I was awoken by rain at 2:30 AM on this Saturday morning of our Train Travel Meetup Group trip to Santa Barbara. Knowing that this storm should be past my house by morning, I went back to sleep then I arose at 6:15 AM to find it still raining so I turned on the Weather Channel and looked at the local Doppler Radar which showed most of the rain would be gone by the time I needed to be at the station. I did some chores around the house before driving to the Santa Ana Station to wait for Pacific Surfliner 763. I parked in the north lot and walked over to the east platform via the grade crossing at Santa Ana Boulevard and a few minutes later, was joined by Mr. and Mrs. Winston Walker and then Robin Bowers found us as he was joining us.
Pacific Surfliner 763 10/13/2007
This train arrived on time and we boarded a Surfliner coach. I went back downstairs to check on the Walkers when I slipped at the bottom of the stairs as they were very wet. Lucky I landed on my rear end so was all right. As the crew was expecting two large groups, the first two cars of the train were closed off. When I explained to Conductor Margaret that we would be a small group, she let us into the Superliner coach behind the cab car and we all chose seats. As she took my ticket, she asked if I was all right and I replied "Yes!" We made our way to Anaheim then Fullerton, where a large group of Boy Scouts boarded who were going to Carpinteria State Beach for a weekend campout.
Dan Dalke boarded the train in the coach behind us and I brought him up to our car, where he joined me at my seat for the trip north to Los Angeles Union Station. Here, a large group from the City of Torrance boarded the cab car. Chris Parker and Ken Ruben joined our group in Los Angeles and soon we were off to Santa Barbara. Conductor Mike Monroy stopped by to say hello as we ran along a fast-moving Los Angeles River then passed the Gold Line shops before the former Southern Pacific Taylor Yard, now home to the Metrolink shop and yards. The train made its trek across the San Fernando Valley and soon after Chatsworth, we went through the first of the three tunnels to reach the Simi Valley.
Our train travelled by the Chatsworth Rocks before exiting the San Fernando Valley. As we neared Simi Valley, here is most of our group.
Robin Bowers.
Mr. and Mrs. Winston Walker.
Chris Parker.
Ken Ruben. We made our way down the Simi Valley, passing a Union Pacific baretable train at Stratheren. At Moorpark was the Metrolink trainset leased from Altamont Commuter Express trainset laying over for the weekend. At Camarillo, we pulled into the siding to let Pacific Surfliner 774 pass before we reversed onto the main to do our station work. My friend Melissa from Torrance stopped by for a visit before we arrived into Oxnard and later, I looked at Dan's train magazines throughout the trip as we soon reached Ventura. West of there, we started our run along the Pacific Ocean.
Where the Pacific Surfliner meets the surf north of Ventura. It was a beautiful run along the coast this morning and we did not get stopped at Seacliff. At Carpinteria, the Boy Scouts detrained and a few minutes later, our train delivered us to the station at Santa Barbara.
A group picture was taken which included Dan Dalke.
Santa Barbara 10/13/2007The Walkers went to the Enterprise Fish Company while the rest of us took the electric bus north up State Street to The Habit, which cost only a quarter. There I enjoyed a tri-tip sandwich, fries and a chocolate malt. We returned to the station in plenty of time to watch the Coast Starlight arrive then after it departed, we just enjoyed the fresh air on the platform before we moved down to wait for Pacific Surfliner 784. Winston soon joined me and Mrs. Walker joined us all before our train arrived.
Pacific Surfliner 784 10/13/2007We all chose seats in the Superliner coach and departed on time, making our way back down the coast to Seacliff siding, where we went into the siding for Pacific Surfliner 769. We relaxed as we travelled inland to the Simi Valley. Chris Parker had some of his videos that he had shot over the last few years and we watched the Beech Grove Shop tour and part of the French Lick, West Baden and Southern excursion. We pulled into the siding at Stratheren to get around Union Pacific 8501 West, and at Hassen, met Pacific Surfliner 775.
Soon we were running down the San Fernando Valley and into Los Angeles Union Station, where Chris and Ken departed our train. Dan detrained at Fullerton and all too soon the Walkers, Robin and I were detraining at Santa Ana, ending another fantastic Train Travel Meetup Group trip to Santa Barbara.
