Jim’s chamber music group, in which he plays piano, had a practice in La Jolla yesterday. That meant that I was going to go to La Jolla and points north to explore while they were practicing. “Explore” in the Russel Ray Dictionary means “train watching.”
I went a few miles north, to Del Mar, and parked my car at 200 4th Street.
From there it was a quick walk to the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean and, more importantly, the railroad tracks used by BNSF (at night only, to go to Los Angeles), the Coaster commuter train, and Amtrak. In 2½ hours I got 76 train pictures.
Following are five pictures of Amtrak’s “Pacific Surfliner” which travels between San Luis Obispo and San Diego. It is one of the most beautiful Amtrak routes I’ve been on, and I’ve been on them all! It also is Amtrak’s second busiest route, behind the Northeast Corridor from Boston to New York City to Washington D.C.
Once the southbound train gets through the oceanside cliffs in Del Mar, it heads inland, passing through Torrey Preserve and over a beautiful bridge:
Unfortunately for people like me, Torrey Preserve is a protected and fenced area, and trespassing has significant financial penalties associated with it if one is caught. Best just to buy a telephoto lens and take pictures from the boundary fence.
During weekdays there is a train — Amtrak and Coaster — passing by about every 45 minutes. They will be northbound and southbound, so keep your eyes open in both directions. There are lots of great trails for walking and jogging, and overlook points for great views of the trains as they pass by.
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