Carl's Train Page

http://trainweb.com/carl

"N & W Memories" by Robert K. West. Norfolk & Western's streamlined Powhatan Arrow, headed by J Class #610, stands at the Petersburg, Virginia station in a scene typical of the forties and fifties.

Thanks to TrainWeb.com for the space!

I'm a Rail Traveler and Train Watcher, so the following narratives and photos reflect that interest.

Click the following Table of Contents items, or read through the narratives in order:

Ą Amtrak Coast Starlight, in Santa Barbara, California May 22, 1998

Ą Handicapped Travel on Amtrak San Diegans May 17, 1998

Ą North to Seattle and Back by Amtrak, Week before Easter, 1996

Amtrak Coast Starlight in Santa Barbara, California

My most recent vacation, Memorial Day, 1998, was from our home in Orange County, California, up the coast through Santa Barbara and on to Morro Bay for the first night. The next two nights we spent on Moonstone Beach, Cambria, California, not far from Hearst Castle on the Central Coast of California.

Even though this trip was by car, if you are like me, you know the schedule of the Amtrak named trains which follow the highway you are traveling on. All you have to do is go to your local Amtrak Depot and pick up the schedule and you might see an Amtrak train pass by.

I had this in mind when we stopped for lunch in Santa Barbara at the fish restaurant between the Amtrak Station and Hwy. 101. I knew the train was to pass through about noon, and sure enough we were seated for lunch at noon. The restaurant is close enough to the station that you can see a crossing from the window of the restaurant and whether the arms are down or not. As we enjoyed lunch, I occasionally glanced out the window and finally, about 50 minutes late, after lunch, the Coast Starlight, northbound, pulled into the station.

I immediately pulled out the trusty Minolta 300 si with 35 - 200 mm zoom and walked to the platform. The station is on the north side of the tracks, so I knew I'd be shooting into the sun while photographing the shaded side of the Coast Starlight, so I turned on fill flash and began to shoot:

Santa Barbara Station, May 22, 1998, 12:50 pm

A Genesis, No. 119, was on the point with an older Amtrak engine second.

I've recently began photographing the nameplates of new engines which are conveniently located at eye level.

This GE Genesis Diesel electric Passenger Locomotive is officially a "Model P42DC," made in September, 1997, in Erie, Pennsylvania.

As the Coast Starlight pulled out, the following cars passed me in order:

Sleeping Car 32072 (with 2 others) Where we always travel.

Dining Car 38062

Sightseer Lounge 33037

Coach 34134 (plus 3 others)

It was a great opportunity to photograph all the different types of Superliner cars. Had we been passengers, we'd have had to walk the platform during this 'smoke break' to photograph all the cars, and there would have been many people standing at each door. This way, as the train was pulling out, no one else was on the platform to be in the way of my picture taking. Why is the coach attendant still outside the car after the train left, you ask, I took this picture as soon as the second part of the train arrived and he is just beginning to allow passengers to detrain. The station platform was being repaired and the Coast Starlight had to stop twice, once for the front half, sleeper cars, of the train, and again for the last half, coach cars. This photo was taken just as the coach cars had moved up to be unloaded.

We three piled in our car and continued up the coast on this beautiful California Memorial Day vacation.

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Handicapped Travel on Amtrak San Diegans.

SanDieganAnniversary.html for a travelogue about Handicapped Travel on Amtrak San Diegans

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North to Seattle and Back via Amtrak's Coast Starlight

This narrative about a trip with my family to Seattle from Fullerton, California, is not at TrainWeb.com. If you click to read this story, you must click "BACK" on your browser to return to this page. WAIT, before you go, bookmark this page so you can get back easily: http://trainweb.com/carl

Enjoy North to Seattle and Back.

Train Travel Resources

Remember, if you click any of these links, you must click "BACK" on your browser to return to this page: http://trainweb.com/carl Why not BOOKMARK this page before you go traveling around the internet.

The Coast Starlight Home Page.

The Amtrak Home Page.

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