[Amtrak]Southwest Chief

[@mafarnz]

I grew up in New Mexico, and used to watch the Southwest Chief all the time. I remember quite well seeing the blades drop. Thanks for the vid!

[@mmcckkgg]

This is outstanding ! I rode the Chief from Chi to LA in summer 2006. Alb . was very busy that day: It was the startup of Railrunner and they had a big party there.

[@pecosvalleychief]

Just beautiful, possibly the best railfan video I've ever seen. Blades, wig-wags and the Land of Enchantment, enough to make a New Mexico ex-pat railfan want to cry. You captured the essence of the Chief in New Mexico perfectly. Bravo!

[@s0nnyburnett]

wow, the directing and the landscapes in this video are incredible, almost surreal, so beautiful and calm.

[@Dinosorable]

I've been on an Amtrak before! It was the best! It was so relaxing, the food was great, the sleeper cars were perfect, and it was sooooo beautiful outside!

[@werksdesign]

Absolutely the very best vid I've seen of Amtrak trains, signals and a combination of on board and track side action. Thanks for sharing this vid.

[@hawksfan2010]

while watching this wonderful video, I realized that there is a certain romance, if you will, to train travel, whereas with air or car travel there is none...I rode the Empire Builder from near Chicago to Portland a few years back, and it was an experience I will never forget - even if I DID ride coach...

[@MrShiz75]

Trains like this make getting there at least half the fun!

[@sjnathan100]

I took the Southwest Chief from Flagstaff to Chicago and return. It was very relaxing and enjoyable! Coming back the train was 8 hours late into Flagstaff, but that was okay. I'm retired so it was no big deal. The cars were shop worn and they really need to be refurbished. I understand that they will be refurbished down the road along with the train sets for the California Zepher and the Sunset Limited.

[@hawksfan2010]

Sitting here watching this wonderful video I realized there is a certain romance, if you will, in train travel - as opposed to air or car travel, where there is none...I rode the Empire Builder from near Chicago to Portland a few years back, and words can't describe it...it was incredible, even if I DID ride coach...

[@DDunker51]

Magnificent scenery you would completely miss on an airplane! I have never taken a train trip that I did not enjoy!

[@amtrakatsfnyc]

Great Video. Brings back memories of the trips that I have made on the ATSF Super Chief. Thanks for the posting.

[@HeartlandTuber]

Outstanding video. The shots from the train as night was falling toward the end really capture the feel and romance of riding the rails. Excellent angles and composition from beginning to end. We rode Amtrak from Chicago to Seattle, later from there to Sacremento, then back across the Sierra Nevada route back to Chicago, on an extended vacation a few years ago. It was a great experience which we plan to do again on the southerly cross country routes.

[@taxicart1]

Very nice job.. The best I've seen..

[@CoastStarlight11]

This is the ultimate video of the Southwest Chief!

[@vb-johnprrfan3047]

Thanks for sharing the great effort you put into making this video for the rest of us to watch and appreciate.

[@djjoe9000]

Beautiful video. I think this is possibly the best railroad video I've seen on youtube, to be honest.

[@trains365]

Very VERY nicely done! It's like watching some of Emery Gulash's older stuff from the 50's

[@pinesiskin59]

I love the high plains scenery! Thanks for this great video!!

[@EvilDarkCow]

WOW!! Phase IV and surfliner cars on the same train?? Mama Mia!

[@SouthwestChief]

Great compilation of a great train.

[@firepower782]

Great video! The little wig-wag is neat, had no idea those were still in use in America. Especially loved the rear view when the BNSF freight went by. Awesome sound.

[@johnfahey7681]

Nice concept. Enjoyed the on/off rail. Signals are so southwest. Thanks

[@Woodcut60]

Very nice video! You make awesome footage. Keep them comin'.

[@PaulCashman]

Great vid, love the mixture of interior and exterior footage. And a wig-wag!

[@jmathiau666]

I rode the SWC from Flagstaff to Chicago 3 times.Awesome trip,can't wait to ride the Empire Builder next

[@BobbyHarveyVideoProductions]

Awesome video. One of the best on KZbin!

[@MungoPoPo]

Awesome video and love the concept of no music or commentary. Keep up the great work!

[@JLJ061]

Awesome! My wife and I are gonna be on this train from Chicago to Flagstaff this weekend!

[@marksteiner3810]

Fine video. Recognized many views between Raton and Flagstaff, including Wagon Mound and the scenic run between Las Vegas and Lamy.

[@rhalld]

Hopefully I will be going on this train soon from Chicago to San Diego. So much scenery to see besides flying at 40,000 feet and you don't have air turbulence.

[@atsf93]

Great footage - very well put together!!!

[@dejohn913]

A "Step Ahead Of The Rest" 10 Guaranteed Stars!!! An Instant Classic In Railroading.

[@TheDylanJoyce]

I love taking the Train, i don't care if i'm late, as long as i'm on the train getting to see the countryside.

[@barrypopins]

This video is spectacular!! One of the best train vids on KZbin in my opinion. Great scenery, sounds, and camera angles. I would like to know what kind of video camera was used to shoot this vid...I bet it was a Canon GL2.

[@jimmyat460]

Great video! I would love to take that trip. Amazing shots!

[@DavidCurrey4]

Excellent! It's been too long since I rode Amtrak. My only suggestion is a short inconspicuous brief title giving the location would have been nice for each scene, as I am totally unfamiliar with the Southwest Chief route. I really enjoyed this video.

[@SF3751]

This is some great stuff! Very nice job, just got yourself a new subscriber!

[@chromehill2]

Great little film, and well put together! Especially liked the shot at around the 7.40 mark

[@tdvandy2]

Excellent! Thanks for posting.

[@mightya]

I'd love to go back in time to the 1950s and ride the Santa Fe Super Chief with the iconic engine and superb on-board service.

[@blitzkrieg634]

Agreed

[@tjlee8410]

UGNUG 71 o

[@DennisVernier]

Wonderful video!

[@MrEarwicker]

I'm taking this trip in October, can't wait!

[@brianbaron1]

This is Excellent and Very Professional! Outstanding!

[@trainguy799]

Absolutely stunning!! Thank you for sharing :D

[@Charonview]

A really well done video! Thanks much for posting it. Trains are great!!

[@AMOGLES99]

absolutely awesome footage!!

[@gooberon]

Superb video! Great artistry in the filming and the way it is put together. Did you do all of it?

[@bigwin2010]

This is a fantastic looking trip. Call your congressman and ask him to stop Warren Buffet's hostage-taking bailout demand.

[@SeaToby11]

While Amtrak services and cleans the Surfliner cars in Los Angeles, they are refurbished in Indianapolis. Thus they ride on the Southwest Chief sometimes on their way to Indianapolis and back through Chicago.

[@amtrak706]

Just awesome

[@ThatCarGuy2]

Great video! My 4 yr old enjoys it a lot!

[@decline2state]

No narration? No music? The only sounds we hear are the trains themselves (and the signal bells)? What a novel concept! Too bad other train videographers don't try it!

[@debowh]

Ok cool that makes sense because I know the freight locomotives can pull 50 loaded cars easy so I wasn't sure if passenger locomotives were capable of the same thing.. Thanks for the reply

[@howardb42006]

Great video and the ending is my favorite.

[@Cal90208]

Beautiful video!

[@GTRailroadVideos]

Awesome awesome video presentation! 5*****!

[@N-Scale]

Nice Video. Mike

[@DaveWVideo]

As far as I know, that wigwag in CO is the last one in mainline service in the US. The rest operate on branch lines. Santa Fe used to have plenty of wigwags all up and down its Chicago to LA run. Pasadena, CA, was loaded with them. Great shots.

[@earthorganism]

Nice photography. Looks like you used a tripod, stayed wide, and let the train supply the action.

[@Ischaue]

Ob ich auch bald mitfahre?

[@7777myron]

I don't understand why people pass on such beauty here in America and go elsewhere on vacations?

[@MrJed50]

Enjoyed my recent Southwest Chief trip westbound from Chicago to Flagstaff....Crew was very courteous except for sleeping car attendant. We had a couple of delays.....a bad switch in Missouri.....and was awaken by HORRIBLE track conditions in Hutchinson Kansas west.....other than that it was a great ride!!

[@blitzkrieg634]

Funny thing is that when the super chief was still around, the average speed it traveled at was right about 90 mph this Amtrak only travels at like 75 mph. Plus the super chief is at least 3 times longer and a lot more luxurious. I would say that the change from the super chief to the southwest chief was a terrible mistake. Nothing bad with the vid, loved the vid =)

[@kevinhoward9593]

Well if you take the superliners and make them into single level cars, the train would probably be longer. Also BNSF lowered the speed on their tracks to 90mph. I'm sure the Super Chief routinely went 100+mph. Also Amtrak has a lot of padding in their schedules just in case some crap happens. its not like in the olden days when the Railroad determine the time for each station. The trains had to go fast in order to get their by that time. Amtrak's schedules their trains to get there in the right amount of time, they don't make some ridiculous time like going 130 miles in about 95 minutes.

[@amtrakandcsxrailfanning164]

good catches and video with good canary and horn sorry that wig wag in the fist runny clip is got these days because it began to not work right a little bit and naw regular crossing signals are in ts place for its replacement and the big wag is naan at the museum

[@papas1107]

Awesome

[@An_Old_Man_Comments]

Very nice! A title showing location might have been good.

[@sixamsedna]

@UFOSPACE1999 mhmm. fine camera operating

[@careymm1]

I meet the #4 train every Sunday morning in Lawrence, KS. Even though the train arrives at dawn, the passengers who alight are happy, with glowing remarks about their long or short distance ride on the Chief.

[@EvilDarkCow]

I saw 66 on this train a few months ago

[@closos1505]

Nice video!!!

[@BurkeDevlin66]

awesome all the way around.....6:48 was a power rush moment..

[@tyrese3745]

Maybe because people are always in such a hurry that they don't get the opportunity to see all the beauty, the richness, the culture of the American Southwest.

[@hawksfan2010]

darn - I didn't think my first post took so wrote it again - sorry about that, apparently I need to learn how to post properly...

[@firepower782]

@JLJ061 I believe I read that on the Empire Builder you can get off on the way (say Glacier for instance) spend the night then get back on the next day & continue on. You could do that on the Chief too right?

[@MrZkr123]

I wish Amtrak would only use Superliner II's for the Southwest Chief, we could have the first long distance higher speed train. For those who don't know Superliner II's can reach 110mph.

[@legalizebuckets594]

Zach Rudnick thats what they always use lol.

[@kevinhoward9593]

Its not about the trains, its about the railroad. BNSFS had a 90mph speed limit for passenger trains on their tracks. (their freight trains aren't even allowed to go that fast).

[@FFred-us9tw]

Superliner II's are rated for 100, not 110. The reason they don't even run 100 is the track rating. It's class 5 track. 90 max for passenger trains. And even then it's only in sections where they have ATS that allows speeds above 79.

[@SeaToby11]

Yes a roomette is a bit expensive with Amtrak, but there is privacy, more seating space and leg room than a first class seat on a airliner, and the food is considerably better. A Amtrak coach seat is considerably less than a roomette, with better options than a first class airliner seat. A airliner would cost much more if you weren't packed like a sardine.

[@christopherorourke6362]

When you travel in a roomette your meals are included in your rail fare and all other sleeping car accommodations on Amtrak. I rode Amtrak 24 times since 1/31/1974. Amtrak is the only way that I will travel long distance in the U.S. & Via Rail Canada is the only way I'll travel long distance in Canada. Train travel is the civilized way to travel. You don't have to fight traffic at all, you are not cramed in like a sardine like you are when you fly coach and travel by bus. The bus terminals are usually located in the very worst parts of many cities nationwide.

[@SeaToby11]

Christopher O'Rourke Correct. The only negative about Amtrak is their high price for sleeping accommodations. But as you say food is included with that fare. If one drove or flew one should include the price of hotels and restaurants as well. On the road or for the extra days/nights at your destination. When riding the train long distances other travel costs are saved.

[@topekasub]

That video is the closest thing to being there! Semaphores at Wagon Mound rule!

[@JLJ061]

@kappelmeister123 They have designated stops where smokers can get off for a few minutes to take a square. They are Fort Madison, Kansas City (1/2 hour stop here), La Junta, Raton, Albuquerque (1 hour stop here) and Flagstaff.

[@ktowntex]

im barely 30 seconds into the video and i have to vote "thumps up" for this video

[@BurkeDevlin66]

fullerton to albq only 79 bucks what a deal

[@AVincent2]

Classic !

[@hawksfan2010]

How fast does the SWC and the LL go? I was on the Empire Builder several years ago and I think the fastest it went was 79

[@ethanmills6002]

+Thomas J The Route Empire Builder goes on is a 79 speed limit. It can go up to 116 MPH. Due to to Empire Builder going through the mountians and such it cant go that fast. But SWC Can go my guess would be around 85-95

[@CaliforniaZephyrProductions]

Nice catch with #3 past the Wigwag in Delhi, CO

[@skinnymule2]

How can a train be eight hours late ?

[@BNforever2009]

super video

[@theark-la-missrailfan]

Did any of you see a surfliner car on one of these trains?

[@NordikFilm]

The train must honk before each railway crossing ?

[@streetrace442]

I wish they would bring back the "E" & "F" units for pulling trains.

[@streetrace442]

howardkevinm Maybe, but in this day an age, they have the technology to make the engines in the E9s' to work almost as well as the ones that you have mention.

[@JLJ061]

@kappelmeister123 In Illinois it stops at Naperville, Mendota, Princeton, and Galesburg. In Iowa it stops at Fort Madison. In Missouri it stops at LaPlata and Kansas City. In Kansas it stops at Lawrence, Topeka, Newton, Hutchinson, Dodge City and Garden City. In Colorado it stops at Lamar, La Junta and Trinidad. In New Mexico it stops at Raton, Las Vegas, Lamy, Albuquerque and Gallup. In Arizona it stops at Winslow, Flagstaff, Williams Junction and Kingman.

[@SeaToby11]

Burlington Santa Fe have stopped maintaining the tracks through the southern Colorado and western Kansas right of way through the Raton Pass, and eventually the Southwest Chief will have to be rerouted through Amarillo on the BNSF main line between Albuquerque and Wichita. When the train is rerouted it will lose the wig wags and semaphores along this section of track. And yes, all trains blow their horns approaching grade crossings in rural areas without urban quiet zones.

[@gwaithwyr]

I do the opposite. I come from UK to USA for vacations. Looking forward to sixth trip in 2014.

[@happyhornet1000]

I love the American trains and the country it passes through, but they are super slow compared to European trains. Many trains in Europe travel at well over 200mph. I guess more people fly in the US and train travel has thus been neglected. It's amazing feeling the acceleration on a Eurostar train for example, when the countryside becomes a blur and you can't even see what's near the train.

[@harishchandrajaliwala6099]

amazing videos. i always wanted to ask this question. why does amtrax use 2 to 3 diesel engines to pull a 10 coach passenger train. is it the terrain or the engines are under powered

[@FFred-us9tw]

Their are a number of reasons as to why. For starters, more than anything it's redundancy. If the locomotive has issues and you only have one, you are stuck. It's bad enough if you can't move. Even worse if the engine shuts down and their is not HEP (power for the coaches). So you always want at least two, especially on long distance trains where they often run in the middle of nowhere. Then you look at the grades (hills) the line the train runs has. While a single P42 could pull 10 coaches on level track, once you introduce grades, potential wheel slip issues from weather conditions, etc. it may be difficult if not impossible to make track speed. Then you factor in your HP. One of your locomotives will be making HEP. That takes 600HP away from that loco for traction. So on a long train (10+) cars with superliners (heavy and high wind resistance) and needing to make sure you have enough power to make track speed it's not unusual at all to see 3 or even 4 locomotives in a consist. Even though it doesn't seem necessary by the length of the train. Lastly, sometimes they simply need to move a locomotive to a repair point or to a location it's needed. So they add it to the consist. Sometimes running, sometimes dead. But it's a logistically easy way to move you loco's around without paying to move it in a freight train or paying a second crew to run it light.

[@TheSubwayNyc]

Yeah.

[@mattmyrick1480]

Anyways it's gonna be my first train ride ever and I leave tomorrow. I'm excited but really really nervous. Never done it before.

[@mattmyrick1480]

I'm nervous as hell, I'm taking the 583 from San Juan Capistrano to LA, then from there I take the 4 all the way to Kansas City, and then I take the 314 from there to I believe Kenwood?

[@indyracingnut]

@debowh They aren't using all 3 engines at once...Often they use this method as a way of transferring engines from one destination to another, so in essence, they are just another car on the line.

[@ktowntex]

where did the meet with the stack track take place at?

[@michaelglass4701]

I love THE SOUTHWEST CHIEF