A Ride on the eastbound "Capitol Limited" (Amtrak train #30) from Chicago to Washington, DC

For Labor Day weekend, 2017, I wound up going to an event for Reformed Christian singles, being held in Atlanta, GA. In typical fashion for me, but, to the shock of many people, I took the train, riding the "Capitol Limited" from Chicago to Washington, DC, and the "Crescent" from DC to Atlanta.

Amtrak's "Capitol Limited," featured elsewhere on my channel, goes east from Chicago, along Norfolk Southern's "Chicago Line" to Cleveland, through northern Indiana and Ohio, via South Bend, IN, and Toledo, OH before going southeast to Pittsburgh. At Pittsburgh, the train joins CSX trackage (formerly part of the Baltimore & Ohio), going over the Alleghenies via Sand Patch Grade to Cumberland, MD, before quickly entering West Virginia, crossing the Patomac River into Maryland, again, at Harpers Ferry, WV, and continuing on to Washington's Union Station.

Our train left on time at 6:40 pm, and we were running on time to Elyria, OH, 25 miles west of Cleveland. However, sadly, that evening, within two hours of each other, two different people were struck by two separate Norfolk Southern freight trains, and we were held at Elyria for almost 2 hours, as the tracks were closed while the police and coroners did their jobs. We were further delayed by track work, and the ensuing bottleneck on CSX's Keystone Subdivision in Pennsylvania, resulting in us arriving into Washington's Union Station almost 3 hours late.

Between Chicago and Washington, DC, the train makes stops in South Bend, IN, Elkhart, IN, Waterloo, IN, Toledo, OH, Sandusky, OH, Elyria, OH, Cleveland, OH, Alliance, OH, Pittsburgh, PA, Connellsville, PA, Cumberland, MD, Martinsburg, WV, Harpers Ferry, WV and Rockville, MD.

Dates of trip: Aug 30th and 31st, 2017