Here I had a three-day weekend coming, and my primary plans were shot down. What to do, what to do..... Then it occcured to me- I had been kicking around the idea of riding Amtrak again, and since the Downeaster runs out of Portland four times a day to Boston.... This last Saturday morning I drove down from Augusta to Portland to that city's Transportation Center (fancy name for a combination bus/Amtrak depot) to buy round trip tickets on the Downeaster to Boston for a day trip. BTW, a basic round trip ticket is 44 dollars, 36 had I bought it three days prior to my trip). We left Portland in the rain with a "cabbage" in the front (an F40PH converted to a cab-control car with a baggage compartment), an Amcafe with business class seating, three Amfleet coaches, and a P42DC operating in "push" mode. Top speeds on much of the track got up to 79 MPH, all over ex-Boston & Maine (now Guilford) trackage. Most of the line is CWR, but some of the track in the Boston area is a little rough, and it made for some rough riding. From Haverhill on into South Station, we shared the line with MBTA commuter trains (except for a stretch from south of Lawrence over to north of the Anderson RTA), arriving at South Station (below the TD Banknorth Center, home of the Celtics & Bruins) 2 1/2 hours after leaving Boston. I hopped the Orange & Red subway lines over to South Station, and spent time watching the comings and goings of Amtrak and MBTA trains (Boston is the north end of electrified operations for Amtrak). I also got some shots of some of the MBTA diesels, among them several F40PHs and GP40TCs (GP40s rebuilt by Alsthom with separate Cat engines for HEP, and flared radiators and wide-nose cabs). I was going to try to get over to Cheers (yes, Virginia, there IS a bar called Cheers in Boston- and you thought it was a TV show!) , but I wasn't sure how to get there, so I wussed out. Oh well, perhaps another time..... I got back to North Station, dealt with the gauntlet of panhandlers, and caught the last northbound Downeaster at 11:30 PM. It left a few minutes off the advertised time, but we arrived at Portland 5 minutes early. I was told that normally southbounds trains, especially for Celtics, Bruins, PAtriots, and Red Sox games, are sold-out affairs. My trips was crowded going in to Boston, but very few folks were on the train going to Portland. BTW, there are ten tracks under shelter either by platform shed or the Banknorth Center (once known as the Fleet Ccenter). It is also next to that new bridge built for I-93 as part of the so-called "Big Dig". MBTA's servicing facility is north of the station, along the north shore of the Charles River. There';s not much in the way of amenities at North Station outside of a McDonalds and a Dunkin' Donuts, but South Station has got eateries, newsstands, shops, and a tavern. When I get more free time and the weather warms up, I'll make a return trip to Boston on the DOwneaster- perhaps even a trip south to New York, who knows?
Do they have the Accelas running again? Last I heard they pulled them out of service till they fixed something.
Russ: AFAIK, the Acelas are back up & running. Ken: Soon as I get a photo CD made and can get it uploaded, I'll have what pics I got. Most were shot at night, with just platform light (esp. the MBTA diesels).
Hey, I heard Maine wants Slamtrak to extend the Downeaster to Brunswick. P.S., If your looking for the Maine Eastern F-40's, we've got them
What's a "Maine Eastern?" Boxcab E50 </font>[/QUOTE]Hey, It's one of those dinner trains.You'd get a lobster dinner wiith your scenic train ride.The F-40's were replaced with F-9's,so I've been told.
