THE AUTO TRAIN

You know what they say; don’t knock it until you have tried it. This applies to many things: to food, to athletics, to events, to places, etc.

In our case it applies to the Auto Train. In case you don’t know, the Auto Train is an Amtrak train that runs north and south between Lorton VA(near Washington DC) and Sanford FL (near Orlando, FL) almost every day of the year. As you would guess they call it the Auto Train because you put not only yourself but your auto on the train.

Thus, you avoid the distinct pleasure of driving south and north on Interstate 95. I95 is a concrete and asphalt slice of Americana: in this case and at this time of year, it is a slow moving parking lot most of the time. Every RV and every slow moving elderly driver is in their car going south.

Wait, that is not exactly true. There are almost 500 old drivers on the Auto Train. My wife and I, while not spring chickens, are on the young side of the Auto Train population. Believe me, if you are driving South at this time on I95, you better be thankful that these almost 500 people are not on the highway with you. I am telling you that they can hardly move about on the train, much less navigate a car. But, when they arrive in Sanford, watch out because these people saddle up and drive their car out on the highways with you and me!

Will we do this again? Since it is now 1:20 in the morning and I am typing this posting after trying to sleep, you can answer that question most likely. The daytime atmosphere was ok. We could see out the windows and then after dark, dinner was pretty good. After that, all Hell broke loose. Most people went to sleep or at least tried to. The snoring is pretty bad. The track noise is pretty bad. The on again off again lights from outside are pretty bad. Do you need a little extended bathroom time? Forget it as the rest rooms are few and the knocks on the door are many, not to mention that some of these people apparently have trouble hitting the commode. The floor was wet and messy. Are you getting the picture?

Well, we had to know what it was like. Yes, I am glad we did it, or are doing it since we have another 6 long hours to go. But, will I do it again? Probably not. I am going to be a zombie today; or will it be tomorrow, or this morning, or whatever the rest of the trip will be. I have lost track.

Give me the heavy traffic and slowdowns any day; at least we will stop somewhere and spend the night in a hotel with a real bed and real food and wake up rested.

Update: it is now the evening of the second day and we are at our destination. Both of our eyes are heavy. We had to take showers just as soon as we arrived, not to mention shaving and brushing teeth. Am now looking forward to getting a good night sleep tonight!