And if you found #AmtrakWestern2023 fun, stay tuned for #AllTheShinkansens2023 late in August. It's going to be electrifying. 🚅🇯🇵🚂

Adding it all up, I went 4,724 km (2,935 miles) on trains, 4,420 km of that on #Amtrak. Slightly less than 5% of that was on electrified tracks. 98% was on standard (Stevenson) gauge tracks, 1.7% on broad gauge (5'6" BART), and 3 km on meter gauge (the cable car). #AmtrakWestern2023 #trains #transit

We ended up getting into Denver at just past 3:00 AM, and I promptly went home and crashed. That was a heck of a trip, but I'm glad I did it. #AmtrakWestern2023, signing off

Passed the westbound version of our train at the Colorado border. They were on time, we are still 5ish hours late, and will cross the Rockies entirely at night. Oh well, I'm just glad to be almost home. #AmtrakWestern2023

Finally seeing the Rockies! #AmtrakWestern2023

The "Ratio" sculpture art in Green River, last stop in Utah. This area is literally the "Desolation Valley Wilderness Study Area". #AmtrakWestern2023

Trying the other IPA that Amtrak stocks, Elysian Space Dust. Still 5 hr late, ETA in Denver is 1 am... #AmtrakWestern2023 #BeerOnTrains

Passing Soldier Summit, now 5 hours late... #AmtrakWestern2023

Track maintenance gore at Salt Lake City Union Terminal, look away @ThermiteBeGiants Now at at 4 hr behind and waiting again for a UP freight train.
#AmtrakWestern2023

Good morning from the salt plains of Utah. Running about three hours behind, hope to make up some of that. #AmtrakWestern2023

Finally moving after 1.5 hr delay in Soda Springs due to a Union Pacific freight train breaking down ahead of us. #AmtrakWestern2023

Some serious @diningcar action. Both the salmon and the lemon cake were great. #AmtrakWestern2023

Decided to be fancy and have some train wine. #AmtrakWestern2023

Oh dear. We've only reached Sacramento and the Head End Power (from the rear loco) is already having issues.

In the meantime, Iget a nice view of this Amtrak California EMD F59PHI, built in 2001.

#AmtrakWestern2023

And today I'm finally on my last train, the California Zephyr. It will take (at least) 32 hours to cross the Sierras, the Nevada/Utah desert, and the Rockies to bring me home. #AmtrakWestern2023

And finally, I took the Transbay Tunnel back to Emeryville, completing a circuit of the Bay almost entirely on rails (just one brief bus in San Jose). The new BART trains are way, way nicer than the old ones. #AmtrakWestern2023

Also, if you ever have the chance to stand in the back of a cable car, take it. It's so much fun. #AmtrakWestern2023

I then played the best San Francisco game, #TransitPokemon! Modern-ish streetcar, overcrowded historic PCC streetcar, cable car that I had to wait an hour for (but was worth it), and combustion bendy bus.

I just missed a trolleybus and was too lazy to wait for another, so went and got yakitori.

#AmtrakWestern2023

After that, I took the Caltrain all the way to San Francisco, which I somehow had never done before. And glad I did at least once in the diesel era.

Also managed to see Caltrain's two toasters (EMD AEM-7, license built Swedish Rc4 locomotives), one still in Amtrak colors (but logos removed).

#AmtrakWestern2023

Made it to Emeryville, only 1 minute late on a 12 hr trip. Not bad #amtrak.
#AmtrakWestern2023