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Hollywood fun!
What a great National Train Day I had! Hope you had a great day, too!
Jim and I made it over to Hollywood courtesy of the San Diego Trolley, Amtrak, and the Los Angeles Metro. I must say that after a day on the Los Angeles Metro, it has now risen to my #1 favorite mass transit system. They started building it in 1992, and I believe they did it right, and upcoming expansions will only make it better.
Hollywood was a great place to visit but I wouldn’t want to live there. The last time I went, which I think was in the mid-1990s, it was a prime piece of urban decay. I swore I would never go back. I knew that some big-time Hollywood stars had been leading the charge for urban renewal, and I believe they succeeded beyond anyone’s wildest expectations, so much so that Hollywood now is way overcrowded.
At one of the new malls, a six-story mall located at Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue, children were playing in one of those street fountains that shoots water out of the ground. I got a cute flash video:
Looking for real estate services in San Diego County?
I can highly recommend
James Frimmer, Realtor
Century 21 Award, DRE #01458572
If you’re looking for a home inspector,
I recommend Russel Ray — that’s me!
Happy National Train Day!
Happy National Train Day!
I’m out riding the trains today — San Diego Trolley, Amtrak, and Los Angeles Metro.
I’ll be starting at San Diego Trolley’s 70th Street Station, then to San Diego’s historic Santa Fe Depot, then to the even more historic Union Station in Los Angeles, and finally Metro’s Red Line to Hollywood. To end the day, simply reverse the trip.
I also plan on finally getting to ride the Angel’s Flight Railway after all these years. Seems every time I’ve gone in the past it was either out of service or decommissioned. Unless it breaks in the next 12 hours, it’s up and running.
If you can’t get out to ride the trains today, then at least sit back and watch a few of my train videos.
San Diego Trolley arriving at Santa Fe Depot in San Diego
Amtrak Pacific Surfliner leaving Santa Fe Depot in San Diego
Amtrak Pacific Surfliner arriving at Old Town Station in San Diego
Coaster arriving at Santa Fe Depot in San Diego
Union Pacific Steam Engine #844 near Indio, California, November 2011
Union Pacific Steam Engine #844 at 70 miles per hour
near Indio, California, November 2011
Looking for real estate services in San Diego County?
I can highly recommend
James Frimmer, Realtor
Century 21 Award, DRE #01458572
If you’re looking for a home inspector,
I recommend Russel Ray — that’s me!
National Train Day is this Saturday!
This coming Saturday, May 11, is National Train Day.
In preparation for spending all day Saturday riding trains in San Diego County, Orange County, and Los Angeles County, I went out this morning and took lots of pictures and a few flash videos, all related to trains. Here is a 9-second flash video of the beautiful water fountain at the entrance to the historic Santa Fe Depot in downtown San Diego:
On the street corner in front of the Depot, one can loiter and catch lots of train action, including interaction with cars and people. Those videos are not Flash Videos, though, so they need more processing time. Meanwhile, following are a few pictures from my railroading adventure this morning.
The police vehicle was not occupied and I wandered all over the place hoping to see the fine, furry, four-legged K-9 unit, but no luck.
For those who want to watch a longer video, here’s a 2-minute video of San Diego Trolley action at the Santa Fe Depot in downtown San Diego:
Looking for real estate services in San Diego County?
I can highly recommend
James Frimmer, Realtor
Century 21 Award, DRE #01458572
If you’re looking for a home inspector,
I recommend Russel Ray — that’s me!
Model railroading at Walter Andersen’s Nursery in Poway
Both my dad and granddad worked for Missouri Pacific Railroad in Texas, and since most young boys love trains, I was a very lucky young boy. I still remember riding in the engine or in the caboose the five miles from Kingsville to Bishop, and back. Little boys don’t get those kind of train rides anymore!
I’m still lucky because I live in an area that has lots of trains — Amtrak, Coaster, Metrolink, Sprinter, and the fire-engine red San Diego Trolley.
If I get tired of watching the big boys cruise the County, I can always go to Walter Andersen’s Nursery in Poway and watch the smaller model trains.
What?
You go to a nursery to watch model trains?
Yes. Yes I do.
Walter Andersen’s Nursery in Poway has one of the best model train setups because they use real plants and the water actually flows — in streams, over waterfalls, and under bridges:
The model train layout covers 4,459 square feet. If that was a house in Poway, it would sell for about $1.1 million! Construction required 60 tons of rocks and 600 cubic yards of fill dirt. It uses 7,000 gallons of water and four pumping stations, 45 switches, and about 7,400 feet of wire. There are 15 bridges. For those of you into bridges, the bridges include a Suspension Bridge, King Post Truss, Queen Post Truss, Through Truss, Curved Through Truss, Curved Deck Girder, Chord Truss, Curved Chord Truss, Flat Top Truss, Curved Open Through Truss, and a Deck bridge.
If you want to see the best model railroad in San Diego, head on out to Walter Andersen’s Nursery at 12755 Danielson Court in Poway.
If you’re a guy, and it’s highly likely that this will be an outing for the men and boys, buy some flowers for your honey while you’re there! Roses work nicely to show how you much you missed her and were thinking about her.
If you’re a woman, stop inside, at the back of the building, and buy your man a garden railroad!
Looking for real estate services in San Diego County?
I can highly recommend
James Frimmer, Realtor
Century 21 Award, DRE #01458572
If you’re looking for a home inspector,
I recommend Russel Ray — that’s me!
Public transportation can be educational and inspiring
I’m not ashamed to say that I love public transporation, specifically the trains. Probably has something to do with my granddad, dad, and three uncles working for Missouri Pacific Railroad.
Fortunate am I to live in San Diego where I have access to the San Diego Trolley, Amtrak, the Coaster, the Sprinter, and Metrolink. In fact, every time I move, having a train station fairly close by has always been a requirement. Since 2007 I have lived just three blocks from the San Diego Trolley’s 70th Street Station — a walk down the long hill (longest block ever!) and east two blocks and I’m there.
The 70th Street Station is not my favorite station as far as aesthetics are concerned. The historic Santa Fe Depot and the Grantville Station take the top two spots:
Santa Fe Depot, San Diego, California
San Diego Trolley Grantville Station
However, the 70th Street Station is the most educational and inspiring. At the base of each light pole is that education and inspiration:
Sorry. Plastic flamingos not allowed in this blog.
Many people come to San Diego and then go across the border to Tijuana. If you plan on doing that, might I suggest taking the San Diego Trolley to the San Ysidro border crossing, purportedly the busiest border crossing in the world. Walk across the border and take a Mexican Cab to where you want to go, probably Avenida Revolucion, the hot spot for tourists. If you drive across the border, be prepared to wait to get back into the United States. Car lines are long, and the wait can be up to six hours, although it usually is about 60 to 90 minutes. Be sure to have a passport because after 9/11 a simple driver’s license won’t get you back into the United States, another situation where the terrorists won.
Looking for real estate services in San Diego County?
I can highly recommend
James Frimmer, Realtor
Century 21 Award, DRE #01458572
If you’re looking for a home inspector,
I recommend Russel Ray — that’s me!
What it looks like at 5:15 a.m.
None of my friends are morning people…. need to find some new friends…. so I took a picture of the San Diego Trolley’s 70th Street Station at 5:15 a.m. (0515 for my military friends) for National Train Day.
I also got a picture of San Diego Trolley 0773 arriving at 5:42 a.m. to pick up we early morning risers. I was one of three on Saturday. Led by Car #4002:
Looking for real estate services in San Diego County? I can highly recommend
James Frimmer, Realtor with Century 21 Award, DRE #01458572
If you’re just looking for a home inspector,
I can highly recommend Russel Ray; that’s me!
Out & About San Diego #8 — San Diego: A train rider’s paradise
#8
San Diego: A train rider’s paradise
San Diego is not a hotbed of rail activity, making train watching a hit or miss adventure. However, if you are looking to ride the rails, there’s no better place than San Diego.
Amtrak will get you from downtown San Diego to Los Angeles with a few stops along the way.
The Coaster will get you from downtown San Diego to Oceanside. From there you can take Metrolink to Los Angeles or the Sprinter east to Escondido.
Then there is the San Diego Trolley, or light rail system that has been going strong for 31 years. In August 2011, the Trolley, run by the Metropolitan Transit System, added a vintage PCC streetcar that was built in 1949:
During World War II, streetcar service increased dramatically in cities throughout North America. As soon as the war ended, though, streetcar service began to decline in favor of rubber-wheeled busses which were more maneuverable and required less maintenance. San Diego was the first major city to switch over completely from streetcars to busses, with the last streetcar running in April 1949.
PCC #529 originally operated in San Francisco. It was bought by San Diego Vintage Trolley (a non-profit subsidiary of the Metropolitan Transit System) from a collector in South Lake Tahoe, California. Although it was in poor condition, dozens of volunteers spent more than 10,000 hours over six years restoring it to operating condition, and it made its first run on the downtown loop on August 18, 2011.
San Diego Vintage Trolley has five more streetcars purchased at the same time and which will be renovated for use in San Diego. Two were also used in San Francisco, while the other three were used in New Jersey and southeast Pennsylvania.
Take a ride on PCC #529 on the downtown Silver Line loop with stops at the Gaslamp Quarter, Petco Park, Seaport Village, the harbor, East Village, San Diego Convention Center, America Plaza, the Civic Center, and San Diego City College.
The Silver Line Vintage Trolley takes about 25 minutes to travel the full loop, and travel is in a clockwise direction only, just in case you need to make it somewhere. The fare is just $2, $1 for seniors and disabled. Children five and under ride free. You must have exact change. Although the PCC #529 can accomodate wheelchairs, only one wheelchair can be handled at a time.
The Silver Line operates on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. First departure on Tuesdays and Thursdays is from the 12th & Imperial Transit Center at 9:52 a.m. Last run departs at 1:52 p.m. On Saturdays and Sundays, first run departs from the 12th & Imperial Transit Center at 10:52 am with the last run departing at 3:22 p.m.
If you are interested in helping preserve the history of the San Diego streetcar system or helping with restoration, join the San Diego Electric Railway Association (SDERA). SDERA operates the National City Depot at 922 W. 23rd Street in National City. The historic Santa Fe railroad station has a museum, railroad cars, a large model railroad, and a gift shop. The National City Depot is open Thursday to Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Monthly meetings of SDERA are held at the National City Depot on the second Saturday of the month at 7:30 p.m.
