Search - Planes, Trains & Machines Collection on DVD

Fantastic scenery of our country

11/19/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A coast-to-coast trip from Washington, DC to San Francisco aboard Amtrak's Capitol Limited and California Zephyr. See our nation's capitol, lush Ohio Amish Farmlands, the Great Plains, the Rockies and Sierras, before skirting along side San Pablo Bay and on into Oakland and San Francisco. Along the way visit the following steam and diesel tourist railroads: Strasburg Railroad, Potomac Eagle, Western Maryland Scenic Railroad, Ohio Central, Boone & Scenic Valley, Omaha Zoo Railroad, Durango & Silverton, Heber valley, Virginia & Truckee, Napa Valley Wine Train, Roaring Camp & Big Trees, and Santa Cruz Trees & Pacific.States covered include Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California.This superbly photographed. award-winning epic runs 2 hours. Winner:Videography Awards VHS Color Stereo Sound"

Excellent: Side Excursions, Beautiful Scenery, Great Music

11/13/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I first watched America By Rail several years ago after running into a newspaper ad for it. It was better than I had expected: The scenery was absolutely stunning, the music by Michael Lynch was superb and very appropriate for the changing scenery, the narration was minimal but very well done, and there were many side excursions to older, historic railroads all across the US.America By Rail starts in Washington, DC, our nation's capitol, and journeys through the "Heartland" of our country, through Chicago and Utah, until we reach San Francisco, CA. There are shots from inside the train, outside the train, from high above...I thought this was marvelously done. The creators Greg Scholl and Les Jarett certainly did a commendable job, and I, being a nature lover, was very impressed with the wonderful photography.Well worth the price."

A Great Sampler

Mr M R Thornhill | Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia. | 02/24/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"We may be zone 4 for DVD and PAL television (not NTSC) but we have our methods of beating the system.Found this to be a great introduction to Amtrak services with great views of the US countryside and informative commentary. Particularly liked the fact that where the scenery or train dominated the screen the narration stopped. Very rare in this type of program.The side excursions on preserved lines were interesting and whetted the appetite to try them myself.Having always intended to tour the US and Canada by rail I can only say keep lobbying your government to keep Amtrak funded - its an asset worth keeping.Also purchased 'Travel the World by Train - North America' (don't bother) and The Great Trans-American Ride (not bad)."

A Scenic Journey at "See" Level Highly Recommended

Harald T. Arnesen | Reno, NV United States | 12/24/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After Receiving this video as a gift on Christmas 1994, I watched this video more than once to get a feel of what it was like to travel cross country by rail from Washington DC to San Francisco, first aboard the Capitol Limited (that now uses the bi-level Superliner cars) and then aboard the famous California Zephyr. As you should see in this video, the landscape changes all the time. I had the opportunity to ride the California Zephyr roundtrip from Emeryville, CA to Denver, departing midmorning back in May 1998 together with an old high school friend who is a real rail buff (actually, we both are) to see the beauty of the landscape ourselves and take lots of photos. On the eastbound trip - not shown on the video since the trains were traveling west and at night - the train we were on that early next morning was traversing some of the most spectacular scenery between Provo, UT and Green River, UT where the train ascends a range on winding track and then descends into a beautiful canyon skirting alongside the banks of the Price River. Here we were traveling through many tunnels and, after a brief stop in Helper, UT, we continued onto Green River, UT (the trains do not stop in Thompson, UT anymore). We also enjoyed the majestic beauty of the Rocky Mountains. After more than thirteen minutes of subterranian running through the Moffat Tunnel we were able to see Denver off in the distance while winding our way down the Front Range, reaching Denver that evening, and staying there for two nights before returning to Emeryville on the westbound train (which was three hours late, but we didn't complain) to see the beauty again. I would highly recommend this video to anyone who would like to see this vast, great country of ours at "see" level instead of at 35,000 feet in the air."