On July 5, I spent the entire day (530am to 845pm) riding Amtrak trains, proving it is possible to do a day-trip from Connecticut to Maine, and back. I rode Regional Train #66, Downeaster #681, Downeaster #684, Acela Express #2193, then Shore Line East back to my starting point of Old Saybrook. Last time I rode east of Old Saybrook was in the last days of diesel trains in 1998, and this was my first time riding the Downeaster and the Acela Express.
End result: Downeaster trains seem to have good ridership, especially #684 south from Portland to Boston, possibly due to the Red Sox home game (saw many fans in full Red Sox gear), and a country concert at the Garden. Acela was a fast trip, BOS to New Haven in less than 2 hours, and it wasn't even crowded (possibly due to the fact that many people probably took all of last week off, or at least the latter half of the week).
Rather than post the entire trip report again, here's the link to the trip reports section of my web site. Scroll towards the bottom - this trip is the last 5 trip reports near the bottom of the page.
http://www.shadyjay.com/rail/railtrips.html
It was a great trip, but one long day. I wish I took some time to spend more time in Portland. There's always next time. And best of all, my Downeaster trip was paid for with Guest Rewards points. All of my connections were met and trains ran generally on time. Thanks Amtrak!
End result: Downeaster trains seem to have good ridership, especially #684 south from Portland to Boston, possibly due to the Red Sox home game (saw many fans in full Red Sox gear), and a country concert at the Garden. Acela was a fast trip, BOS to New Haven in less than 2 hours, and it wasn't even crowded (possibly due to the fact that many people probably took all of last week off, or at least the latter half of the week).
Rather than post the entire trip report again, here's the link to the trip reports section of my web site. Scroll towards the bottom - this trip is the last 5 trip reports near the bottom of the page.
http://www.shadyjay.com/rail/railtrips.html
It was a great trip, but one long day. I wish I took some time to spend more time in Portland. There's always next time. And best of all, my Downeaster trip was paid for with Guest Rewards points. All of my connections were met and trains ran generally on time. Thanks Amtrak!
