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I fell back asleep. I didn't dream. Ophelia's warm body was reassuring. We slept until ten in the morning. Then it was breakfast in bed. Fall would be coming soon. It was time to leave New York City.
I decided to take Amtrak to Springfield, MA and connect to the westbound Lake Shore Limited there. I booked a quiet car seat on train 170 leaving at 8:30 am the next morning. 170 connected with train 470 at New Haven. 470 would take me to Springfield from New Haven. I'd have a two hour layover before the westbound Lake Shore Limited arrived at 2:10 pm.
While Ophelia was dressing I noticed a tattoo of the letter A on her ankle. "What's that for?" I asked. Ophelia covered her ankle quickly. "It's an old boyfriend" she replied. Her nervousness at my discovery seemed odd, but I accepted her explanation. Later I would find out what the A really stood for.
That day we rode Metro-North to Danbury to check out the railroad museum there. Then we took a cab across the state line on route six to Brewster, NY. There we boarded the Wassaic train for a ride to the extreme northern terminus of the age-old Harlem Line. It used to go from Grand Central all the way to Chatham, NY. You could go all the way to North Adams, MA if you desired. You could connect to the Boston and Albany at Chatham. The line is electrified from GCT to Southeast nowadays. From there, P42 dual-mode gennies pull or push the trains to and from Wassaic.
We returned from Southeast to Grand Central on a new M-7 mu trainset. It was a scenic ride through the bucolic suburbs of Putnam and Westchester Counties. There was a man with big blue sunglasses and a sequin jacket sitting near us. It was Elton John. He was humming Harmony when I approached him. "Please, no autographs," he said. "Yeah, well, don't sleep in the subway darling," I retorted. "Look bloke, is there a problem here? I'm just a pop star riding on Metro-North." I scowled. "You could be nice to people. People made you rich!" Elton shook his head. "Heard that, considered that. But f- that. I'm old and crotchety now."
I went back to Ophelia. "Sorry dear, no autographs." I said. "But don't worry. I'm lighting out for the western territories tomorrow. I'll get you autographs from real pop stars when I get to LA. Who knows, maybe I'll bump into Lady Gaga on the Pacific Surfliner."
-------------------- Everybody has to believe in something. I believe I'll take the train! Posts: 230 | From: Ithaca, New York | Registered: May 2009
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I'm really glad that you didn't derail the Lake Shore. Amtrak would have had to make the Cardinal coach only and reduce the Crescent to Tri-weekly to scare up enough replacement Viewliners.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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I know. Amtrak is so desperate for new equipment, they wouldn't have cut the two florida, trains because southbound meteor, becomes the northbound star, and the southbound star, becomes the northbound meteor. I have heard that from the train crew on both trains, I have yet to prove it though
Posts: 465 | From: elgin (s-line) | Registered: Dec 2008
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quote:Originally posted by amtrak92: I know. Amtrak is so desperate for new equipment, they wouldn't have cut the two florida, trains because southbound meteor, becomes the northbound star, and the southbound star, becomes the northbound meteor. I have heard that from the train crew on both trains, I have yet to prove it though
Well I'm going to be making a fact-finding trip next month. I had hoped to be making a trip on the Adirondack that week BUT family obligations require me to be in Florida instead....
I am, however, getting a couple of days for a train ride and have just booked a Winter Park to Hollywood roundtrip using the Silver Star in both directions.....south on 11/8 and north on 11/9. I also plan a couple of morning jaunts on Tri-Rail before #92 departs northward.
I'll post a report upon my return and let anyone who cares to know whether the Meteor and Star swap consists in Miami.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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