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About The 2014 Convention (from the AAPRCO Website)
 The
American Association of Private Railroad Car Owners, in conjunction with
Amtrak,
is pleased to announce plans for our 2014
annual convention at Portland,
Maine and The Pine Tree Limited special train.
Please view our video of Portland. If you have
a high speed internet connection, try this large
(98 MB) file in MOV format. If you have a slower DSL connection, try
this smaller
(59 MB) file in MP4 format. If you want to watch it on an Iphone or
similar mobile device, try this even
smaller (29 MB) file in MP4 format.
The current plans, which are subject to change,
are as follows:The dates are Sunday, September 21 through Thursday, September
25, 2014.
Our convention special train will offer travel
over a substantial amount of mileage that is not accessible by regularly
scheduled Amtrak trains. At this early date, there is a proposed routing
from Chicago to Portland that is subject to railroad approval.
Our current thinking has the special train departing
Chicago on Thursday night September 18 and heading east on Norfolk
Southern overnight to just west of Cleveland OH. There we will switch
over to the tracks of the former Nickle Plate Road for the run to Buffalo
NY. Next, we will travel east on Norfolk Southern's southern tier route
(former Erie Railroad) to Binghamton NY. There we will link up with the
former Delaware & Hudson (now operated by
CP Rail) and proceed to Mechanicville NY, which is just north of Albany
NY. From there, the last lap of the trip to Portland ME is on the former
Boston & Maine, now Pan
Am Railways, arriving on Sunday afternoon/evening September 21.
The Pine Tree Limited's parking site at
Portland will be Yard 8, West Commercial Street.
Our hotel will be the recently refurbished
Westin
Portland Harborview. This is a full service hotel located in the downtown
area just steps from the Portland
Museum of Art, marvelous restaurants, a 12 minute walk from the waterfront,
and a short shuttle ride from the location where our train will be parked.
Our traditional convention activities will be
conducted at Portland. These include two car parties, technical seminars,
membership meetings, and the annual banquet. In 2009, Bon Appetit magazine
named Portland "America's Foodiest Small Town." It would be a shame not
to enjoy Portland's vibrant culinary scene and, of course, lobster and
"chow-dah"! Since this a tourist town, there are lots of things to do for
AAPRCO visitors, such as a Duck Tour, a possible trip "Down East" to Rockland
on the Maine
Eastern Railroad, and a sail on a 1912 two masted schooner.
Portland is home to the Maine
Narrow Gauge Railroad Company & Museum, which operates on two foot
gauge tracks. There will be an opportunity to visit Kennebunkport to see
the Seashore Trolley
Museum, quaint shops and restaurants, and to drive by the summer home
for President George H. W. Bush at Walker's Point. The legendary L.
L. Bean store, a must for any serious shopper, is only a 20 minute
drive down the road to Freeport.
After the conclusion of our convention activities
at Portland, on Thursday morning September 25, The Pine Tree Limited will
head west on Pan Am Railways to Worcester MA, where we will switch to CSX
(former New York Central) for the final lap to Albany-Rensselaer NY, where
the special train will terminate later that day.
Although the 2014 convention is well in the future,
please mark your calendar and keep it in your plans. We are excited to
bring AAPRCO to Portland and hope you will join us for a memorable trip.
The convention is open only to members of AAPRCO,
their family and their personal guests. Please note there will be no opportunities
for the general public to tour the cars while they are parked at Portland
ME and other locations during the convention and during the operation of
the Pine Tree Limited convention special train.
We will update this site when more information
becomes available. We anticipate an update after the AAPRCO board of directors
mid-term meeting currently
planned for the third week of April 2014. |
