Post trip tips. observations and lessons learned

• Ice....We ended the trip without ever using ICE in the cooler. We did store some things like Subway sandwiches in it for short periods of time but otherwise it was used more for storage than ice cold storage. We were able to use the drinking water dispensers from the train and an occasional cup of ice from the Lounge car to satisfy our drink needs. We bought deli foods and snacks for each segment of the train at the preceding layover so our foods were always fresh and didn't need cold storage for the short period we were storing it. We were prepared to freeze bottles of water at the AirBNBs if needed but after the initial start of the trip ice bottles we never needed them again.
• Views....this is the Amtrak Map depicting day and night portions of the various routes. They almost mirror each other regardless of the direction you are traveling so it's pretty much the same each way with a few exceptions. 
• Sleeping....The conductor will generally seat you initially but later you can usually move around without any problems. Try to find 2 empty seats to spread out in for the night. Its much easier to sleep if you raise both leg rests to make a small bed and then sleep at diagonally across both seats. The conductors are very lenient about this practice because they know the coach folks need to sleep on a 3 day/2 night trip. Some folks actually go to the observation car after 10:00 or 11:00 pm and spread out on the seats & floor there and get up by 6:00 or 7:00 am.
• Bathrooms.....There are several different bathroom sizes and configurations in each car. Explore to see which best suits your needs. Explore the other cars to see if there are better ones there. The bathroom in the Lounge cars are generally bigger and less used (cleaner) than any others on the train.
• Food......Train food is minimally acceptable and over priced. Treat Train food in the diner car as a Plan "B" if your food supply falls short. There are specific items that are reasonable but its a hit or miss as to which items are good (bagel & cream cheese from the Lounge) and which are lousy (signature Steak from the diner) Bring your own food when possible. Take advantage of longer stops to buy food during a segment....There is a lady that sell Burritos at the station in El Paso. The Southwest Chief train stops in Albuquerque for over an hour and there are restaurants and opportunities to buy food nearby. The Sunset Limited stops in Alpine Texas for an hour or so with grocery stores and restaurants within an easy walk.......
• Luggage....Use a luggage lock on your bags so you can store them on the lower level if you chose to do so. The lower level is somewhat susceptible to theft since it isn't able to be seen by all the other passengers and people pass by it regularly to go to the restrooms. The storage over your seat is safe since everyone can see it from anywhere in the car. You'll also need a luggage lock if you store your bags at the station while you're staying at an AirBNB. Just to keep the honest people honest;-)
• AirBNBs....If you pick an AirBNB you can go to Google maps and zoom in close to the point it will show the local businesses within a few blocks. That helps determine if you will be able to get around without resorting to UBER when staying at the AirBNB. Also use UBER's fare estimate feature to see how much it will cost you to get to and from the station.
• Mass Transit.....Do a little research on the mass transit opportunities in the large cities. We were able to buy a TAP pass in Los Angeles that allowed us to ride all the busses and Subways for only $7 for the entire day!