(no subject)

[chhotii]

I am seriously considering taking the train from Boston to Pittsfield to get (most of the way) to the Abode.

Here is some data about that option:
The location of the Pittsfield Amtrack station is 1 Columbus Ave, Pittsfield, MA 01201, and the address of the Abode is 5 Abode Rd, New Lebanon, NY 12125. According to Google Maps, the driving distance between these points is just over 10 miles, or about 20 minutes. Perhaps I could persuade someone to come and pick me and my kid up at the train station on their way in, and drop us off on the way out, without putting them out of their way too much.

The Lake Shore Limited leaves Boston South Station at 12:50 pm and arrives at 4:39 pm. In June, that should leave plenty of time to still set up the tent during daylight.

The train back leaves Pittsfield at at 4:09 pm and gets back to Boston at 8:01 pm. This is a bit more challenging. Baitcon ends at 2 pm. Leaving at 2 pm would require cooling our heels in the Pittsfield train station for a couple of hours, not thrilling. jbsegal said that I could stay on-site a little longer if I help with tear-down and clean-up. I would certainly be happy to help with tear-down and clean-up until it's time to go catch the train. (The kid would be not so helpful. Maybe I could send the kid home in someone else's car, I will ping friends about this... But that's not a show-stopper; I think if I'm being helpful she will be tolerated, and she will appreciate the time that she will get the swing all to herself.)

The round-trip cost for 1 adult and 1 child is $60. For this I would get about 6 hours of my life back (time spent on the train is time I can spend doing useful work, whereas time spent driving is a complete waste) plus I save the wear and tear on the car. Oh, yeah. Seriously tempting.

Of course the one drawback is I would have to pack light. Tent, sleeping bags, small backpacker air mattresses, pillow, and backpacks with clothes, towels, toiletries, flashlights... I have to see if we can carry all that. We would have to mooch camp chairs the whole time because no way am I lugging those to the train station (but I left at least one camp chair at the house by mistake and don't have time to go get it anyway.) We would have to skimp on books, toys, etc. This is of concern because we would have all that time on the train. For the kid, the iPhone and iPad pack the most on-train amusement for the least weight and volume (but if they don't get put away once we get on-site it kind of negates the point of going camping.) For me, the Macbook Air packs the most on-train productivity for the least weight and volume, as long as I get around to downloading a bunch of articles from PubMed before we go.

I think we can do this!

So, can someone pick up 2 passengers in Pittsfield on Friday evening? Can someone drop off 2 passengers in Pittsfield on Monday evening?

Comments

[theloriest.livejournal.com]

I know that elusiveat and squirrelitude are also taking the train there, with their 16-month-old daughter.

[totient]

On the way out the train will be on time. On the way home... well, yesterday's train was 2+ hours late into South Station.

[drwex]

Many Amtrak trains do offer the option to check heavier or larger bags. It might be worth checking whether this service is available on that line.

[chhotii.livejournal.com]

That's not the issue. The issue is getting me, the kid, and whatever we are taking with us to South Station via public transit. Either green line to red line, bus to orange line to red line, or really long walk to red line, depending on where we leave the car. This is what would make carrying camp chairs painful.

[chhotii.livejournal.com]

Oh, right, I guess we could take a taxi to South Station. Hmm, perhaps I don't have to pack so light...

[ron_newman]

Or Green Line to Copley, walk to Back Bay station. May not be a good option with heavy luggage or in rain, though.

[chhotii.livejournal.com]

Oh hey, the Lake Shore Limited does stop at Back Bay! For us that's easy to get to with one bus. Thanks for noticing that, Ron!

[ron_newman]

Oh yes, I forgot all about the #39 bus, which goes right to Back Bay.

[ceo]

The Late For Sure Limited is coming all the way from Chicago on the return trip and has had almost 1000 miles to get stuck behind slow freight trains etc. It could easily end up like 5 hours late getting to Pittsfield. Might be well to have a backup plan, which could maybe be us at least for the kid.

[chhotii.livejournal.com]

Yeah, we should discuss whether the kid and her backpack could have the option of going back with you guys. You and gosling both have to work the 28th and your kids still will be in school right? I promise I would collect the kid in time for you all to go to work on Tuesday.

[gosling.livejournal.com]

To expand on Chip's comment:

I *think* I may actually have Monday off from work, although that has by no means been confirmed. In which case we leave late Monday morning with most everyone else.

If, however, I do not have Monday off, we are planning on loading the car up with luggage and sleeping children at approximately 3AM on Sunday night/Monday morning and leaving then. (In other words, driving through the night and essentially getting home just in time to drop me off at work.)

In theory we could add your child to the return trip either way, however, what she and you might think of the drive through the night option is another question...

(I will also add that at this point the kids are getting big enough that it is rather crowded with three of them in the car on a longish trip... So that is a thing to ask her about too, especially as children's backpacks will have to ride on their laps most likely if there are three kids... *and* there will be luggage in the children's footwell regardless...)

Last year we very, very barely were able to fit all our stuff in the back. This year is likely to be the same, so we can't take any luggage (and there is likely to already be luggage in the children's footwell and possibly in their laps. Her backpack might be able to ride in her lap, however.)

[ron_newman]

Just to add another possibility, Peter Pan runs buses between Pittsfield and Boston. That might be more reliable on the return trip than the Late Shore Limited.

[deguspice.livejournal.com]

You might want to check with the BCC and see if they're going to be doing a shopping run to Pittsfield around the on Friday.

[whitebird.livejournal.com]

For your heavier stuff, could you get a box into someone else's metal pack mule?

[anotherjen.livejournal.com]

Uber/Lyft for the win.