

74. I'm from Canada - across the border

Been to Buffalo a few times as a jumping off point for travelling throughout the U.S.

We like the Buffalo / Niagara Falls are very much as well, lots to see and do.

[usaf-vet]

31. So how is traveling via Amtrak during CoVid-19?

Did you get a sleeper compartment?
Are the prices still high?
And how long is that trip?

We took a trip from Wisconsin to Boston to visit family in 2018.

Our first Amtrak was from Boston to Wisconsin to visit family in Wisconsin. Our son was 3 or 4. He is now 47.

[Hiawatha Pete]

57. This was from 2015. Personally I'd avoid travel as much as possible until the covid crisis passes

Most people look at the train and compare it to flying which to me is disingenuous. For one thing you don't see the America at 30,000 ft that you see at ground level. And you could well be money ahead taking the train versus renting a car: A one week rental might run you $600, plus $250 gas, plus a $200 for hotels [one night each way, for those that do not like risking their safety by driving 20 hours straight] - or well over $1000 total.

That's more than what it cost us on Amtrak, total round trip fare for two Buffalo to Miami, including meals & sleeping accommodations onboard and business class on the connecting train from Buffalo. If you go coach class on the train instead it might cost you a couple hundred dollars.

Buffalo-Miami was about 34 hrs including a couple hours layover in New York. The train is fast, we hit speeds of 112 mph: https://northamericabyrail.info/a-trip-on-amtraks-silver-meteor/0873-onboard-amtraks-silver-meteor-hurtling-northwards-at-180kmh/ The travel time is due to the fact that it must stop to serve the on-line communities.

We really liked Wisconsin by the way, went through the Dells on Amtrak a few years back.

[rurallib]

33. Glad to see I am not the only one that loves rail transport

Sadly congress has screwed Amtrak up so badly that I can't get from my house to anywhere I want to go in a decent time. We live in the midwest and service is sparse.

Your pics do bring back memories of some of the trips we were able to make. Trains are nice.

Did you mention how long the trip took? Maybe I missed it.

[Hiawatha Pete]

56. Me too, train travel is great! Virtually everyone we've met onboard enjoyed the experience as well.

The trip was about 34 hours Buffalo to Miami including a layover of a couple hours in New York while changing trains.

It seems roads & airports get a blank cheque while rail must make do with a shoestring budget. At least the U.S. still has multiple long distance routes in the midwest & west though. Sometimes it works both ways where congress' power of the purse strings has helped to save Amtrak [like under Dubya who wanted to zero out its funding]

In Canada we have only one western truly transcontinental train route left [Toronto-Vancouver], thanks to the festering pimple of a prime minister we had back in 1990 who slashed passenger rail's funding. There are also still a couple of long-distance [not transcontinental] routes in the Prairies and Northern British Columbia that survive due to being classified as remote essential services.

Thanks for checking out my post, btw.

[AllaN01Bear]

34. first real train ride was from mexicali /calexico to mexico city as a boy.

those trains quit running in 2000 when the mexican gvt dumped their subsides and privatized . fast foreward to 1971. rode amtrak in the rainbow era to new mexcio and excursion to santa fe. rode the zypher many times . also rode the empire builder ( fancy train) and the coast starlite a few times . train riding for a while quit in 2000 when my late mom passed away in 2004. i then went to my dads on the sw chief for a number of years and he passed on. now with medical issues like afib, i dare not ride a long distance train anymore . looks like u all had fun. stay safe .

[Hiawatha Pete]

59. Always glad to meet a fellow train travel aficionado!

I'm envious of all your trips, if only I had a time machine - I would have loved to travel during Amtrak's rainbow era with all their heritage equipment that they were running at the time. Or at least had the sense to travel more when I was younger.

Sorry to hear about your medical condition, not worth taking a risk with your health. Glad that you could experience it back in the day, though.

Likewise, keep well & stay safe!

[AllaN01Bear]

68. was train crazy since a small boy. lived in glendora ca along the old

at and sf second district main, pasadena ca sub, now its part of metro rail and going to be part of the gold line . i live in northenr ca now and dont get to do any hard core train watching except via youtube .

[orangecrush]

35. It really is the best way to travel!

Took the Lake Shore Limited from Erie, Pa., to NYC 3 years ago.

Best money ever spent on a trip!

[Hiawatha Pete]

60. +1000

It is the best way to travel. I like the Lakeshore Limited, took it going east from Buffalo to NY and west from Buffalo to Chicago.

Cool video of the Empire State Express model train set, is that yours?

[Mossfern]

39. The way I used to travel to Miami

Traveled with a two year old and a three month old from NYC while husband stayed home. We had a room and it was wonderful! The porters helped out and indulged my rambunctious toddler while I tended to my infant. It's the only way to go. In subsequent years, when I visited my mom by myself, I enjoyed the luxury of a room - a vacation for sure, especially when I could leave my four kids behind in NJ and just enjoy.

Love your photos!

Some day I hope to go cross country by train.

[Hiawatha Pete]

61. Thanks for checking out my pics!

And for sharing that snippet of your travel experiences.

Likewise my wife and I love having the private room on Amtrak, really courteous service from the attendants as well. Many years ago I took my mother, sister and niece on the train across Canada. My niece was six at the time and it was an exhilarating experience for her.

Wishing you safe travels once the pandemic is over

[yellowdogintexas]

40. up until the late 1970s, the main line of L & N railroad ran right through our teeny little town

This was back when mail went by rail whenever possible. Every town without a scheduled stop had a tower with big quick release clamps on it where the postal people would hang the mail bag. When the train came through, one of the mailmen on the train would lean out of the mail car with this long long rod that had a hook on it and grab the mail sack. It was pretty scary to watch. Another one would throw out the bag with our mail in it. Inside the car were sorting shelves for each town on the route, and they would sort the mail from each bag as they were picked up. Southbound in the morning and Northbound in the afternoon. I could get a letter from Louisville in the morning, answer it and get it back on the Pan that afternoon and it would be at my friend's house the next day. The line ran from Chicago to Mobile; the North Train was the Pan American and the South was the Dixie Flyer.

I used to go down with my dad and he would hang the outgoing bag and I would pick up the inbound one. One time he was able to take us inside the mail car where we could watch the sorting

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibits/current/moving-the-mail/mail-by-rail/index.html

When I was really young we had a depot too and my aunt commuted on the train to the next town down the line and worked in a bank. When the depot burned, she had to leave her job and work for my grandfather.

The railroad is still there and a lot of long freight trains travel up and down.

[Hiawatha Pete]

63. Thanks for sharing that interesting piece of railroad and your family's history!

And for that interesting video link. I've seen similar vintage footage of the operations you & that video described of those railway express agency cars where the crew does the mail exchange with the train on the move, very interesting to watch...

We had RPO cars in Canada too, where the mail used to go by train in express cars often at the head end of passenger trains. The revenue from the mail would offset the operating losses of the passenger trains. That is until the government started subsidizing highways and it all started going by truck.

[essme]

52. Love your photos!!

What kind of camera did you use?

[Hiawatha Pete]

64. Thanks for the compliment!

I used a Nikon D50 that I got back in 2005 and is still my main camera today.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

54. Does Amtrak still have an actual "sit down and eat food off plates" diner on the Silver Meteor

and other LD trains, or have they been removed recently?

[Hiawatha Pete]

65. Unfortunately...

Amtrak no longer has a full service dining car on the Silver Meteor or other eastern long distance trains. It's been replaced with in-room pre-packaged meal service or cafe car service.

The Western Amtrak LD trains (last one I rode was the 'Builder in 2016) still have the full service sit-down diners. An acquaintance of mine recently took the Zephyr and confirmed this to be the case when I asked him.

[smirkymonkey]

62. Thank you so much for this, Hiawatha Pete!

I love train travel and would love to make this trip someday from Boston, since I hate to fly (I do it when I have to, but avoid it at all cost). Your photos were great!

It was so nice to see the pics on the Empire Service! I used to take that all the time when I lived in NYC to go back to visit my parents who lived north of Utica. The trip along the Hudson River was just beautiful, especially on a sunny day. I always made sure I got a window seat on the river side.

I have also taken Amtrak to visit my brother and his family in Baltimore and the farthest I have gone is DC on the Acela. Amtrak along the northeast corridor is very reliable. There are definitely certain places I would love to see in the south along the eastern seaboard so I thought that would be a nice trip someday, particularly with a sleeping car.

I have taken trains all over Europe, including sleeping cars and 6-person couchettes. It's really a nice way to travel if you want to see the countryside.

Anyway, thank you again! Your post has gotten me very excited about a train travel vacation. I have 15 years at my company in August so I get 5 weeks of vacation plus 3 extra floating holidays - almost a month off, so could definitely take the extra time to travel by train.

[Hiawatha Pete]

67. No problem, thanks for checking out my pics!

Always enjoy meeting a fellow train travel enthusiast.

My wife and I have the same idea as you and always try to get seats on the Hudson river side of the train when travelling to/from New York!

Been on the Acela for the very first time last year between Philly & NY, what a way to commute! I'm envious of those who can take advantage of that service.

Wifey and I talked about taking the Boston section of Amtrak's Lakeshore Limited as we've never been to Boston yet. It's on our bucket list once the pandemic situation passes.

It's definitely an advantage to work for a good company that will give you time off dependent on your years of service.

Here's to staying safe & keeping well so we can all enjoy train travel again once things change for the better!

[smirkymonkey]

70. I'm a native NY'er, but have lived in Boston for many years, punctuated by a

six year stint in San Francisco, but let me know if you ever need any travel tips for Boston. It's a very pretty small city. Very walkable and easy to get around by public tranportation if you don't feel like walking. Lots of great day trips an hour to two hours outside the city (Cape Cod, NH, Maine, other MA destinations) and a lot of arts and culture for a city of this size.

I would be happy to give you and your wife some insider info!

[Hiawatha Pete]

71. Thank you, I'd like to take you up on your offer for info on attractions/things to do!

I had no idea Cape Cod was just 1 hr away, if we decide to do that I might rent a car for a day or so. I like the idea of walking/taking transit where possible so insider info would be most welcome! It would be great if we didn't have to rent a car for the whole time we're there and could take transit.

Right now the border is closed to non essential travel and I'm not sure how long that and the pandemic crisis will last. This summer is probably a write off at the very least.

It may be some time before we can travel again, but if it's OK with you, I can p.m./message you through the D.U. website here when we get around to making our trip plans...

In the meantime, keep well & stay safe!

[smirkymonkey]

72. Yes, definitely!

You certainly don't need to rent a car here in Boston unless you are going to take a day trip, and even then there are options to take trains, boats or buses, depending upon where you are going. Boston is pretty compact and parking is very difficult so a car would be more trouble than it would be worth. Also, there are plenty of Ubers, Lyfts and Taxis if you do want to go somewhere that is a little off the beaten path.

Feel free to p.m/message me through the website when you guys are ready to travel again. More than happy to help!