Different Stain for Decking vs. Railings?

Hello DSH,

I have 2 questions that bridge the "cleaning" and "staining" topic so hope it's OK to ask both here.

Last summer/fall we replaced our cedar deck boards (and did not stain to let the wood dry/season).  The deck rail (cedar also) was in better shape, so we saved that and are re-using.  However it had an old coating of Sikkens stain on it so we sanded that off. 

Here's question 1:  I have read that a 2-step cleaning/brightening is the best prep. and am planning to follow that for the new (last fall) deck boards.  Should we follow the same procedure for the railing that we sanded, or go directly to staining?

Question 2:  I read a post that asked about using a solid stain for deck railing, and a semi-transparent for deck boards (I think the person was looking for a different "accent" color for their railing), and I believe your response was "yes".  Is there an advantage to using a solid stain on vertical surfaces because of the greater UV protection?  Would you still recommend a semi-solid for the decking (or both)?

Thanks, and hope the questions are clear!

derekw in Maine