Tour

You're welcome to join Erin Johnson and Dave Simpson on a Railfan Tour to California, Arizona and Nevada

Who is this Dave Simpson character ? Dave Simpson is a retired New Zealand Locomotive Engineer, however his skills in operating steam locos are still called upon as required. He has spent the last 10 years organising and participating in many successful Railfan Tours to the USA and Canada. Dave's tours are frequented by a small group of people within his circle of contacts and he doesn't have a Web presence as such. By combining our resources, we are now able to open up these tours to a wider audience, so more people can enjoy the wonder that is North American Railfanning.

Purpose: The purpose of the tour is to take a group of twelve like minded individuals to the USA and conduct a road trip to various railroad hotspots in the western states of the USA. To ensure we spend more time railfanning and less time driving, we'll limit this trip to the states of California, Arizona and Nevada.

I've done some travelling in the USA and I wish to share with you a truly remarkable railfanning experience. The best way to do this is not from a tour bus, or from inside a train, but safely from trackside, using a self-drive vehicle to get around.

Itinerary: This has yet to be finalised, however will commence and end at Los Angeles and will visit the cities of Las Vegas and San Diego. A large amount of time will be spent staying in smaller towns that have easy access to the various railroads such as Winslow, Needles and Ludlow. This will be updated as more info becomes available.
Update: Places we're going to visit: Fullerton CA, San Diego CA, Oceanside CA, San Clemente CA, Beaumont CA, Indio CA, Salton Sea CA, Needles CA, Flagstaff AZ, Winslow AZ, Kingman AZ, Las Vegas NV, Ludlow CA, Cima CA, Kelso CA, Daggett CA, Hesperia CA, Mojave CA, Cajon Pass CA, Tehachapi CA, Bakersfield CA, Anaheim CA, Fullerton CA, Los Angeles CA

NOTE: This list may change over the next year, so keep calling back to see any changes.

Format: For many Railfan tours, you spend hours and hours on a train watching the scenery go whizzing by, and when you get to your destination, there's not much opportunity to get any photos of the train as all you want to do is grab your bags and sort out your accommodation - chances are you have to use a taxi or walk to see the sights (trains). Not so for this one. Each destination is only a couple of hours drive, and once we get there (railfanning along the way), we spend a day or two checking out the hotspots and taking in all the rail action we can possibly get. Some of the places we'll be visiting will see some intense rail action, and as for the scenery - look at the photos on this page.

Duration: Presently, the entire trip including all travel is expected to be around 25 days.

Transport: Final arrangements yet to be finalised, however the majority of travel will be done in a self drive rental van fitted with 12 seats. There will be an option to hop aboard the Pacific Surfliner (LA - San Diego) for those who wish to.

Cost: Estimated cost should be well below NZ$6000 per person. This covers all travel and accommodation, but not food. Airfares ex Auckland.

Other stuff. By having a self drive vehicle, this gives us the freedom to go places that suit us, the lighting conditions and where the action is. A lot of the day will be spent hopping around various places getting shots etc. but there are also other places where we'll spend a whole day owing to the excellent scenery or the amount of (train) traffic. One of these places is Fullerton CA. The platform here is very Railfan friendly. Both sides of the tracks have excellent viewing positions and are easily accessed by an overhead walkway, which also has excellent photographic opportunities. Apart from that, there is a cafe which is right on the platform and the station has good attended toilet facilities. Out the back of the station on Commonwealth Ave is a whole street full of places to feed yourself. Police patrol this area and are used to railfans hanging around taking photos - no problems at all.

Other stuff we'll be doing: Our driving route takes us through some spectacular scenery, as can be scene from the photos on this page. However there will be some other attractions that we can take in on the way - both rail and non-rail related: The Wind Farm at Palm Springs CA, quite a spectacle in itself, provides a unique backdrop to the Union Pacific trains as they go hurtling through. This area is photogenic to the max.
Our drive from Kingman to Las Vegas takes us past the Hoover Dam. This place needs no introduction. Click here for some more info on this.

Google Maps Link. Clicking on this text here will take you to my first itinerary link in Google Maps. Google Maps is good, but it has some minor glitches in it, however the route list to the left of the map will give a better idea of where we're going. This list doesn't mention any attractions we may visit - just the towns we pass through. As stated many times, this will change and I'll update it as often as needed.

Still need convincing ? How about these stats: Fullerton CA - 60 trains a day, Needles CA - 60 trains a day, Tehachapi CA - 50/60 trains a day, Flagstaff AZ - 50/70 trains a day, Las Vegas NV - 17/20 trains a day during daylight hours. This is your opportunity to see some truly amazing big time American Railroading. Trust me, it'll leave you speechless. American trains are the ultimate expression of true railroading power, and is something you'll kick yourself for if you miss it. Let me and Dave do all the hard work, all you have to do is enjoy.

If you want to take photos like these, email me: erin.johnson@clear.net.nz or give me a call: 06-3230003 and get your name on the list.

Frequencies for your scanner
Information for Digital Cameras & other appliances
Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner Timetable
San Diego Trolley System Map
San Diego Trolley Timetable
Coaster Timetable
Sprinter Timetable & Route Map