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We met a freight who was coming down with distributed power (engines on both ends).

State Prison in San Luis Obispo

The train was a mixed freight.

A bridge we'd crossed earlier.

One of the many ancient volcano cones between San Luis Obispo and Morro Bay.

The engineer signaled that there were no defects on our train.  The engineer on the front had checked the outside of our train and signaled the same.

I had told Shivam that this was the time of day to see deer.

Levitating telegraph pole.

Red barn in valley.

No rusty rails on this line.

Signal Bridge.

Some old railroad songs came to mind, not the least of which was, "Night Train."

Hwy. 101 Closed tunnel and bypass.

Is the tunnel big enough to take this 18 ft. 1 inch high, 89 feet long, 10 feet wide car?!  We'll soon know!

Two tunnels

Tunnel and Hwy. 101

There was still light up in the sky where jet pilots traveled, but where I traveled,  on Mother earth, the light was gone for photography from a moving platform for another day.

When we passed midnight on the train, we celebrated Shivam's 29th birthday with a rousing Happy Birthday!

Bon Jovi was performing this evening in San Jose, and these were the crew's five busses.  One of the drivers said Bon and the band fly in a Lear Jet and the setup goes in semi-trucks.  Some day TrainWeb will go like this!  For now, we 4 piled into a cab for the train station.

I used some 8th grade arithmetic and high school geometry to calculate that the flag in the Jan Jose train station was 30 feet by 19.5 feet.

While awaiting our southbound Coast Starlight, I observed four ladies with tee shirts saying:

The Great Train Adventures

1999 Santa Barbara
2000 San Luis Obispo
2001 Ventura
2002 Portland

Pat, Cindy, Joan, and Joan

They were headed on the Coast Starlight today to Santa Barbara for this year's great train adventure.  Pat is from San Jose, CA, (Pat's sister) Cindy from Fremont,  Joan from Felton, and Joan from Campbell.  They told me they were school employees and that they had started their adventures as camping trips to Yosemite.  Some of those early trips were by train also.  They reserve a room, even though this is not an overnight trip, and eat in the diner, "as many meals as possible!"  They used to avoid Spring Break because of the kids on the trains, but now, with a sleeping compartment, crowds are no problem.  We saw them often, always obviously enjoying themselves, on the train.  They play Mexican train dominos as they clackety-clack down the track.  Portolla Railroad Museum is their local RR museum.

As they detrained in Santa Barbara, I pointed out the Enterprise Fish Company and that was the last we saw this jovial group.  I gave them my brochure on the McKinley Express, and tour books on Holland America Tours and hopefully next year their shirts will say, "2004 Alaska McKinley Express."

   

I worked on the Holland America McKinley Express travelogue on my laptop on the way home

I like the new Cal Train paint scheme which we had only seen in the dark last night. (above left) The Coast Starlight soon arrived.  The 'Train Adventuresses' and TrainWeb staff, and many others boarded. (right)

It was cool and damp as we left San Jose.

Awaiting wine tasting, a regular afternoon feature in the Parlor Car, which was replaced with an observation car on this trip only. Dinner in the Diner followed.

What an Adventure!  Contact Holland Adventure Tours and experience it for yourself!