Established as a "cruise train," the California
Zephyr initiated service on March 20, 1949, heading eastbound to
Chicago. In the first years, the CZ, as it came to be known, was the
main transportation between Chicago and San Francisco, covering the
2,532 miles in just over two days, traveling "the scenic way across
America."
The scheduling of the CZ purposefully put it in the
magnificent landscape of the Rocky Mountains and Feather River during
daylight hours, much to the delight of passengers. With its breathtaking
scenery outside and excellent service inside, the CZ was "the most
talked about train in the country."
The California Zephyr was run as a shared effort
between the CB&Q, D&RGW, and Western Pacific railroads, and as
such was made up of a mix of cars provided by the three roads, and was
pulled by different sets of locomotives through the three main legs of
its journey. Shown below is a map of the transition points where the
CB&Q, D&RGW, and WP handed the train off, and the common
locomotive set up that would be used.