The Coast Starlight along the beachPart of the reason I've been slow to update the blog with recaps since Saturday is because I haven't been able to figure on how I'd like to report on what happened on Saturday. In the end, I decided I'd just tell it straight and start from the beginning. That said however, here's a quick disclaimer; this entry deals with a sad fact of life on the railroad: deadly trespassing. Don't read any further if you're squeamish or if you don't like depressing blog entries.

When you board in First Class, you get a complimentary bottle of champagne or sparkling cider and a free toiletry kit.My trip on the Coast Starlight began the way one would expect. We pulled out of Los Angeles Union Station on-time, I opened the door to my deluxe bedroom to find a bottle of champagne, shampoo, soap, all arranged on the sofa, and quickly retired to the Parlor Car (a First Class lounge only found on the Coast Starlight) in preparation for a trip up north along the Pacific Ocean.

I've ridden this route twice before, so I thought that I knew what to expect. I didn't.

Every time I ride the Coast Starlight I realize that I've forgotten how much I enjoy the train and the scenery. The Parlor Car experience is unmatched anywhere else in Amtrak, short of privately owned cars that make occassional trips on the back of Amtrak trains. The cars feature plush seats, a more private dining area as compared to the dining car, complimentary Wi-Fi, a wine and cheese tasting, and a movie theater (!) downstairs. Unfortunately, the Wi-Fi and Movies rely on a satellite connection that wasn't working the day I rode, so I had to go without those perks (probably just as well, as those would have just distracted me from the scenery). The scenery on the Coast Starlight is among the best and most varied that Amtrak has to offer in its entire national route network. Heading south-to-north, you begin the journey by following the California Pacific coast along innumerable beaches and resort towns. The views are just breathtaking and there are a number of stretches where the train literally rides on the beach; if you were to open a window, you'd get sand and ocean spray in your face. North of San Luis Obispo, the train jogs inland among vineyards and farm country. You go to sleep with the San Francisco skyline in the distance and awake as you're winding your way through the Cascade Mountains in Oregon. It's that combination of varied scenery and amenities that make the Coast Starlight, I think, Amtrak's best route today.

The Pacific Parlor CarAs I sat in the Parlor car, these are the thoughts that were on my mind—I was thinking of what was ahead in my trip: the scenery, the meals, the plush accommodations. That's when it happened.

At first, I didn't realize what it was. It was about noon Pacific time; we had just left Oxnard and were on our way north to Santa Barabara when the train started to slow. I was seated in the Parlor Car facing backward, so it didn't feel like an abrupt brake application to me. But the Parlor Car attendant, who was walking down the center aisle, stumbled. And then I heard the hiss of air being released from the brakes. The expression on the attendant's face became sullen; it was clear she immediately knew what may have happened. She sat down at an empty table, said, "Oh no," and buried her face in her hands.

It didn't take long for me to connect the dots. There were about 10 people in the car at that time and I was clearly the only one—besides the attendant—who had a clue about what was up. I ran back to my room, grabbed my scanner, and turned it on with my earphones connected to keep things quiet. 

The first words I heard were those of the engineer (I'm paraphrasing here), "it was two of them on the west side of the gauge. They appeared to be embracing."

I looked outside and saw the head conductor walking toward the rear of the train.
"Are you sure there's no chance we missed them?" the conductor said.
"No," said the engineer. "Listen, we may need to pull the train forward so the passengers don't see anything."
"No, it's fine," said the conductor. "I see them. They're way back beyond where anyone can see anything."

What the conductor apparently didn't realize, though, is that we were on a curve, and from where I sat, I could see the bodies. The heat waves coming off of the right of way distorted any detail, but I saw enough to know that I didn't need to see anything more. I've always daydreamed about becoming a conductor or engineer one day. At that moment, I knew I was glad to be in the Parlor Car and not walking the tracks having to deal with this.

"Okay," said the conductor. "Yeah," he sighed. "We've got two down. Let's get the local police and coroner out here."

We sat there for the better part of 90 minutes, but it felt like it was only 30. My lunch was served as I sat there in the Parlor Car, listening to the scanner, watching the police walk up and down the trackbed alongside the train. Needless to say, I didn't eat very much. Over the course of that time, the conductor realized that both bodies were breathing. Then a few minutes later the coroner showed up and covered one of the bodies with a sheet. "We have one fatality," said the conductor. Not long after, we were cleared to leave the scene. My understanding from reading the news reports is that one of the trespassers was a male, apparently a local vagrant, and the other was a female. Alcoholic beverages were discovered near the bodies, and news reports have since noted that it appears they may have been trying to run away from the train, but were too late or tripped in the process.

Most of the people on the train had no idea what happened. The only announcements the crew made were along the lines of "Folks, we have to stop here for a bit, but we'll be on our way just as soon as we can. Thanks for your patience." A few people in the Parlor Car caught on when they saw the police walking outside, though, and word quickly spread among the curious. There were two private cars on the rear of the train which were much closer to the site of the accident by the time the train pulled to a stop. I shudder to think of what the view was like from those cars, but hopefully most of it was concealed. 

Once we got moving again, the head conductor brought two passengers—a young woman and her child of maybe 5 or 6 years—into the Parlor Car. He sat them down, pulled the Parlor Car attendant aside and said, "whatever these two folks want to eat, I'm paying for it." He brought a board game over to the girl and gave her a hug and a kiss. I later learned that she was his daughter. It was clear that the incident had affected him in a way that's just too hard to express in words and it really affected me to see it. I later ran into the conductor in the hallway of my sleeping car and told him that he did a fantastic job today. He thanked me, smiled, and shook my hand. Sometimes being a conductor can be a thankless job, and it seemed to me that he appreciated the kind words.

I'll never forget that day, that conductor, that Parlor Car attendant, and those two people laying lifelessly on the tracks. But the reality is that this happens every day around the country. People try to beat trains in their cars. People walk along tracks with earphones in their ears. People get drunk and hang out on the rail bed. It's just a sad fact of the world we live in, but knowing that doesn't prepare you for how to react when you see the worst happen. It scars you.