Monday, August 01, 2016

Riding the Lake Shore Limited from Toledo, Ohio to NY, NY


In an unplanned but fun (and fortuitous) finish to my Midwest vacation, I ended up riding the rails from Toledo to NYC today. I was supposed to fly back on Saturday afternoon, but bad weather in NY messed things up at LGA and my flight was first delayed, then cancelled. I got down to the re-booking area quickly but not quickly enough, apparently, and by the time it got to be my turn, the first plane they could get me on was Tuesday morning. The one good thing was that Spirit was offering refunds if you could sort out something better. I called my folks, who were at the home of my aunt and uncle who live in Toledo, and they came to pick me up.

While I was waiting for them I'd looked into United options - they had a flight to Newark tonight but it was $425 one way. On the way back to Ohio, first I half-joked about my folks driving me home (theoretically possible but waaay out of their way, would've thrown them significantly off of their schedule and would've required some cooperation from TQ for the dog, since my building doesn't allow dogs, I'm sure he would've been willing to help but it would've been something of an all-around hassle) - and then I thought of the train!

We checked Amtrack, there was ONE seat left in coach on the Sunday Lake Shore Limited , the one-way trip was slightly less than the refund I got from Spirit, and I actually really enjoyed it - the train left Toledo at 3:20 am and I think I slept through most of Ohio and the little corner of Pennslyvania (train seats win hands down over plane seats when it comes to getting some shuteye) but I enjoyed the trip through upstate NY and then of course I always like riding the train along the Hudson. Great way to get home this time!

Here are some pix of course. I don't know exactly where everything is, but the boat is on one of the stretches of the Erie Canal that the train briefly follows (I also saw a nice canal boat out cruising, and a workboat in the unmistakeable blue and gold livery of the Erie Canal service, I was especially sorry that that flashed by too quickly for me to grab a photo as Tugster probably would've been able to ID, but at least that confirmed that it was the Erie Canal); I think the pretty town center is Schenectady, and the city on the river is definitely Albany, and then of course the rest of the trip is on the Hudson. That's it for words, as usual, click for a slideshow view.
























5 comments:

Rena said...

That sounds like a great adventure, I would take train over plane any day.

Joan Stommen said...

What small lake were you at with family? I'm from Detroit/in kazoo these days and love this adventure! Glad to know I can do this for my next NYC visit! Thanks for great pics and details!

Roxanne Jones said...

I love traveling by train...there's a train from Portland, Maine to Boston that's my go-to whenever I have to head to the big(ger) city, and I've taken the train from Boston to NYC several times. It's just feels so much more civilized and comfortable and less hectic. And there's a club car. :-)

bonnie said...

I was at a big family get-together in Coldwater, some of us rented cabins at the Narrows Resort on Randall Lake and then some who lived nearby came and went as they could. It was very nice, lovely little lake!

I'm so glad I thought of the train, aside from being cheaper than at least the first flight I'd found that was going to get me back in time for work on Monday, I expect that flying would've been even more unenjoyable than usual with all the people who got delayed on Saturday being crammed in. Roxanne, what you said about it being more civilized, that's just what I thought too!

Jeff K said...

Looks like a great trip!

Just in case you're interested (and I fully assume you are) the Navy Helicopter Landing Trainer IX-514 is docked at the Harlem Piers at 125th Street on the Hudson. Here's her story:

http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/46/46514.htm

She was at Brooklyn Bridge Park in 2014 as a navy outreach thing, and I assume this is similar, maybe part of the Harlem Week program that started yesterday at Grant's Tomb.