Is pleased to announce that the thirty-sixth annual convention will be held at Napa, California on Tuesday October 1st through Thursday October 3rd, 2013. Our convention special train, The Napa Valley Limited, will offer travel over some of the most scenic routes on the west coast that are not accessible by any regularly scheduled Amtrak train. The following itinerary represents the current plan, which is subject to approval by the host railroads.
Our LA Rail Los Angeles, California Depature cars will arrive in
Seattle, WA on Coast Starlight, Monday, September 23rd. On September 25, the convention train will be
assembled.
ENLARGE SEATTLE, WASHINGTON MAP
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The Napa Valley Limited will depart early on Thursday, September 26, and travel over the spectacularly scenic
Stampede Pass line. This is the former
Northern Pacific Railroad route of the
North Coast Limited to Yakima and Kennewick, WA. At Kennewick we
will interchange with the
Tri-City Railroad for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We have received initial approval to operate our train 31 miles into the Hanford Nuclear site to the historic B Reactor where an exclusive tour has been arranged for our passengers.
This line is the former
Hanford Railroad that was built in 1942 by the U.S. Government for the
Manhattan Project
(Historic B Reactor Tour). A passenger train has never operated on this line. After detraining passengers, the train will continue around the Hanford Railroad loop and return to
Richland, WA, where those on the tour will rejoin the train for the night.
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On Friday, September 27, we will follow the
Columbia River Gorge for 125 miles to
Wishram, WA, cross the
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Columbia River, and roll south through the beautiful
Deschutes River Canyon Gorge via the
Oregon Trunk Rail Bridge line to
Bend, OR, where we will spend the second night.
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On Saturday, the 28th, the Napa Valley Limited will make the short run to
Chemult, OR, where passengers can detrain for an optional trip to
Crater Lake National Park.
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A tour and lunch at the
Crater Lake Lodge are planned. The train will continue to
Klamath Falls, OR, for full servicing and the third night layover. Passengers on the Crater Lake tour will rejoin the train in Klamath Falls.
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On Sunday, September 29, the train will continue on the
Inside Gateway route on
BNSF Railway. We will pass through the
Modoc National Forest,
Lassen Volcanic National Park,
Plumas National Forest and through the
Sierra Nevada Mountains. After passing
Lake Almanor, we will connect with the
Union Pacific Railroad at the famous
Keddie Wye and proceed through the spectacularly scenic
Feather River Canyon to
Oroville, CA, on the UP Canyon Subdivision, where we will spend the night.
ENLARGE OROVILLE, CALIFORNIA MAP
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On Monday, the 30th, we depart Oroville and continue south on the old
Western Pacific Railroad Route (original
California Zephyr) route to
Sacramento, CA and then turn west on the Union Pacific Cal-P Line of the Martinez Subdivision to the Napa cutoff at
Suisun-Fairfield, CA.
At Suisun-Fairfield, we will leave the UP main line and be escorted by the
California Northern Railroad around the wye at Napa Junction and on into
Napa, CA.
ENLARGE NAPA, CALIFORNIA MAP
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We will tie down in the yard of the
Napa Valley Wine Train for the three days of the convention. Convention activities include two car parties, technical seminars, the car owners’ meeting, the associate members’ meeting, the annual meeting, vendor activities, the board of directors meeting and the annual banquet.
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