I took this trip back in 2011 and found very enjoyable altho most of the really scenic portions thru the Cascades were at night. It was October and the days were shorter than in the summer, so by the time we got to Chemult, it was dark and didn't get light again until around Sacramento. We had a sleeper and found that dinner in the Pacific Parlor car was superb -- I had a slow cooked leg of lamb -- great. Even better, we had the table to ourselves, and we closed out the car. Blame the wine on that one.
As for scenery, you CANNOT beat the California Zephyr. I've been on the builder all the way to the coast and all of the Montana and Idaho mountains were at night, but the descent down the Cascades was early AM. The CZ is all daylight and is heart stopping gorgeous out of Denver all the way into Utah, and then again out of Reno over Donner. It is my choice for scenery and I'll bet I'm not the only one. The only downside for you is it terminates in Emeryville, about 10 miles shy of Oakland. There are many Capitol Coridor trains to make up the difference tho.
We have family in Maine and took the Lake Shore Ltd to Chicago then tansfered to the CZ out to Emeryville. Then an Amtrak bus to the Caltrain station in Frisco, then Caltrain down to San Carlos to vsit my son. We're gonna do it again, I hope. Pretty nice rail trip, especially since we added a RT to LA on the Coast Starlight. About 7,300 Km in all. Sorry, I'm an expat retired in Italy and we use metrics here.
Note that the BART rapid Transit offers a rail route from the Emeryville Amtrak Station to SF. Less convenient, less scenic, but still rail.
Northbound times work out to be more scenic - but both directions are nice. Use the Thruway Bus if you're going to San Fancisco. The nearest BART station is about a mile away from the Emeryville Station. There are bus routes that can get you to the BART stations, but they are time consuming. Jack London is closer to BART, about 12 blocks, or you can walk about five blocks to the Ferry Terminal.
I just rode Seattle-Oakland on the southbound Coast Starlight last week as part of my Amtrak Vacation package. I went first class and the ride was rather scenic throughout the daylight portion. The view of Mt. Rainier south of Seattle/Tacoma is impressive. Darkness fell somewhere between Eugene and Klamath Falls. The view from the Bay Bridge on the Amtrak Thruway bus connection would be impressive except for the fog which seems to be prevalent at that hour.
Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.