Running a little late (just 1 hour 25 minutes … not too bad for a long-distance train running between Chicago IL and Emeryville CA) is Amtrak train 5, the westbound California Zephyr. P42DCs 190 and 155 are bringing their ten-car train into Martinez, almost the last stop on this run (Richmond is next, and then the terminus of Emeryville in the San Francisco Bay Area). From here the train will operate along the shore of the Carquinez Strait and San Francisco Bay, a nice change from the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the Nevada desert, the Rocky Mountains, the high plains of eastern Colorado and Nebraska … Frankly, this train has an extremely interesting route! (Martinez, California – June 23, 2025)
California-bound rail travelers from the east have three choices to reach the Golden State: California Zephyr, Southwest Chief, Sunset Limited/Texas Eagle. A look back through the years including the now-defunct Desert Wind
