DC to Pittsburgh, PA
We went to the Amtrak station in DC and wheeled our bikes with packs in and went to the check in. We had bought tickets several weeks earlier so went straight to the baggage check in and asked for boxes. We had intended to go 2 hours prior to departure but made it one hour early. I would recommend minimum 1 hour prior as it took quite a while just to get our boxes. It was also 20 dollars each for box and "shipping". This took about 30 minutes just to get the boxes.
While waiting we tried to prepare the bikes. We looked up some videos and asked for advice from our local bike shop (Performance Bikes for me). You have to remove the pedals and also turn or remove the handlebars. This video helped. For the pedals you may need a pedal wrench or large allen wrench (we had "normal" pedals and egg beater pedals). To remove the handlebars you have to unscrew the two parallel parts and the top of the post (yeah, look it up or ask someone). Prepare this before you leave, this should not be done for the first time at the station. They had packing tape for us but we were advised to bring our own just in case. Right after we packed our bikes they were boarding the train and we were on our way.
The train (Capitol Limited) left around 4pm and arrived around midnight in Pittsburgh. This is the only train available that does bikes from DC to Pittsburgh. The trip itself was not bad. I enjoyed the reclining seats and the foot rests. There are food cars. The only complaint was our car was fairly warm and there was not climate control. We also had outlets but no wireless internet.
It took a little while to get our bikes off the train and it took us maybe 30 minutes to set everything up to head to the Hampton Inn. It was less than a mile, maybe 3 blocks away. As you exit the station turn left and make a few turns to the hotel. At that hour there is not much traffic. The hotel was understanding of late check in and ended up giving us an upgrade to a suite with jacuzzi tub.
Amtrak:
http://www.amtrak.com/capitol-limited-train
http://www.amtrak.com/bring-your-bicycle-onboard
Packing your bike:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsLRIoPKt2M&feature=share&list=PL9DFE9639B2C41C24
Removing pedals:
http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/pedal-installation-and-removal-pw-3-pw-4-pw-5-hcw-16
Removing handlebars:
http://www.ehow.com/how_2191974_remove-handlebars-mountain-bike.html
Hampton Inn:
http://hamptoninn3.hilton.com/en/hotels/pennsylvania/hampton-inn-and-suites-pittsburgh-downtown-PITDNHX/maps-directions/index.html
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