Finally our train pulled into the station on Track 1 for boarding.
Very reminiscent of European high speed trains. There are diesel powered btw.
There are some pop-up power sockets on the tables if you are seated at those as we were (other seats are airline style back to back to back)
And some with USB sockets in between the seats.
No snack car - the BL folks push a cart twice along the train during the journey selling refreshments.
But it was a beautiful sunny day in the 60s. The train glided slowly out of the Orlando Station at the airport next to Terminal C (International flights) headed north up to Hwy 528 (that runs over to Port Canaveral) and once we got up to speed on that east-west piece of track we were doing 125mph overtaking eastbound traffic easily.
Traffic accident on Hwy 528 brought the cars to a standstill - we were not impeded.
The above picture is clear because we had coasted to a stop for about 60 seconds to allow a BL to blow past us on its way to MCO. I guess two trains passing each at 125mph in opposite directions is too much air turbulence. But we quickly glided back up to speed.
Also, this east-west piece of track from MCO to Cocoa is BL only not Florida East Coast Railroad (FECR) which has been custom built for the higher speeds. I drove past this track during construction on trips back and forth to/from Jetty Park Campground in Cape Canaveral.
Once you reach Cocoa and turn south onto the FECR mainline which has been upgraded for high speed passenger trains, speeds remain 80-90mph but they do slow down going over bridges (rivers), during some passing one of their trains going in the opposite direction (double track), and they do slow to about 50mph (it feels like) when they go through the two towns of Fort Pierce and Stuart whose little downtowns are literally on the other side of the tracks. The scheduled travel time is about 2h10m and we stuck to the timetable pretty much.
WPB is attempting a downtown renaissance with restaurants, shops, and high rise living in the Mediterranean style with clay tile roofs, narrow streets, and tables out on the sidewalk around the WPB station. So we ate lunch at a pizza place then turned around and rode back to Orlando. Mission accomplished. I had visited Flagler Museum about 20 years ago so no biggie on the miss.
We did get to see our friend the Jupiter Lighthouse on the ride back in the distance. Yes we have climbed it but it is special to us because we lived in Jupiter as newlyweds.
I did manage to make a small video clip on the high speed track during our return journey. See how quickly we overtake cars going 75-80mph in the far lane in our direction?
We did get back in time to pack up all the outside stuff and load the bikes because tomorrow we vacate these campsite premises.
Good news is, though, we check into a Fort Wilderness cabin for a single night to relive old memories before the cabins are disposed of.
Gonna live the cabin life for about 24 hours tomorrow.
Bama Ed
PS - today reminds me of the time DS#2 and I were staying on the French Riviera in May and took the train just across the boarder into Italy and got off at the first town/stop to have lunch. We walked through the local market afterwards, got back on the train, and returned to France. All so that we could say we had traveled to Italy on that trip.
After 2 or 3 disappointments, I swore I never would buy another one. And so far I've kept that promise.
