Living the Dream Year 5 Day 253 – Day 3 of 22 day California Zephyr, California coastal drive, and 14 night Mexico Cruise – Day 2 of 3 day California Zephyr – Iowa to Colorado – Moffat Tunnel

Year 5, Day 253 “Living the Dream”. Thursday, 1/08/2026, Day 3 of 22 day California Zephyr cross country trip, followed by a California coastal drive, and then a 14 night Mexico Cruise – Today is Day 2 of our 3 day California Zephyr trip. The California Zephyr is the longest Amtrak route. It is 2,438.26 miles. Some say it is one of the most beautiful railway routes in the world. The route travels through seven states. There is one Amtrak California Zephyr train that runs daily in each direction (eastbound and westbound). Train 5 goes westbound, and Train 6 goes eastbound covering the route between Chicago and Emeryville/San Francisco. 10pm – 6am is quiet time in the sleeper car. You must wear head phones for electronics. Went to sleep last night after stepping off the train in Ottumwa, Iowa. Amtrak attendant pulled down our bed while we were eating dinner. We elected to sleep in the lower bunk together. Two plastic wrapped blankets are provided. They are thin but really warm. This bed is larger than the one in the Roomette.

After sleeping a few hours. I woke to dead quiet no movement at all. It is 1:30am and we are sitting on a side track in Lincoln, Nebraska. About ten minutes later a freight train goes around us. At 1:50am another fright train goes by. At 1:55am another freight train goes by. At 2:30am here comes another BNSF train. You get the story Amtrak trains operate on tracks owned by BNSF Railway. Bottles of water are always available on the platform at the top of the stairs. It was a good opportunity to take a little walk, get a bottle of water. and check the situation out. I’m not sure why we sat for so long. At 3am we started moving again.

At 7am after a hot shower our first stop was McCook, Nebraska. This is our first room on Amtrak. We have been in a roomette on our three other trips. We took a shower in our own bathroom. The water was hot and plentiful. The shampoo, conditioner, and body wash is Beckman 1803 and was very nice. My hair looks great today with no blow drying.

We sat with the same couple from Ohio that we ate dinner with last night for breakfast. The coffee was excellent.

The server told us that the stop in Lincoln, Nebraska was due to the need for a new engine car. We are currently running late into Denver. In Denver I see that a BNSF engine is pulling us, not Amtrak. In Lincoln, Nebraska we called for assistance and BNSF came to assist us on the rest of our journey. The schedule from Chicago into Emeryville is padded with time. So we may still make it on our scheduled time. This trains average speed is around 55 mph and top speeds near 79 mph where allowed. The focus is on scenic slow-downs rather than high-speed segments. The Zephyr uses host railroad tracks (BNSF, and Union Pacific). The actual speeds depend on track conditions, signals, and freight priority. We are eating breakfast cruising through Eckley, Colorado. We are waiting to see some snow. It is currently 37 degrees Fahrenheit. We passed a few feed lots loaded with penned cows. Colorado is one of the top five states for cattle raising. These states include Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, and California. A feedlot is a confined area where livestock, primarily cattle, are intensively raised. They are fattened on high-energy grain-based diets, like corn and soy. This process helps them quickly gain weight before slaughter.

9am and Steve is napping as we chug through Roggen, Colorado. Sleeping on a train is tough at night. Passing through so much tilled land these last two days with homesteads set in the middle makes me think of pesticide and herbicide spraying. Wonder how much toxic chemicals those families are getting bombarded with. At 9:30am we found some snow in Hidson, Colorado.

Then it was on into Denver, Colorado around 10am. Denver is a major stop for the Zephyr. Everyone had to remain in their seat while the train pulled up and then backed into the station. At this stop the crew changed, we refilled with fuel and water, and passenger boarding/disembarking took place. Denver, Colorado, is known as the “Mile High City” because its average elevation is exactly 5,280 feet above sea level. Denver Union Station is a historic Beaux-Arts train station in the LoDo district. We got off took a short walk, took some pictures, and a video. It is cold, damp and cloudy outside. Did you know that many train stations in the United States are named Union Station. Private railroad companies often worked together to build a single shared terminal in a city. This collaboration helped save money. It also made train travel more convenient for passengers. The last great Union Station built in the U.S. is the Los Angeles Union Station, opening in 1939. It is known for its grand scale. The station blends Mission Revival, Art Deco, and Streamline Modern styles. It has been serving as a major passenger hub for decades and remains active today. Denver Union Station was revitalized and reopened in 2014. It is a renovation of an older structure.

After leaving Denver we had lunch with a college student and his dad. They met up and got on the train in Denver. They have done this trip many times together. They provided a lot of insight into what we were seeing. They also shared what we were going to see. We all had the Patty Melt. It was delicious but very filling. Again way too much food. I really try not to eat dessert, but had to take one of the Frank & Louie’s Buttercakes. These cakes have a cult following. They have a moist butter poundcake-like exterior and are filled with a sweet, creamy vanilla custard center.

While eating lunch we traveled through beautiful scenery and many short tunnels up to an elevation of 9,239 feet.

This is the highest elevation on the Amtrak rail network. There we entered the 6.2-mile-long Moffat Tunnel. The Moffat Tunnel goes under the Continental Divide. We were in the tunnel about 10 minutes. In the tunnel we were not allowed to move from our cars. No doors between cars were to be opened in an effort to keep out fumes. The Moffat Tunnel is famous because it radically shortened the Denver-to-Salt Lake City rail route. It achieved this by piercing the Continental Divide in 1928. It saved 173 miles and transformed Rocky Mountain travel. The tunnel has an exhaust ventilation system. After a train goes through, the system ventilates the tunnel. Doors will not open for another train until sensors show good air quality. After crossing the Continental Divide via the Moffat Tunnel. We descended and followed the Colorado River for miles.

We spent hours with no cell service winding through the Rockies. At 3:30pm we are in Bond, Colorado and we are half way through our Amtrak Journey. We then passed through Bald eagle country. The engineer came on the intercom and pointed their nests out as we went by. Woohoo – 5pm dinner time is announced.

Time to get up, move around, and talk to people. Wonder who our dinner companions will be tonight.

Here’s a little something to ponder.

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