Amtrak's ADIRONDACK

Fireman Side to Albany; then move to Engineer Side for the rest of the journey. Remember to take your hatcheck when you change sides.

Regarding entry formalities, there have been enough reports here that they are conducted at the frontier, and that the train does not move until complete. There are proposals to have a pre-clearing made at Montreal, but one knows the pace at which such move.

Sorry what does fireman side mean? And what does engineer side mean?

Is the engine at the back of the train?

Engineer's side: Right side in the direction the train is travelling.

Fireman's (Conductor)'s side: Left side in the direction the train is travelling.

Customs Check Point is at Rouses Point NY. Several customs agents will board and check all passengers.
A one hour stop at Rouses Point is scheduled in the timetable. Customs may take longer.
Yesterday (Sat 7/25), #68 spend just about the full hour there according to Amtrak.com.

thanks for all the good tips!

how does boarding work in montreal? is there a "gate" like in dc or nyc? or can you just walk on the train with your ticket?

also, how full is the train (generally speaking)? i'll be traveling on saturday morning.

Last time I rode a train out of Montreal, Central Station platform access was controlled at the gate and you had to show your ticket to pass through. The concourse is above track level and access to the platforms is mostly by escalator. It is similar to Penn Station, NY but more civilized. Central Station, Montreal is a modern facility. I second the idea of the left side leaving Montreal and the right side leaving Albany although by Albany it will be getting late and darkness will be creeping in also you will be dealing with the sun on the other side as well. I might even suggest you just stay on the left side all the way to NY.
Noel Weaver

Getting dark by the time we reach Albany? The train is supposed to arrive at NYP at 20:30 (8:30) -- so shouldn't it be light the entire journey? Or should I expect major delays?

Definitely get to Montreal station early - we've taken this route a couple of times and the line begins to form up to an hour before departure, and it does get very busy in the summer.

As others have said, left-hand side facing forward has the best views of Lake Champlain, and they're worth it. It will be dark by the time you get south of Albany but West Point is usually lit up and worth seeing so follow the advice to swap sides at Albany if you can.

US customs takes a while - it'll be at least the hour or so that is allowed for in the timetable and can be longer - but is done at your seat and is no big deal. Last time we did it the CBP officers were some of the chillest and friendliest we've ever encountered. The Canadian customs on the way up tend to be much grumpier in our experience.

AJL:

1-Getting to Montreal Central Station early and getting in the Adirondack boarding line is a good idea to board a
first come first served train such as this one...Saturday August 1st is your day of travel am I correct?

2-Customs and Immigration can "make or break" a train like the Adirondack crossing the Canada-US Border
and having the correct travel documentation (Passport or EDL-Enhanced Drivers License to name two) will
help matters to speed the entry process. The train will not leave Rouses Point, NY until it is cleared by US CBP.

3-Sit left as you look forward when you board the train for the views of Lake Champlain going southbound as
mentioned by others in this topic...If you choose to enjoy the view of the Hudson River south of Albany be sure to
change your seat as soon as possible when seats in your car open up on arrival at Albany-Rensselaer because if
you wait too long you may be out of luck - and don't forget your seatcheck which is placed above your seat...
Remember - change to the right side at ALB for the river view which will be for most of the ALB-NYP 142 mile ride.

4-Depending on the weather you may be looking towards the sun south of Albany - #68's scheduled departure is
6:15 PM and contrary to what rpjs posted if the Adirondack is on time the sun will be setting around 8:05 PM in
which the train should be between Croton-Harmon (7:56 PM) and Yonkers (8:17 PM) with arrival in Penn Station
at 8:50 PM just as it is getting dark outside - There should be just enough daylight for the Hudson River ride...

5-Enjoy the Adirondack ride - and add a trip report when all is said and done...

MACTRAXX

My recent experience was basically the same as MACTRAXX's, except that I found US immigration pretty unpleasant in their attitude toward everyone. But it is still better than having to pack up all your stuff and lose your seat like you do at the border on train 63.

A few years back my wife and I took the trip to Montreal and back. We arrived at Montreal Gare Central for the trip back about 45 minutes before train time, and there was a long line. As we stood in line one of the porters wandered the line saying he'd take luggage because the escalators were out, and this was his last call. Since we had some large pieces we took him up on the offer. This was probably 10 minutes prior to everyone else boarding. Otherwise we were toward the end of the line.

I agree that Gare Central is a much better station than NY Penn, in most respects. The ceilings are high, there's lots of natural lighting, and the place is also part of the Underground City mall. However there's no waiting room for Amtrak or Via Rail passengers except for the big hall, it's a long way to the Metro (which isn't luggage friendly), and the hall can easily handle really only two large queues of people, if there's more than one train departing. It's also a busy commuter station.

Dick H wrote:On site Saratoga report, Friday July 24th, 2015

9:37AM Southbound Ethan Allen #290 arrived on time. Approximately 45 passengers boarded.
10:00AM Northbound S&NC #189 departed on time. 55 passengers (2 dome cars, 2 double decker coaches)
12:23PM Northbound Adirondack #69 arrived, 21 minutes late. Approximately 75 passengers detrained, 12 boarded.

Six cabs were waiting for #69, but not nearly enough. At least 25 passengers were waiting for another round
of cabs. Or possibly the local bus. I am not familiar if they run from the depot to the raceway.

Looking at the Empire Service schedule, #69 is the second northbound in the morning, so probably handles a
sizeable number of passengers for the five stops between NYP and ALB and being a Friday, a possible heavier
load of travelers to Northeast NY and Montreal for the weekend.

#68 Sunday Southbound Adirondack is showing sold out SAR-NYP for Sunday, July 26th.
#69 Northbound NYP-SAR is already showing sold out next Thursday and one seat left next Friday.

As somebody who takes this train on a regular basis to visit family in the North Country, I can attest to this. The train almost always sells out, generally between Poughkeepsie and Rhinecliff. Checking the Amtrak site verified this, as there were seats available NYP to POU, but none to RHI. Checking RHI to ALB there are seats again as the train starts to empty after Rhinecliff. Some people board at Albany, but not nearly as many as those getting off. On Saturdays they often remove the first car with the engine change.

Northbound Adirondack #69 sold out, Thurs-Fri-Sat, NYP-SAR.
Southbound Adirondack #68 sold out, Sunday SAR-NYP.
As of 10PM, Wednesday, July 29th

My experience last year is that even though there may not be many people boarding in Montreal - in part because the travel time is so uncompetitive with bus or driving - the crew will heard all the passengers boarding in Montreal into one or two cars, leaving the rest of the consist empty to be filled at upstate New York points. So yes, get to Central Station early to get a good seat.

Morning Zephyr wrote:My experience last year is that even though there may not be many people boarding in Montreal - in part because the travel time is so uncompetitive with bus or driving - the crew will heard all the passengers boarding in Montreal into one or two cars, leaving the rest of the consist empty to be filled at upstate New York points. So yes, get to Central Station early to get a good seat.

The reason for "hearding" everyone into one or two cars in Montreal is first Customs, you don't need everyone spread throughout the entire consist. Second ease of working the train, a carry by up there is a real PIA. When I was still in uniform the general boarding plan was the first two ahead of the cafe were for NYP passengers and the rear two for NY shorts.