PICK A TRAIN, ANY TRAIN - All Aboard: The Complete North American Train Travel Guide - page 288

for the ride along mountain ridges and past Donner Lake. It was
named for 87 settlers led by George Donner who were trapped
by snow in the winter of 1846-47. Next comes the American
River Canyon on the left side. The California Gold Rush took
place in the 1850s and '60s all throughout this area. After leaving
the mountains and stopping at Roseville, you'll pass McClellan
Air Force Base and enter Sacramento Valley, which is known for
producing almonds and rice. Next stop is Sacramento, the capital
of California and the home of the very-much-worth-seeing Cali-
fornia State Railroad Museum. Sacramento is followed by Davis,
then Travis Air Force Base on the left. Next come the vineyards
of Napa Valley and the Navy's “mothball” fleet of decommis-
sioned ships in Suisan Bay on your left. After Martinez and Rich-
mond, the Zephyr reaches its final stop, Emeryville, California.
An Amtrak bus will be right there to take passengers across the
bay to San Francisco.

Texas Eagle (21, 22, 521, 522)

Stops:

Chicago, St. Louis, Little Rock,
Dallas, Austin, San Antonio (with a
Los Angeles connection)

Frequency:

Daily

Distance:

1,305 miles

Duration:

Southbound: 32¾ hours;
northbound: 31 hours

Equipment:

Superliner coaches, sleepers, Cross
Country Café car

Southbound out of Chicago, you'll cross quite a number of riv-
ers. There's the Chicago River first, followed by the Des Plaines
and the Kankakee. You'll cross the Vermillion River just before
a stop at Pontiac, Illinois (which was named for the same Native