CZ Route. New Railfan question.

I am a new railfan since my wife and I had a great experience on the California Zephyr. Does the CZ ever ride on the original Transcontinental Railroad? Here is my take, please let me know if I am incorrect. Leaving Chicago it seems like it is on BNSF rails and heads southwest, not on the Overland Route.Then into Denver along I-76. Correct? Then out of Denver it runs on the old Rio Grande through the Rockies. But, somewhere in Utah in connects with the original Transcon then down to Emeryville, right? But where does it connect to the original? I wish I would have paid more attention while we were on the trip. Please forgive me for my ignorance. This seems like a great forum and I will have a few more questions down the road.This is my first post. Thanks! Tom

While staring at OpenRailwayMap on one screen with the Amtrak Tracker on the other makes me want to say Wells, NV, wikipedia tells me it's on the Overland Route from Elko, NV to Sacramento.

The "Overland route" "starts at Omaha Ne on the UP and at Ogden UT would go on then SP (now UP) to Reno then over Donner Pass into the
SFO Bay area.
The original CZ routing was CB&Q ,Chicago to Denver Co,DRGW to Salt lake City,Then on Western Pacific/Southern Pacific shared track across NV,
then the Western Pacific via Keddie wye routing to the SFO Bay area.
When Amtrak was created,the CZ was routed north to Cheyanne on UP's Overland route to Odgen,south to Salt Lake City then west on WP/SP shared
trackage to Reno,then over Donner Pass to the SFO Bay area
DRGW did not join Amtrak till years later,and the CZ returned to the DRGW routing to Salt Lake City

In all routings the "Final miles" to SFO Transbay terminal were done by Bus or Ferry from Emeryville/Oakland areas.

The traditional Overland Route used C&NW from Chicago to Omaha. Milwaukee handled the trains east of Omaha from 1955 to 1971. Amtrak's Pre-1983 Zephyr west of Denver went north to Cheyenne before crossing Wyoming and went west from Ogden on the former SP, not going via ex-WP west of Salt Lake City until late 1983, about six months after moving to the original CZ route east of Salt Lake City. The portion west of Sacramento on SP is also part of "Overland Route" history.

At this time, and continuing for ???, the Zephyr is being routed over the C&NW (now Union Pacific in thisvday of seven big railroads when within my memory there were 115) Chicago-Omaha.

Reroutes over the Overland Route (always been Union Pacific) occur often during the summer months when there is trackwork over the existing route. But it is "hit or miss". While more of the rail travel community prefers the existing route, the Overland in its own way is awe inspiring. To think that people once crossed this "moonscspe" land on foot, simply astounds the mind. Even today with the busy highway (I-80) and the busy railroad (where you often can often see two trains at once), it is still a lonely place. Westward of WESO Nevada 125 miles West of Salt Lake City, that is the original route over the desert and the Sierras.

I've tried to keep the "railfanese" to a minimum; hopefully I've succeeded. Otherwise, happy travels.

Here's a New York Times article on Amtrak long distance travel. It may or may not be behind a paywall:

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/201 ... mtrak.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mr. Norman, I'm glad I'm not the only one who likes the UP through Wyoming. I took the Pioneer once and I've been rerouted twice since (once around a fire west of Glenwood Springs, which at least three or four years ago was still visible in the scorched trees along the tracks, and once around a derailed coal train) and been happy both times. Apart from the different views, you get to SLC a couple hours sooner, and dinner in the diner in Weber Canyon is spectacular. Some other pax got mopey, and the people who had to ride to SLC and wait six hours for the train back to Grand Junction were pretty upset, but I like being rerouted.

Welcome to the club (or maybe support group ), Tom!

Thanks to all. This is going to be a fun and informative forum. So now, thanks to this forum, I see that the CZ runs on Metra track, then on BNSF track until Denver on UP, then rejoins the original Transcon in Nevada. Now I get it. We live in Sandusky, Ohio so we are very fortunate to have the NS main here. Many questions to come. But that will wait until later. Signaling.

Once again,
Thanks to all for the great responses.

Cheers.
Tom

In response to the question about where the CZ route joins the original transcon, you're on the (second) Western Pacific from SLC to Wells, from where it parallels the original Central Pacific; westward from Wells, dating from some time in the early 20th century, the WP2, so to call it, not completed until 1910, made a joint arrangement with the Southern Pacific to run all trains of both roads eastward on the WP and westward on SP between Wells and Winnemucca (where they split to go their separate ways), so technically you joined the original transcon at Wells, assuming the arrangement still exists, both roads now being part of UP. The Central Pacific started eastward from Sacramento; a connection to Oakland via Stockton and Altamont Pass, called the Western Pacific (which we may call WP1) was opened in 1870 and became part of SP (the Western Pacific name disappeared before 1900). The existing route via Suisun-Fairfield was completed in 1879 and involved a train ferry across Carquinez Strait from Benicia to Port Costa, continuing from there over the present route to Oakland (although it no longer reaches the ferry terminal that used to be there). The train ferry operation lasted until the bridge at Martinez (which the CZ now uses, and which you crossed) was completed in 1930.

Great information has been posted to answer your question.
I would like to add that traditionally the pre-Amtrak (WP, D&RG, Burlington) California Zephyr rarely ran on any of the original transcon route. UP's City of San Francisco train did follow far more of it pre-Amtrak.
I know it is hard to believe today, but 75-100 years ago there were more than one train between city pairs using more than one route owned by different railroads.

Ron, even 50 years ago.

What was always sport was to listen the the CUS Information Clerks describe choices over the competitive routings originating there - impartiality was the "dictum".

If some one asked which train should I take to, say, San Francisco? In an effort to not favor one road over the other, they would answer such as "we have two routes; onebis the fastest, one is the scenic.

I never recall hearing them answer an inquiry regarding to Seattle. The MILW was "out" by the time I first showed up in Chitown.

The pre Amtrak CZ ran on the CB&Q, D&RGW, and Western Pacific.

It ran on the Overland Route as the “San Francisco Zephyr” until the Rio Grande joined. Then, it went back to its historic route as far as eastern Nevada.

It runs on the Southern Pacific into California.

electricron wrote:I know it is hard to believe today, but 75-100 years ago there were more than one train between city pairs using more than one route owned by different railroads.

Is Chicago-Omaha a record? CB&Q, CRI&P, C&NW, MILW, CGW, and IC?

ExCon90 wrote:Is Chicago-Omaha a record? CB&Q, CRI&P, C&NW, MILW, CGW, and IC?

Chicago-Twin Cities had CB&Q, C&NW, MILW, CGW, Soo(WC) and IC/M&St.L .

https://m.amtrak.com/h5/r/www.amtrak.co ... ephyr.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

According to this alert, #5 and #6 will operate effective April 1, by means of the freight route over the bridge at Pacific Junction thereby bypassing Omaha.

Apparently a busteetoot will be in place.

There is no end date specified in the alert. Also of interest how will the flood reroute over the C&NW affect this plan?

Enquiring mind wants to know.

For the last few years(I can't remember how many), Amtrak has used the bridge at Plattsmouth which is near Pacific Jct. The first couple of days of the re-route they crossed at Omaha to Council Bluffs then south to Pacific Jct. Evidently that route became unusable so the diverted to the C&NW. The last couple of days the CZ has only operated from Denver to Emeryville. I think yesterdays departure from Emeryville is to go all the way to Chicago but I'm not sure which route. It didn't appear there was a departure from Chicago today.