AMTRAK CAN'T GET TO CHRISTIANSBURG QUICK ENOUGH

 

If You know me or have read some of my other entries here, you know I absolutely love traveling on Amtrak. Traveling by train is more laid back and relaxing than flying or even driving.

I don’t fly. I find there is nothing at all enjoyable about flying. I used to fly a lot when I umpired, and I can really say that I never looked forward to the experience. There is nothing fun about having to show up 2 hours before your flight. Go through the very unpleasant TSA screening and then being herded onto a large metal tube with a bunch of rude and unpleasant people.

The last time I flew was back in 2013. Since then and especially since I retired, I have either driven or taken Amtrak for my trips. On Amtrak there is no TSA Screening. Don’t get me wrong, there is security. You can pretty much be assured that at every stop there is at least one police office present, whether you see him or not. And every train has at least one Amtrak Police Office on board.

Sometime in the not-too-distant future, Amtrak is scheduled to extend service to Christiansburg. Work is currently underway on the new station at Cambria. I, for one am excited about this new service as I will no longer have to go to Roanoke, which is the nearest place where I can board a train.

There is currently rumors that Amtrak may extend service from Christiansburg into southwest Virginia all the way to Bristol. From Bristol the door will be open to service into Tennessee to places like Knoxville, Nashville and maybe ever Chattanooga and on into Atlanta.

I doubt that I will ever see the extension beyond Christiansburg, but rest assured that once Amtrak comes to Christiansburg, I will be a more frequent passenger, as traveling to Roanoke is no longer a pleasant experience.

Last Year I had the opportunity to take three trips on Amtrak. Two of the Three trips Originated in Roanoke while the other one I boarded in Clifton Forge. As I said Earlier, Roanoke is the closest place that I can Board Amtrak and since my first Amtrak Trip in 2018, the boarding experience in Roanoke has gone significantly downhill.

Over the last couple of years Downtown Roanoke has become more or less a Crime ridden crap hole. Going into the Downtown area is not a pleasant experience anytime, day or night. Shootings occur just about daily.

Center in the Square use to be one of Roanoke more popular areas with restaurants and shops, but now days if you go there us are confronted by vagrants who pester you for money. Some of them can be quite intimidating and threatening.

Roanoke does not have a station. It only has a platform with a small cover that does little to protect you from the rain and snow. One of the things that Roanoke was supposed to do when Amtrak service was restored in 2015, was Build a proper Station. It’s been over 10 years now and there is still no station and as far as I know there are no solid plans to build one. This is just another example of Roanoke’s leadership not following through on any of their promises.

Parking is yet another problem. There used to be a parking garage that was located near the station. For a fee, passengers could park there. This would accommodate both long-term and short-term parking. But a couple of years ago the city condemned the garage and the owner closed it.

For the past couple of years, the garage has been abandoned and is now used as a shelter for the vagrants and the city’s drug population. It is not a safe place and is located very close to the Amtrak Platform. Today the only place to park is an open-air paid lot next to the station. It is not a safe place to park and leave your car.

Early in 2025, I opted to take the afternoon Amtrak Northeast Regional Train to Washington D. C. I arrived early and have Lunch at one of the Restaurants on the City Market and the Center in the Square.

As I walked from the shady parking lot next to the Station, I was confronted by a couple of very aggressive panhandlers. I ever saw one of the Vagrants taking a leak in Broad Daylight right in the middle of the parking lot.

The walk from the parking lot to the Market Area reeked with the smell of urine and several places along the way I saw what appeared to be human waste. This was not a good Idea to Say the least.

My second trip from Roanoke was a longer trip where I took early morning Northeast regional train to Washinton and then took the Capitol Limited up to South Bend Indiana. I rented a car and spent a couple of days in South Bend and Northern Indiana before returning to Roanoke 5 days later.

I had left my car in the Parking lot adjacent to the Amtrak Platform. When I returned, I discovered that My car had been vandalized. Someone had keyed the rear passenger side of my car.

Of course I was quite pissed off to say the least. I knew that my insurance would require a police report in order to file a claim. I called the Roanoke City Police Department who refused to generate any kind of report so that I could file a claim with my insurance. The dispatcher I talked to told me that the parking lot was private property and that there were signs posted that parking was at my own risk. She refused to ever give me the number of the Computer Aided Dispatch Record of my call so that I could give that to my insurance.

Needless to say, traveling to Roanoke for ANY reason is something that I will NOT do unless it is an absolute emergency. Roanoke has turned into a crime ridden city that smells Like a sewer.

It was for that reason that for my next trip that I drove up to Clifton Forge, Virginia and Boarded the Amtrak Cardinal for my trip to Washington. Rather than traveling into Washington Union Station, where there were some large protests at both the Supreme Court and the Capitol. I chose to leave the Train at Manassas and rent a car for the next couple of days.

I returned to Clifton Forge on the Westbound Cardinal and found my car undisturbed and just as I had left it. This was a much better experience. I think, if possible, I will schedule any future trip through Clifton Forge and stay away from Roanoke.

I still look forward to traveling on Amtrak when the opportunity presents itself. I will just make every effort to avoid Roanoke until Amtrak service is established in Christiansburg, sometime hopefully in the near future.

LOOKING BACK AT 2025 - PART 1

 

Where have I been you ask. Well, the fact of the matter is that I have been right here. In fact, I had written several posts for this blog but due to my own mistake none of them got published. I don’t know exactly what happened except that apparently, I failed to schedule them for publication. And to make matters worse, I inadvertently deleted them, so they were all lost.

So, let’s do a little recap of my 2025 adventure. Like most years my 2025 travel season started off with a trip to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Every year since 2001 I have attended the first and second rounds of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. I say every year, well, every year except 2020 when the entire tournament was cancelled due to COVID and 2021 when the tournament was play in closed venues in the Indianapolis.

Other than those years I selected a site and attended the First and Second Rounds of the Tournament. I like the First and Second Round because they are held at different sites all across the country.

Some of my favorite Tournament Sites over the years have been, Dallas, Oklahoma City, and Pittsburgh. Some of my less favorite sites have been Kansas City, Orlando and Charlotte.

In 2025 I chose Raleigh, North Carolina as my Tournament Venue. I had been to Raleigh a couple of times before and always enjoyed the experience. Raleigh is one of the few tournament venues that has a huge onsite parking lot. In previous years the cost of parking had been a very reasonable $20 per day. This year I was shocked to find that they were really gouging you by charging a whopping $60 per day. That is not a good look for Raleigh.

The Games in Raleigh were for the most part good competitive game. One of the Teams that I had in Raleigh was the Florida Gators who went on to win the National Championship. On the day that I didn’t have games I spent the morning visiting the North Carolina State Capitol and my afternoon I drove over to Durham and visited Bennett’s Place.

Most people consider the end of the Civil War Occurred when General Robert E. Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse on April 9, 1865.

While General Lee Surrendered about 28,000 troops at Appomattox. About three weeks later a larger number of Confederate Troops were surrendered when General Joseph E. Johnston surrendered almost 90,000 troops to General William T. Sherman at the farm of James and Nancy Bennett near Durham, North Caolina. This was the largest surrender of the Civil War,

I stayed close to home until May and then I was off to West Virginia for a couple days. I started off Spending some time at one of our Newest National Parks, The New River Gorge National Park. Some of the overlooks here give you amazing views of the New River Gorge Bridge that carry’s U. S.

Highway 19 across the massive New River Gorge.

I also spent some time at Cook’s Mill in Monroe County, West Virginia. Cook’s Mill dates back to the late 1790’s and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The main mill building was built in 1857 on the original stone foundation and site of an earlier mill built in approximately 1796. It has hand-hewn post-and-beam, with massive timbers pegs. The mill site also includes the dam, mill pond, and stream.

I spent the night at a place that I had wanted to visit for several year so on the way back home I stopped at the Depot Lodge in Paint Bank Virginia. I was lucky to just walk up and get a room without a reservation. I opted for a really nice room in the Main Lodge that had a gas fireplace that I didn’t need and a TV.

I walked across the road to the Swinging Bridge Restaurant which is in the back of the Paint Bank General Store. I had the Buffalo Chapped Steak with a Baked Potato and apples with Blackberry Cobbler for dessert.

After supper it was warm enough that I sat outside and enjoyed the quiet. The only sound was a flowing creek that was interrupted every once in a while, by a passing car.

The Next Morning I walked back across the road to the Swing Bridge for a great Breakfast.  I had two egg, sausage, back and two pancakes. It was just a good if not better as my buffalo chopped steak the night Before.

I really enjoyed this little trip to West Virginia, especially my stay at the Depot Lodge. I enjoyed the stay so much that I just might do it again.

Before I get into my summer recap, let’s take a break and continue this next time.