On Amtrak’s Coast Starlight in California
Trails and Rails is a collaboration between the National Park Service and Amtrak. As their local partner, the South Coast Railroad Museum trains and coordinates Trails & Rails volunteers on Amtrak’s Coast Starlight along the Juan Bautista De Anza National Historic Trail between Santa Barbara and San Jose. Most of the program takes place in the Sightseer Lounge car.
Volunteers with the Trails and Rails program provide Amtrak passengers with a unique experience of our National Parks.
National Trails & Rails Program
This video will give you a taste of the Trails & Rails program throughout the U.S.
California Trails & Rails Overview
Guide teams start at either the San Jose Amtrak Station (map) or the Santa Barbara Amtrak Station (map), and must live within reasonable commuting distance of their respective stations. Guides are expected to volunteer a minimum of one day per month, usually on weekend days (with occasional Fridays and Thursdays). A typical season for Santa Barbara based guides is April–September; a typical season for San Jose based guides is May–September.
- Santa Barbara based guides begin their day at the Santa Barbara Amtrak Station at 11:30 am and ride the train to San Luis Obispo, returning to Santa Barbara at approximately 6:15 pm the same day.
- San Jose based guides begin their day at the San Jose Amtrak Station at 9:30 am and ride the train to Paso Robles, returning to San Jose at approximately 7:45 pm the same day.
Orientation and Training
Potential Trails and Rails volunteers attend a mandatory online “meet and greet” orientation session and a full day of classroom training at the start of their first season, then continue their education by observing and assisting seasoned guides in peer-to-peer learning on the train. Written materials, online training, historical articles, and related websites round out each guide’s training and continuing education.
New Guide Meet and Greet Orientation sessions
Meet and Greet orientation sessions for prospective new guides will take place via Zoom. Find out if this opportunity is for you by getting to know more about the program and the training requirements. (Read about the training requirements here.)
Register for the Meet and Greet and choose your preferred date here
Group Training for Santa Barbara and San Jose based guides will take place online, with four online (Zoom) meetings Tuesday evenings, April 16, April 23 May 7, May 14 at 7:00pm
Log in information provided at the Meet & Greet, linked above.
The day long, in person training for San Jose based Guides is scheduled for June You must attend an online orientation session prior to the classroom training.
Want to learn more about National Trails & Rails? Visit the National Park Service’s Trails & Rails information website here.