A Summer Trip on the Rails

Bay Curious

KQED

History, Society & Culture, Places & Travel

4.9 • 999 Ratings

🗓️ 10 July 2025

⏱️ 31 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Train travel isn't as common as it used to be, but there's one Amtrak route that train enthusiasts love because it's so beautiful -- the California Zephyr. The route starts in Emeryville, runs through the California delta, stops in Sacramento and then heads and over the Sierra Nevada mountains, eventually terminating in Chicago. This ride is on a lot of people's bucket list for good reason. But the California railroads also played an important role in the food history of the state and in the Civil Rights Movement. Additional Reading: The California Railroad's Surprising Impacts on Food and Civil Rights Read the transcript for this episode How Oakland's 16th Street Train Station Helped Build West Oakland and the Modern Civil Rights Movement Sign up for our newsletter Enter our Sierra Nevada Brewing Company monthly trivia contest Got a question you want answered? Ask! Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts This story was reported by Lisa Morehouse. It was edited by Victoria Mauleon and produced by Suzie Racho, Brendan Willard and Sasha Khokha. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Gabriela Glueck and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Olivia Allen-Price, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad and everyone on Team KQED.

Transcript

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0:00.0	From KQED.
0:03.0	Today we're starting our show on a train.
0:09.0	The California Zephyr.
0:11.0	Its Amtrak line goes from Emoryville, passes through Sacramento and Truckee
0:16.0	before heading east all the way to Chicago.
0:19.0	On the hillside off to the right of the train, you may be able to... And actually, some of it follows a route that's close to the first transcontinental
0:27.5	railroad.
0:33.3	There's something very nostalgic and cool about a train journey.
0:38.0	And in terms of California history, the railroad and its connection to food was hugely important.
0:44.1	I know I'm not the only one who loves trains, and what could be better than a summer trip on the rails for your ears?
0:52.5	Today on the show, we are riding the California Zephyr to learn more about some of the most iconic spots on this route,
0:59.2	the history of fine dining on trains, and how black railroad workers were a crucial part of the civil rights movement.
1:06.3	I'm Katrina Schwartz, and you're listening to Bay Curious. Stay with us.
1:18.9	Thank you. Katrina Schwartz, and you're listening to Bay Curious. Stay with us. Support for Bay Curious comes from Sierra Nevada Brewing Company. From the legendary pale
1:24.1	ale to hazy little thing, it's beer that always lives up to the moment.
1:28.7	Visit the beer aisle to taste for yourself.
1:31.3	Sierra Nevada, Taste What Matters.
1:34.1	Please drink responsibly.
1:36.1	Did you know that this podcast is produced at KQED, a public media organization based in San Francisco?
1:42.4	What this means is that our content is supported
1:45.6	not only by donations from listeners like you, but in part by federal funding. That federal
1:52.1	funding is the bedrock that organizations like ours need to keep serving our audiences with
	...

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