You can break the trip into stages and stop along the way, a few nights in Chicago, a Rocky Mountain pause, time in Salt Lake City or the national parks, rather than riding straight through. It’s a journey best measured in a couple of weeks, not days.
Can you stop along the way?
Yes, this is half the point. Multi-stop rail passes and separate tickets let you build in stays, so the train becomes the thread between destinations rather than an endurance test.