Private Varnish Chartered Trip Ideas

Hey Jeff,

Would our fellow members of Railroad.net be interested in a railfan excursion in the Spring of '24?

I know I'm interested . . .

Thanks,
Mark

Marco was a fellow passenger yesterday on Dover Harbor. We (well mostly Marco) bandied about ideas for a fan trip. One idea was DC to Savannah via the Palmetto, another NYP to Niagara Falls via an Empire train. Open to suggestions; I’ll split the thread if there’s sufficient interest. Lots of homework to do.

Also simple day trips like NYP to Albany.

The wife and I would 100% do a Niagara trip, or pretty much any Hudson trip

NaugyRR wrote: ↑Thu Nov 09, 2023 9:01 am The wife and I would 100% do a Niagara trip, or pretty much any Hudson trip

I checked PV Epicurus site yesterday; they also do group rates on their regular excursions to NF.

Have reached out to http://www.railandcruisetravel.com for rates. Also http://www.hudsonriverrail.com. Wonder if Dover Harbor People would be interested in a WAS->BOS Night Owl.

Reach out to John Webb his cars are stored in Albany. His domes cant go to NYP but they can go west and he owns the Babbling Brook a tail car from the New England States it would be on home rails on the Mohawk.

Great tip!

Yes, Thank you, this is a good suggestion. This brings to mind more options --

In our conversations on Dover Harbor, and then on the Ethan Allen, we considered a railfan trip on Dover Harbor, which calls WAS it's home, this way we don't require a position move. From WAS, the idea of a "Boston Get-A-Way" on the Night Owl, leaving WAS in the evening, and arriving fresh as a daisy in BOS next morning was one idea, and another was "Savannah Dream", a day trip WAS->SAV.

Then, we considered EPICURUS, which is based in NJ, for either a day trip NYP->ALB, or "Niagara Escape" all the way up to Niagara.

Webb Rail, LLC offers other options, first of which is jumping off point in ALB, which may or may not be an issue for some railfans.

At this point, we must cast a wider net, and ask the greater RAILROAD.NET community, "What type of Railfan excursion would you attend?"

1) Location, Location, Location? NYP, WAS, ALB?
2) Day Trip or Overnight?
3) What are you willing to invest?

The last one is important -- I've spoken to the charter agent for Dover Harbor, the number(s) are hair-raising. Seems there was another tariff added 1 Oct of this year. (SIGH), and our one way day trip up the Hudson cost $149.

That is 50% below "market rate" for that ride. HudsonRiverRail charges $399 for a ride in Hickory Creek, and they sell out the season quickly. Epicurus offered excursions for $349 as well. As far as I can tell, they sold well, however, they have never answered any of my phone calls or emails, therefore I don't know if the trips actually happened.

Your ideas, suggestions & commentary are truly welcome, fellow RailFans!
Thank You.

1 - Location: We live in Pine Plains but spend a ton of time at her dad's in Castleton, so anywhere on the Hudson Line is easy for us. Albany more so, but we have no problem riding down to NYP to make a connection. We are also open to riding out to WAS or BOS, but these are less ideal.

2 - Duration: Day trips are preferred

3 - Cost: For a shorter trip, like NYP - ALB, $250 a head would be my comfort level. Longer trips I would pay $300 - $400, especially if a ride in a dome car was in the cards. I was able to ride in Ocean View once between ALB and SAR, and on the S&NC dome for a round trip when they were still in operation, and I would love to go for another dome car trip.

marco wrote: ↑Fri Nov 10, 2023 7:14 am The last one is important -- I've spoken to the charter agent for Dover Harbor, the number(s) are hair-raising. Seems there was another tariff added 1 Oct of this year. (SIGH), and our one way day trip up the Hudson cost $149.

That is 50% below "market rate" for that ride. HudsonRiverRail charges $399 for a ride in Hickory Creek, and they sell out the season quickly.

Here is the new tariff. Base mileage rate is up to $5.01 from $4.09.

R36 Combine Coach wrote: ↑Fri Nov 10, 2023 3:13 pm Here is the new tariff. Base mileage rate is up to $5.01 from $4.09.

Question here, out of curiosity. Is the entire tarif schedule per car? Trying to calculate how much it would be for eight cars and a self-provided locomotive under Amtrak's control (and yes, the engine's qualified to go EVERYWHERE for purposes of this exercise).

I'm leaning towards Albany - Niagara Falls using Webb Rail's Northern Pacific Dome/Coach 549, pictured:



Of course, there is the matter of pricing. Capacity is 59 in three sections: Dome Lounge 24; Downstairs Lounge: 9; Downstairs Coach: 26. Here is a diagram:



2 nights in Niagara; we could try and obtain a group rate, which leaves two evenings and a day to spend. Hotel will be the responsibility of the travelers. There are three different trains: the Maple Leaf 63, 281 and 283 out, 280 and 284 along with 64 back. The trains back aren't at the best times; the Maple Leaf seems to be the best, but can they switch that at NFL? Otherwise, NFL would be an early a.m. departure.

I'll reach out to Webb to get an idea on pricing, and then set a price based upon seating and determine a minimum number to make it work.

Just a quick aside: I'm not ruling out other options yet, but am inclined to go this way. Epicurus and Hickory Creek are options.

It looks like most of the hotels are a fair distance south of the station, and on the Canadian side, we'd each have to figure out transportation to/from the station. I'm waiting for my wife to renew her passport now that her name's changed, I wonder if you can ride-share across the border to stay on the Canada side if you wanted?


I do like the trip idea so far!